TAMPA, Fla. — Oct. 27, 2026 — OPSWAT, a global leader in critical infrastructure protection (CIP) cybersecurity solutions, today announced findings from “The 2026 Enterprise File Security Report: AI Is Exposing the File Security Gap.” Conducted by Osterman Research, the comprehensive survey of 254 US-based IT and security leaders reveals a disconnect between how secure organizations believe their file lifecycles are and the effectiveness of their defenses in the AI era.
AI is accelerating the volume and sophistication of cyber threats. Three out of five organizations (59%) said they expect AI to make file security more time consuming for their IT and security teams. Concern about AI-driven threats against files 78.9% from 12 months ago to the level anticipated 12 months from now, with fears surrounding generative AI and large language model (LLM) threats increasing the sharpest, by 105%. Furthermore, 68.1% of security leaders said that cybercriminals are more focused on circumventing their file security protections than 12 months ago.
Confidence Outruns Capability
Three out of four organizations (73.6%) self-assessed their organization's file security posture as "very" or "extremely" mature. When Osterman Research scored each respondent’s survey answers against an evidence-based maturity framework, however, no organization (0%) gave evidence of either of the top two maturity levels, and 85.8% evidenced no more than "somewhat mature."
What leaders believe about their security posture is unsupported by their own answers. For example, 94.5% over-assessed their maturity compared to the evidence of their file security posture. Furthermore, security leaders reported higher average confidence in detecting and preventing new and emerging threats (60.6%) than long-running threats like malware (56.6%). Against polymorphic threats that actively evade signature-based defenses, extreme confidence dropped to just 12.2%.
The takeaway from this research is the vast distance between perceived security and evidenced reality. By comparing organizations’ actual capabilities against their self-ratings, we found a gap that AI-driven threats will severely test organizations over the next 12 to 24 months. You cannot defend against what you incorrectly assume is already protected.
Michael SampsonPrincipal Analyst at Osterman Research and author of the report
From Detection to Prevention
The financial and operational costs of this security gap are significant. In the past two years, two out of five organizations (41.7%) suffered file-related breaches or security incidents, costing an average of $2.2 million. The true breach rate is likely much higher, as 83% of those reporting no incidents admitted they lack full visibility into their file lifecycles. In other words, they couldn’t rule out a breach. Less than one in five of organizations (16.9%) claimed complete visibility into files entering, moving within, and leaving their networks.
Many still endorse detection-based approaches, but some in the industry are signaling a need for change. Of all security posture statements tested, organizations most highly rated (27.2% strong agreement) that a paradigm shift away from a "detection-first" posture is urgently required.
Content disarm and reconstruction (CDR), which neutralizes threats by removing potentially malicious components from files, is already used by 51.6% of organizations, and another 8.3% plan to deploy it within 12 months, one of the highest planned adoption rates among the file security methods examined. This current increase speaks to the growing need for a prevention first methodology to better manage today’s threat landscape.
Detection-first is reaching its limits, and this latest research shows security leaders acknowledge it. When AI-generated threats appear daily, a control that has to recognize a threat first will always be a step behind. Prevention-first changes the question from which threats you caught to which classes of risk you addressed.
George PrichiciOPSWAT 產品副總裁
Where organizations failed to deploy modern file security prevention methods, the top two barriers were a lack of senior leadership support and a lack of knowledge about the methods themselves. Budget ranked third, suggesting that file security is currently more an executive-education problem than a spending problem.
Download the Report and Join the Webinar
To read the full findings, including an actionable roadmap for improving file security and transitioning to a prevention-first architecture, download the 2026 Enterprise File Security Report.
For a deep dive into the data, register for the webinar with Osterman Research Principal Analyst Michael Sampson and OPSWAT experts on November 12.
關於 OPSWAT
自 2002OPSWAT 透過在已知、未知及由人工智慧生成的威脅干擾營運之前加以防範OPSWAT 全球關鍵基礎設施。MetaDefender™ 平台是OPSWAT專為 IT、OT 及跨領域環境OPSWAT的人工智慧驅動網路安全平台，可保障橫跨雲端、本地端及物理隔離環境中的檔案、裝置與資料傳輸安全。 透過整合人工智慧、機器學習、進階威脅防禦及專用硬體OPSWAT 藉由檔案安全、周邊媒體防護、受管檔案傳輸、光學防火牆技術、資料二極體以及專業培訓OPSWAT 關鍵營運OPSWAT 。OPSWAT 深受全球信賴，OPSWAT 現代社會所倚賴的系統。請造訪opswat 了解更多資訊。
FAQ: Key Findings
What is the biggest takeaway from this report?
Most organizations don’t know they have a file security problem. While 73.6% of IT and security leaders believe their file security is highly mature, evidence-based scoring of their capabilities revealed that no organization meets top-tier maturity standards.
How is AI impacting file security?
General concern over AI-driven threats rose by an average of 78.9% from 12 months ago to the level anticipated 12 months from now, concern specifically regarding generative AI and LLM threats has grown by 105% in 12 months, and 59% of organizations said they expect AI to make file security more time consuming for their IT and security teams.
Are file-related breaches common?
Yes. Over 41% of organizations experienced file-related security incidents or breaches in the past two years, with the average total cost reaching $2.2 million. Furthermore, because 83% of organizations that reported no incidents lack full visibility into their file lifecycles, the true number of breaches is likely higher.
What is keeping organizations from upgrading their file security?
The top two reasons organizations have not deployed advanced prevention methods are a lack of senior leadership support and a lack of knowledge about the solutions. Budget was the third most common barrier.
What needs to change to close this security gap?
The report found that organizations must shift away from a "detection-first" mentality to a "prevention-first" posture to defend against sophisticated, evasive, and AI-driven threats.
