One in all my first intentional “to-dos” this 12 months has been spending time with the World Financial Discussion board’s International Cybersecurity Outlook 2026, a report I used to be privileged to actively contribute to over the previous 12 months.
For KnowBe4 prospects, this report presents greater than pattern evaluation. It supplies a baseline of the place organizations stand in the present day, what separates resilient organizations from much less resilient ones, and why the human issue is now central to cyber resilience.
Beneath are among the insights that stood out most to me, considered by means of a human-centric cybersecurity lens.
Cybersecurity Has Turn into Private
Cyber-enabled fraud and phishing have overtaken ransomware as CEOs’ prime cybersecurity concern in 2026. In keeping with the report, 73% of respondents stated they, or somebody near them, have been personally affected by cyber-enabled fraud final 12 months.
This shift issues. Cyber danger is not restricted to IT groups or organisations; it’s impacting households, communities, and belief itself.
Publicity to cyber-enabled fraud and phishing / social engineering is highest in:
- Sub-Saharan Africa (82%)
- North America (79%)
- Latin America & the Caribbean (77%)
This reinforces the significance of safety consciousness, behavioral resilience, and empowering people to acknowledge and resist manipulation.
AI-Associated Vulnerabilities Are Rising Quick
AI is reshaping the cyber risk panorama on each side.
The report exhibits that 87% of leaders are most involved about AI-related vulnerabilities, notably:
- Information leaks
- Growing sophistication of adversaries
- The technical safety of the AI methods themselves
Apparently, extremely resilient organizations are already centered on AI-driven dangers, whereas much less resilient organizations stay primarily involved with fraud and phishing. This highlights a rising maturity hole in how organizations anticipate and put together for rising threats.
AI hasn’t eliminated the human from cybersecurity, it has amplified the significance of human judgment, consideration, and decision-making.
Cyber Inequity Is Widening, by Area and Sector
Some of the sobering findings is the widening hole in cyber resilience.
Confidence in nationwide preparedness to reply to main cyber incidents is lowest in sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America. Organizations in these areas additionally report among the weakest resilience ranges, regardless of dealing with among the highest publicity to cyber-enabled fraud.
Sectoral variations are equally pronounced:
- 37% of NGOs price their cyber resilience as inadequate
- 23% of public-sector organizations report inadequate resilience
- In comparison with 11% within the non-public sector
Abilities shortages stay a important constraint. Round 70% of CEOs in sub-Saharan Africa and 69% in Latin America & the Caribbean say they lack the folks and expertise wanted to satisfy present cybersecurity aims.
Excessive danger mixed with low capability is a resilience hole organizations can not afford to disregard.
Resilience Is More and more Collective
The strongest sign within the report is evident: probably the most resilient organizations are usually not appearing alone.
They put money into:
- Collaboration with companions, friends, and governments
- Risk intelligence sharing
- Steady growth of individuals and expertise
Cyber resilience in the present day is much less about remoted controls and extra about shared duty, collective protection, and robust safety tradition.
This intently aligns with what we see at KnowBe4 each day: folks stay the primary and final line of protection.
Closing Reflection
Contributing to the International Cybersecurity Outlook 2026 strengthened a easy reality:
You’ll be able to’t automate your means out of human vulnerability, however you may design methods, expertise, and cultures that help higher judgment.
As organizations plan for the 12 months forward, my hope is that this report serves not simply as a benchmark, however as a immediate to take a position extra deliberately in folks, tradition, and resilience.
The 2026 Outlook confirms what many KnowBe4 prospects already acknowledge: know-how alone isn’t sufficient.
Constructing cyber resilience requires:
- Empowering workers to acknowledge manipulation
- Strengthening safety tradition and decision-making by means of AI empowered collaboration
- Investing in steady consciousness and expertise growth
KnowBe4 prepares the trendy workforce by coaching each people and AI brokers to acknowledge and reply to safety dangers. By means of this unified strategy, KnowBe4 leads workforce belief administration and protection methods.
