Specialist insurer Beazley’s Risk & Resilience: Cyber Threat and Tech Advances 2026 report, based on insights from 3,500 business leaders worldwide, identifies a clear disconnect between how organisations perceive their ability to withstand cyber incidents and the scale of the risks they face.
Beazley finds that cyber risk remains the most significant concern across industries, regions and company sizes, yet a large majority of executives continue to express confidence in their financial recovery following an attack.
According to Beazley, 31% of respondents now rank cyber risk, including data privacy failures and criminal activity, as their top concern, up from 29% in 2025, with this trend consistent across major global markets.
Despite this, Beazley reports that 78% of business leaders believe they could fully recover financially from a cyber attack, while 82% say they feel prepared for such risks.
Beazley suggests this reflects a potential underestimation of how quickly the threat landscape is evolving and how far-reaching the impact of incidents can be. At the same time, Beazley notes that 33% of executives plan to increase spending on cyber security, signalling a growing awareness of the need to strengthen defences.
The firm also highlights the increasing role of artificial intelligence in shaping both opportunity and exposure. The report states that 80% of respondents expect AI to improve financial performance, while 72% believe it will replace jobs within the next 18 months, up from 66% in 2025.
Beazley points out that as AI adoption accelerates, organisations must scale governance and oversight alongside technological capability, as both success and failure can move more quickly.
The findings from Beazley indicate that cyber risk is becoming more systemic, with incidents capable of spreading rapidly through interconnected systems, suppliers and digital platforms. Beazley emphasises that resilience is now defined less by preventing disruption and more by limiting how far it spreads, how long it lasts and how effectively a business can recover.
Alessandro Lezzi, Group Head of Cyber Risks at Beazley, commented: “What stands out in this year’s Risk & Resilience survey findings is a growing misalignment between cyber and tech risk concerns and perceived perception of resilience to these risks. While cyber risk is widely recognised as the number one threat facing businesses globally, 78% believe they could fully recover financially from a cyber attack, demonstrating many organisations are overestimating their preparedness to withstand the full impact an attack across all corners of their operations.
“That gap matters because cyber risk is becoming more systemic – the high profile incidences in 2025 only prove this. As businesses become more interconnected and adopt technologies such as AI, disruption can spread faster across organisations and supply chains making incidents harder to contain.
“It’s encouraging to see however that a third of businesses plan to invest in stronger cyber security, including access to specialist expertise to help them better understand their exposure, strengthen incident response and plan for realistic disruption scenarios across the organisation.”
Beazley describes a broader shift in the nature of cyber risk, explaining that it has moved beyond isolated technical issues to become a systemic threat with the potential to affect entire organisations and supply chains over extended periods. The report from Beazley outlines how cyber criminals are increasingly using advanced AI, including agentic systems, to carry out large-scale automated reconnaissance and phishing campaigns.
These attacks operate at speed and scale, taking advantage of highly interconnected technology ecosystems and making them more difficult to detect and contain.
Beazley also points to the growing influence of geopolitical tensions on cyber activity, noting that attacks linked to international conflict can target businesses and infrastructure with little warning. This contributes to what Beazley describes as a more complex threat environment, where organisations face multiple, simultaneous risks that are harder to predict, govern and control.
The report from Beazley further explains that even a relatively small cyber incident can trigger extensive operational and financial consequences, often spreading across supply chains and continuing long after the initial issue is resolved. Despite this, Beazley finds that confidence levels among executives remain high, which may not fully reflect the scale or duration of potential disruption.
Beazley also explores the dual impact of technology, particularly AI, as both a driver of value and a source of risk. While AI can improve efficiency, automate decision-making and enhance data insights, Beazley notes that it also increases exposure by expanding attack surfaces and accelerating the speed at which threats can develop. The report highlights risks such as flawed or biased outputs, lack of transparency in decision-making and the potential for sensitive data exposure.
Governance is identified by Beazley as a key challenge, with existing frameworks often struggling to keep pace with rapid technological change. The report warns that insufficient oversight can allow risks to escalate, particularly where AI systems operate with limited supervision or where controls are not aligned with the speed of innovation.
Beazley emphasises that organisations need continuous monitoring, improved system visibility and stronger management of third-party risks to address these challenges effectively. Tools such as real-time risk monitoring and extended detection and response are highlighted by Beazley as ways to identify vulnerabilities earlier and reduce the likelihood of widespread disruption.
In its assessment of resilience, Beazley argues that businesses must move beyond a focus on prevention alone. The report stresses the importance of embedding resilience into core operations through robust business continuity planning, regular testing and a clear understanding of financial exposure. Beazley also highlights the role of insurance in supporting recovery, while noting that organisations should identify any gaps in coverage and plan accordingly.
Beazley concludes that resilience is an ongoing process rather than a one-off measure. As organisations become more digitally dependent, Beazley states that the ability to respond quickly, limit disruption and recover effectively is increasingly critical. The report suggests that resilience should focus on reducing impact, shortening recovery times and ensuring access to the resources needed to manage incidents.
Overall, Beazley presents a picture of rising cyber risk alongside sustained confidence among business leaders, with the report indicating that organisations may need to reassess their preparedness as threats become more complex, interconnected and difficult to contain.
