Google have just released their Cyber Security forecast for 2026, let’s take a quick summary. Threat actors have been leveraging AI to boost the speed, scale, and precision of their attacks, and this trend will likely accelerate faster than thought through 2026.
From social engineering and malware development to large-scale information operations, AI is now a critical weapon in the cybercrime arsenal.
Attackers are increasingly using agentic AI systems — essentially automated “digital attackers” that can execute multiple steps of an attack independently. In brass tacks, it means less manual effort for hackers and faster, more coordinated attacks.
We’re also seeing more attention around AI-specific threats like prompt injection and direct targeting of AI models — both of which are expected to grow in scale and sophistication next year.
AI might promise innovation and efficiency, but it’s also creating new risks — and one of the most serious is prompt injection.
This technique manipulates an AI model into ignoring its own safety rules and following a hidden command planted by an attacker. In short, it tricks AI into working against its users.
And this isn’t some far-off risk — it’s happening now. As more businesses integrate AI into their daily workflows, the number of prompt injection attacks is expected to skyrocket in 2026. These attacks are cheap, effective, and increasingly sophisticated — making them extremely appealing to threat actors.
Major players like Google are already working on multi-layered defences against this threat. This includes model hardening, filtering malicious instructions, reinforcing security intent, and requiring confirmation for risky outputs. But as AI evolves, so do the attackers — and staying ahead is going to be a constant challenge.
Social engineering has always targeted human behaviour — but with AI, it’s now smarter, faster, and more convincing than ever.
Groups like ShinyHunters (UNC6240) are leading the charge, moving away from technical exploits and focusing instead on exploiting people. Expect to see more AI-driven vishing (voice phishing) campaigns in 2026, powered by advanced voice cloning that can convincingly mimic executives or IT staff.
AI is also making it easier for attackers to research their targets, create hyper-realistic phishing emails, and scale their efforts with minimal effort. Since these attacks target people, not systems, they often bypass traditional security tools entirely.
Given how successful these campaigns have been, and how hard it is to catch the people behind them, we’re expecting a sharp increase in AI-powered social engineering in 2026. Businesses need to step up their internal verification processes and ensure multiple checks and balances are in place before any sensitive actions are taken.
AI agents — autonomous systems capable of making decisions and executing workflows — are set to revolutionise how organisations operate. But they’ll also introduce a brand-new set of security challenges.
Traditional security systems weren’t designed for non-human operators, and that’s about to change. Businesses will need new frameworks and tools to map their AI ecosystems and assess where the vulnerabilities lie.
A major part of this shift will centre around identity and access management (IAM). AI agents will soon have their own digital identities, requiring systems that can manage and authenticate them dynamically. Expect to see the rise of agentic identity management, featuring adaptive, AI-driven risk assessments and context-aware access control.
The goal? To ensure that even these digital “colleagues” follow the same principles of least privilege, just-in-time access, and strict delegation to prevent misuse or privilege creep.
AI is reshaping Cyber Security faster than anyone anticipated. The same tools that make businesses more efficient are also arming attackers with unprecedented capabilities.
If you want to learn more, here is the Google forecast report.
We hope you’ve liked this blog. Stay tuned for more blogs like this. Stay safe!
