HackerOne report points to widening AI security gap as deployments grow
HackerOne report points to widening AI security gap as deployments grow
Publish Date: 2026-03-15 08:22:00
Source Domain: www.cybersecurity-insiders.com
Organizations are rapidly expanding their use of artificial intelligence, but many are not testing those systems at the same pace, according to new research from HackerOne. The report identifies what the company calls an AI security gap, describing a disconnect between AI adoption and formal security testing.
The study finds that AI use has grown significantly over the past year. Ninety four percent of respondents report operating more AI or machine learning systems than they did a year ago. Despite that growth, testing coverage remains uneven. Only 66% of organizations say they formally test 61% or more of their AI or ML systems, creating a 28 point AI security gap.
Organizations operating within that gap appear more likely to encounter security issues tied to AI. According to the survey, 89% of security leaders at organizations with limited testing coverage reported AI related attacks or vulnerabilities during the past year.
The report also highlights the financial impact of inadequate testing. Security leaders working in environments where AI testing coverage is limited report 70% higher annual remediation costs compared with organizations that test nearly all of their AI systems.
“AI systems are dynamic, evolving with every model update, integration, and data connection and the same is true of modern digital systems overall,” said Kara Sprague, CEO of HackerOne. “As systems become more interconnected and adaptive, risk evolves in real time. Periodic testing assumed stability. Today’s reality requires continuous testing so leaders can detect change, identify what’s exploitable, and mitigate risk before it materializes.”
The findings are based on a survey of more than 300 security leaders across six countries and highlight structural trends shaping AI risk exposure:
• AI risk compounds as deployments scale: Organizations that expanded from a small AI footprint of two systems to a larger footprint of eight to 10 systems…
