AI Drives 2025 Purchases – But Not Without Questions
▼ Summary
– Most organizations are adopting AI in cybersecurity, with 73% already using it and financial services leading at over 80% adoption.
– CISOs prefer vendors to integrate AI into existing tools due to limited in-house expertise and resources for direct implementation.
– AI is primarily sought for improving breach response, automation of 24/7 operations, and handling tier 1 tasks to reduce staff workload.
– While optimistic about AI’s benefits for threat detection, organizations have concerns about data privacy, costs, and lack of governance policies.
– Human oversight remains crucial, with AI expected to shift analysts’ roles to higher-value tasks like threat hunting and alert validation.
Artificial intelligence is rapidly becoming a decisive factor in cybersecurity purchasing decisions for 2025, with organizations across sectors actively integrating AI tools into their defense strategies. While enthusiasm runs high, security leaders are also weighing significant concerns around implementation, cost, and data governance.
A recent industry study reveals that 73 percent of organizations have already incorporated AI into their cybersecurity programs, with adoption rates highest in financial services. Nearly every respondent indicated that AI will shape their security investments over the coming year, influencing an estimated 39 percent of new technology acquisitions on average.
Many CISOs are looking to vendors to lead the integration of AI, acknowledging that in-house expertise may be insufficient. As one industry expert observed, security teams are often stretched thin, making direct implementation challenging. This has prompted a shift toward relying on established providers to embed AI within existing platforms.
Enhancing breach response capabilities remains a critical driver. An overwhelming 97 percent of organizations are seeking better threat response readiness, with about half already evaluating AI-powered tools to accelerate containment and improve outcomes. There is also strong interest in using AI for automation—nearly three out of four organizations plan to leverage it to enable round-the-clock security operations. By handling routine tasks like initial detection and triage, AI can help smaller teams focus on more complex investigations.
Trust in AI is generally high among security professionals, with two-thirds anticipating a positive impact on their programs within the next year. Almost 80 percent believe AI will enhance their ability to identify novel or hard-to-detect threats.
However, these optimistic outlooks are balanced by practical concerns. A third of organizations worry about data privacy, particularly when using generative AI models that may inadvertently expose sensitive information. Cost presents another barrier, with 30 percent of leaders questioning the return on investment. Additional challenges include the absence of clear usage policies and a shortage of skilled personnel to manage AI systems.
As one AI executive emphasized, while the transformative potential of AI is undeniable, it must be introduced with caution. New technology always carries risk, and in this case, those risks include data leakage and privacy issues—especially when deployed without robust governance.
Most organizations agree that AI will not replace human analysts but will instead redefine their roles. More than two-thirds of respondents expect that AI tools will still require substantial human oversight. The focus will shift from repetitive tasks to higher-value activities such as alert validation, threat hunting, and advanced incident response. Upskilling existing staff is widely seen as essential to navigating this transition successfully.
(Source: HelpNet Security)
