Cyber risk is now a business‑wide threat, disrupting operations and driving losses across interconnected supply chains
London, UK (Apr. 28, 2026) – Beazley, the leading specialty insurer, has released its latest Risk & Resilience report: Cyber Threat and Tech Advances.
The new 2026 report, based on a survey of 3,500 global business leaders, reveals a growing disconnect between confidence and resilience. Cyber remains the top risk for businesses of all sizes, sectors and regions, yet the survey found that 83% of US business leaders still report confidence in their ability to fully financially recover from an attack.
Among the key findings:
- 30% rank cyber risk – including data privacy failures and external criminal threats – as their top cyber concern.
- Cyber risk is now a common concern across all major markets (see chart below).
- 83% say they are confident their business could fully recover from the financial impact of a cyber attack. However, 38% of US executives also say they plan to invest in stronger cyber security.
- 83% believe they are prepared for cyber risk, suggesting potential underestimation of a rapidly evolving threat environment.
- 85% expect AI to boost their bottom line, and 71% expect it to replace jobs in their business over the next 18 months, unchanged from 2025.
The findings suggest a gap between confidence and reality as cyber risk becomes more systemic. Incidents can spread quickly through shared platforms, suppliers and digital dependencies, meaning resilience is defined less by whether disruption occurs than by how far it spreads, how long it lasts and how quickly a business recovers.
And as adoption of AI accelerates, both opportunity and failure move faster, increasing the need to scale controls alongside capability.
Alessandro Lezzi, Group Head of Cyber Risks at Beazley, said: “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 recognized as the number one threat facing businesses globally, 83% of execs in the US believe they could fully recover financially from a cyber attack, demonstrating many organizations 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 organizations and supply chains making incidents harder to contain.
“It’s encouraging to see however that over a third of US 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 organization.”
Spotlight on Cyber Threats & Tech Advances 2026: Resilience in an AI‑accelerated threat era
Cyber threats intensify. Tech advances. Resilience needs an urgent rethink. As technology accelerates, so do both opportunity and exposure. AI‑enabled cyber attacks are growing, supplier‑driven contagion is more common, and evolving regulations are extending both the cost and duration of incidents across IT, operations, finance, legal and reputation. Although leaders appear confident in their long‑term recovery capability, incidents often disrupt the business far longer than the technical recovery window.
Resilient organisations are responding by strengthening scenario testing and governance, investing in early‑detection capabilities such as Managed Extended Detection & Response (MXDR) and exposure management services, and ensuring insurance coverage aligns to realistic recovery timelines and cyber‑physical loss scenarios.
Ultimately, resilience is less about preventing every attack and more about reducing impact – and ensuring the right capabilities, services and financial resources are in place to support recovery.
Download the full report or access regional deep dives.
Survey Methodology
In January 2026, Beazley partnered with research firm Opinion Matters to survey 3,500 business leaders from internationally operating companies based in the UK, US, Canada, Singapore, France, Germany, and Spain.
Respondents represented a range of company sizes, from US$/CA$/SG$/GB£/EUR€ 250,000 to over 1 billion in annual revenue, across all surveyed markets.
The main survey was conducted between 5th–13th January 2026. This annual Risk & Resilience Survey began in 2021 with 1,000 respondents from the UK and US. It expanded to 2,000 in 2022–2023 with the addition of Canada and Singapore, and to 3,500 in 2024 with France, Germany, and Spain.
About Beazley
Beazley plc (BEZ.L) is the parent company of specialist insurance businesses with operations in Europe, North America, Latin America, Bermuda and Asia. Beazley manages six Lloyd’s syndicates and, in 2025, underwrote gross premiums worldwide of $6,100.7 million. All Lloyd’s syndicates are rated ‘A+’ by A.M. Best.
Beazley’s underwriters in the United States focus on writing a range of specialist insurance products. In the admitted market, coverage is provided by Beazley Insurance Company, Inc., an A.M. Best ‘A’ rated carrier licensed in all 50 states. In the surplus lines market, coverage is provided by the Beazley syndicates at Lloyd’s.
Beazley’s European insurance company, Beazley Insurance dac, is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland and is ‘A’ rated by A.M. Best and ‘A+’ by Fitch.
Beazley’s Bermuda entity, Beazley Bermuda Insurance Limited, is ‘A’ rated by A.M. Best and regulated by the Bermuda Monetary Authority
Beazley is a market leader in many of its chosen lines, which include Directors & Officers, Financial Lines, Cyber, Property, Marine and Aviation, Reinsurance, Accident and Life, and Political Risks and Contingency business. For more information, please visit www.beazley.com.
SOURCE: Beazley Group via Omnia Partners
Tags: Beazley, cyber attacks, cyber risk, cyber security, United States (USA)
