Report by KnowBe4
The State of Human Risk 2025
Key Findings
93% of cybersecurity leaders reported incidents caused by cybercriminals exploiting employees.
Email-related incidents increased by 57%.
90% of organizations experienced incidents caused by employee mistakes.
97% of cybersecurity leaders feel the need for increased budget allocations to bolster the security of the human element.
Incidents relating to the human element surged by 90%.
AI applications experienced a 43% increase in security incidents over the past 12 months, marking the second-largest increase across all channels.
45% of cybersecurity leaders cited constantly evolving AI threats as their greatest challenge when tackling behavioral risk.
64% of organizations fell victim to external attacks that exploited employees through email.
Malicious insiders accounted for incidents at 36% of organizations.
56% of employees are unhappy with their company's approach to AI tools, which can drive them toward unsanctioned platforms and creating 'shadow AI' risks.
32% of organizations reported increased incidents related to deepfakes.