AI adoption is leading organizations to sacrifice security for speed, with identity controls facing the brunt of this trade-off, according to a new report from Delinea, a provider of identity security solutions for human and AI agent identities. The 2026 Identity Security Report reveals that 90% of organizations are compelling their security teams to relax identity controls in favor of quicker deployment of AI tools.
Leadership in these enterprises is prioritizing accelerated adoption to enhance productivity, often at the cost of robust security measures. This rapid shift leaves organizations vulnerable to significant security risks, as many are fast-tracking AI initiatives without adequate identity discovery, monitoring, and privilege control.
“The pressure to move fast on AI is real, but identity governance has not kept pace, which exposes enterprises to significant risk,” stated Art Gilliland, CEO of Delinea. The report surveyed over 2,000 IT decision-makers actively using or piloting AI, revealing that 90% reported at least one identity visibility gap. The most pronounced of these gaps pertained to machine and non-human identities (NHIs), including accounts operated by AI agents.
Gilliland emphasized the growing concern: “As AI agents multiply across enterprise environments, these identities often have the least oversight. The organizations that will succeed in the AI era will be the ones that enforce real-time, contextual access across every human, machine, and agentic AI identity.”
Other notable findings from the report highlight the emerging risks associated with non-human identities. Forty-two percent of organizations identified AI expansion as a primary factor increasing NHI risk over the past year, overshadowing other challenges such as increased automation and cloud-native workloads, both reported at 26%. Furthermore, 80% of organizations indicated they struggle to fully understand the reasons behind privileged actions taken by NHIs, underscoring a lack of traceability and accountability for automated identities.
Despite these challenges, many enterprises continue to rely on outdated security practices. Fifty-nine percent reported having no viable alternatives to standing privileged access for NHIs and AI agents, increasing the risk of unauthorized exploitation of these persistent permissions. This trend indicates that traditional identity protections have not kept pace with the rapid evolution of AI, creating an expanding attack surface for potential bad actors.
The report suggests that as organizations allow their security protocols to become lax, traditional security models will be further compromised by the proliferation of AI-related identities and access points. “Clearly, organizations can’t afford to slow down AI adoption,” Delinea noted, stressing the necessity for identity security to evolve in tandem with the integration of AI technologies.
The implications of this research are significant for enterprises navigating the complexities of modern technology. As organizations race to leverage AI for competitive advantage, a strategic reassessment of identity security measures is essential to mitigate risks and ensure long-term viability in an increasingly automated landscape. The full report is accessible on the Delinea website.
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