The State of Enterprise Cybersecurity in the UK - 2026 Outlook
New Peritus report reveals the pressures, priorities and realities facing UK security leaders in the year ahead
The cybersecurity landscape for large UK enterprises is entering a new phase. Phishing continues to grow more sophisticated, ransomware groups are evolving their playbooks, and attackers are rapidly adopting AI to scale their operations. At the same time, CISOs must prepare their organisations for tighter regulations, heightened board scrutiny and an ever-expanding digital estate that spans cloud, remote work and complex supply chains.
To help security leaders navigate what’s coming, we’ve published a new report:
👉 Read Now: The State of Enterprise Cybersecurity in the UK — 2026 Outlook
The insights draw on conversations with CISOs across the UK and highlight what will matter most in the year ahead.
Threats Are Evolving Faster Than Defences
Phishing remains the UK’s most common attack vector — but is now powered by AI, generating highly convincing, context-aware messages at scale. Deepfake voice scams and hybrid email/phone impersonation attacks are also rising, blurring the lines between digital and human risk.
Ransomware continues to dominate the threat landscape, with attackers shifting to multi-layered extortion, operational disruption and data theft. Recovery remains costly and complex.
Regulation and Governance Will Tighten
2026 will see continued regulatory movement, from NIS2 alignment to the UK’s emerging Cyber Security and Resilience Act. CISOs will need to demonstrate stronger governance, clearer reporting and greater control across cloud, identity and supply chain environments.
An encouraging trend: board-level engagement continues to grow. More UK executives now view cybersecurity as a core business risk, not a technical concern — a shift essential for long-term resilience.
Hybrid Work, Cloud Expansion and Supply Chain Complexity Are Here to Stay
Remote and hybrid environments remain a major challenge for visibility and control. Cloud usage continues to rise, bringing both agility and misconfiguration risk. Supply chain dependencies have deepened, increasing the likelihood that an incident will originate outside the organisation.
These structural realities are shaping 2026 security priorities, driving widespread adoption of Zero Trust principles and continuous monitoring.
What CISOs Must Prioritise in 2026
CISOs enter 2026 facing pressure to deliver strong security outcomes despite constrained budgets and a persistent skills shortage. Yet the path forward is clear:
strengthen cloud and identity controls
modernise detection and response
build organisational resilience
invest in people and culture
align risk decisions with business outcomes
With executive support growing and defensive technologies maturing, UK CISOs have an opportunity to meaningfully strengthen their security posture in the year ahead.
How Peritus Cloud Security Supports CISOs in 2026
Our services are designed around the exact challenges outlined in the report — from cloud hardening to phishing defence, Zero Trust architecture, vCISO support and third-party risk assurance.