Cyber-enabled fraud overtakes ransomware as CEOs top concern: WEF study

New Delhi, Jan 12 (PTI) Cyber-enabled fraud has overtaken ransomware as the top-most concern for CEOs globally while a vast majority of them expect AI to be the biggest force shaping cybersecurity this year, a new study by the World Economic Forum showed on Monday.

In its fifth annual Global Cybersecurty Outlook, the World Economic Forum (WEF) listed artificial intelligence, geopolitical fragmentation and a surge in cyber-enabled fraud as redefining the global cyber risk landscape at an unprecedented speed.

The report, developed in collaboration with Accenture and drawing on insights from 804 global business leaders in 92 countries, found that geopolitical volatility is weakening confidence in national cyber preparedness, with 31 per cent reporting

low confidence in their nations’ ability to respond to critical infrastructure attacks.

The respondents, which included 105 CEOs, 316 chief information security officers and 123 other C-suite executives, including chief technology officers and chief risk officers, highlighted that cyber-enabled fraud has become a pervasive threat in a shift underscoring the growing societal and economic impact of fraud as it spreads across regions and sectors.

The report underlined how AI is supercharging both offensive and defensive capabilities, while geopolitical fragmentation further compounds these risks, reshaping cybersecurity strategies and widening preparedness gaps across regions.

The new findings pointed to a cyber landscape undergoing profound structural shifts, where cyber resilience can no longer be approached as a technical function alone but as a strategic requirement that underpins economic stability, national resilience and public trust.

“As cyber risks become more interconnected and consequential, cyber-enabled fraud has emerged as one of the most disruptive forces in the digital economy, undermining trust, distorting markets and directly affecting people’s lives,” WEF Managing Director Jeremy Jurgens said.

“The challenge for leaders is no longer just understanding the threat but acting collectively to stay ahead of it. Building meaningful cyber resilience will require coordinated action across governments, businesses and technology providers to protect trust and stability in an increasingly AI-driven world,” he added.

“The weaponization of AI, persistent geopolitical friction and systemic supply chain risks are upending traditional cyber defences. For C-suite leaders, the imperative is clear; they must pivot from traditional cyber protection to cyber defence powered by advanced and agentic AI to be resilient against AI-driven threat actors,” said Paolo Dal Cin, global lead, Accenture Cybersecurity.

According to the study, AI-related vulnerabilities rose faster than any other category in 2025, with 87 per cent of respondents reporting an increase.

Data leaks linked to generative AI (34 per cent) and advancing adversarial capabilities (29 per cent) have emerged among the leading concerns for 2026. As many as 94 per cent of leaders expect AI to be the most consequential force shaping cybersecurity in 2026.

A striking 73 per cent of respondents were or knew someone directly affected in 2025 and CEOs now rank fraud and phishing ahead of ransomware as their top concerns.

The report called on leaders across sectors to move beyond isolated efforts and commit to raising the collective baseline by sharing intelligence, aligning standards and investing in the capabilities needed to ensure all organisations can benefit from a more secure and resilient digital environment.

The findings are likely to be discussed in detail during various sessions at the WEF Annual Meeting in Swiss alpine town of Davos next week from January 19-23. PTI BJ bj ANU ANU