Gigamon survey finds AI drives hybrid cloud breach rise to 55%

Gigamon's 2025 Hybrid Cloud Security Survey reports that organisations are facing increased pressure from AI-driven cyber threats and rising breach rates, particularly in hybrid and public cloud environments.

The survey, conducted across more than 1,000 Security and IT leaders from several countries including the UK, France, Germany, Australia, Singapore, and the United States, finds that breach rates have climbed to 55 percent in the past year. This marks a 17 percent year-on-year rise, with respondents attributing much of this growth to AI-generated attacks.

The report highlights a shift in priorities as security and IT teams contend with sophisticated adversaries, growing network complexity, and constraints presented by ineffective security tools. The World Economic Forum estimates the economic impact of cybercrime at USD $3 trillion globally.

According to the survey data, 46 percent of Security and IT leaders state that managing AI-generated threats is now their leading security priority. Network data volumes have increased significantly, with one in three organisations reporting a doubling in the past two years due to AI workloads. Nearly half of respondents (47 percent) have observed a rise in attacks specifically targeting their large language model deployments.

Additionally, 58 percent report a surge in AI-powered ransomware attacks, up from 41 percent in 2024, signalling an escalation in the use of AI among cybercriminals.

The study identifies that nine in ten (91 percent) Security and IT leaders admit they are compelled to make compromises in securing and managing hybrid cloud infrastructure. These trade-offs are linked to challenges such as a shortage of clean, high-quality data for secure AI deployment (46 percent) and inadequate insight into their environments, including visibility over lateral traffic movement (47 percent).

Concerns regarding public cloud security are also apparent. Seventy percent of Security and IT leaders view public cloud environments as riskier than any other setting, with as many organisations actively considering moving data from public to private clouds due to security considerations. Furthermore, 54 percent express reluctance to deploy AI in public clouds over intellectual property protection worries.

Visibility within IT environments has become a central focus for many organisations. The survey shows 55 percent of respondents lack confidence in their current tools' breach detection capabilities, predominantly due to limited visibility. In response, 64 percent have identified the achievement of real-time threat monitoring through full visibility into all data in motion as their primary objective for the coming year.

Nearly 89 percent of Security and IT leaders surveyed cite deep observability as fundamental to securing and managing hybrid cloud infrastructures. At the executive level, 83 percent indicate that deep observability is now being addressed in board discussions as a means of better protecting hybrid cloud assets.

Mark Jow, Technical Evangelist, EMEA, at Gigamon, commented on the findings, stating, "Security teams are struggling to keep pace with the speed of AI adoption and the growing complexity and vulnerability of public cloud environments. Deep observability addresses this challenge by combining MELT data with network-derived telemetry such as packets, flows, and metadata, delivering increased visibility and a more informed view of risk. It enables teams to close visibility gaps, regain control, and act proactively with increased confidence. With 90 percent of Security and IT leaders agreeing it is critical to securing AI deployments, deep observability is fast becoming a strategic imperative."

Mark Walmsley, Chief Information Security Officer at Freshfields, said, "With nearly half of organizations saying attackers are already targeting their large language models, AI security can't be an afterthought, it needs to be a top priority. The key to staying ahead? Visibility. When we can clearly see what's happening across AI systems and data flows, we can cut through the noise and manage risk more effectively. Deep observability helps us spot vulnerabilities early and put the right protections in place before issues arise."

The 2025 Hybrid Cloud Security Survey was commissioned by Gigamon and conducted in collaboration with Vitreous World through an online survey during February and March 2025.