Cyber fraud most pervasive global threat for CEOs: report

A new report from the World Economic Forum (WEF) has revealed that cyber-enabled fraud is now one of the top concerns of CEOs worldwide, alongside artificial intelligence (AI) and geopolitical fragmentation.

The report, titled the ‘World Economic Forum’s Global Cybersecurity Outlook 2026,’ was produced by the WEF—a Switzerland-based international non-governmental organization and advocacy think tank—in collaboration with multinational professional services company Accenture, and was based on a survey of 804 global business leaders in 92 countries, including 105 CEOs, 316 chief information security officers and 123 other C-suite executives.

Among its key findings was that cyber-enabled fraud has become an increasingly pervasive threat, and that CEOs now rank fraud and phishing ahead of ransomware as their top concerns. In 2025, 73% of respondents reported that they were or knew someone directly affected by fraud or phishing.

“This shift underscores the growing societal and economic impact of fraud as it spreads across regions and sectors,” said the WEF.

The report also highlighted how AI is “supercharging” both offensive and defensive capabilities “at an unprecedented speed.” This problem is further compounded by geopolitical fragmentation, which is “reshaping cybersecurity strategies and widening preparedness gaps across regions.”

According to the report, 87% of respondents reported experiencing an increase in AI-related vulnerabilities last year, and 94% of leaders expect AI to be the most significant force shaping cybersecurity in 2026. Meanwhile, 31% reported low confidence in their nations’ ability to respond to critical infrastructure attacks, with 64% of organizations now factoring geopolitically motivated attacks into their risk strategies and 91% of the largest enterprises adjusting their cybersecurity policy accordingly.

This year’s publication was the fifth edition of the WEF’s ‘Global Cybersecurity Outlook series’, which the organization said has “traced a steady evolution from pandemic-driven digitalization to today’s increasingly complex cybersecurity landscape.”

The new findings indicate that the cyber landscape is undergoing substantial structural shifts, with the gap between highly resilient organizations and those falling behind remaining stark.

“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,” said Jeremy Jurgens, Managing Director of the WEF. “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.”

This sentiment was echoed by Paolo Dal Cin, global lead of Accenture Cybersecurity, who commented that “the weaponization of AI, persistent geopolitical friction and systemic supply chain risks are upending traditional cyber defences.”

He argued that, 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.”

To meet these growing threats, the report called on business leaders across sectors to move beyond isolated efforts and commit to shared accountability, to “lift the collective baseline,” ensuring that resilience is accessible to all, not just the most well-resourced.

“As the boundaries between digital and physical worlds continue to blur, the organizations that thrive will be those that recognize cyber resilience as a shared, strategic responsibility – one that underpins trust, enables innovation and safeguards the interconnected foundations of global society,” concluded the report.

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