Data security is at a critical inflection point. Organizations today are struggling with explosive data growth, sprawling IT environments, persistent insider risks, and the adoption of generative AI (GenAI). What’s more, the rapid emergence of AI agents is giving rise to a new, more complex agentic workspace, where both humans and agents interact with sensitive data.
The Proofpoint 2025 Data Security Landscape report is a revealing look at the current—and complex—state of enterprise data security. It examines the frequency and leading causes of data loss incidents, as well as today’s biggest data security risks and challenges, amidst unprecedented change.
Based on a global survey of 1,000 organizations across more than 15 industries—as well as intelligence from deployments of the Proofpoint human-centric security platform worldwide—our report is a timely analysis of a data security landscape that AI is rapidly reshaping.
Here are some key themes of this year’s report:
The human element is still the weakest link
Data loss incidents are widespread, and human behavior remains the leading cause. A striking 85% of organizations experienced at least one data loss incident in the past year. And careless users—cited by 58%—are the leading cause. Proofpoint data also shows that just 1% of users account for 76% of data loss events. This statistic highlights the need for behavior-aware security strategies that focus on the riskiest users.
Data growth and sprawl are escalating
Enterprise data volumes are surging. Over 29% of organizations saw their data increase by 30% or more in the past year. Among organizations with 1,000-plus employees, one-third now handle 500 terabytes to 1 petabyte of data. And over 25% manage more than a petabyte. The larger the organization, the more data: for organizations with over 10,000 employees, 41% are managing more than a petabyte. Not surprisingly, sprawl across cloud and SaaS applications is cited as a top challenge for securing sensitive information.
Insiders are a top risk, but visibility is lacking
Security professionals cite insider threats (careless, malicious, and compromised) as their biggest data security concern. Yet, nearly half of respondents also say that limited visibility into risky user behavior is a top challenge. Email continues to be a hotspot for insider-driven data loss: organizations with 5,000-plus inboxes can expect thousands of misdirected emails and hundreds of exfiltration attempts annually. These attempts can include highly sensitive financial, healthcare, and legal data.
Security teams are understaffed and overwhelmed
Security teams are struggling to manage growing data volumes and increasingly complex hybrid and multicloud environments. Over a third cite lack of qualified personnel as a top data security challenge. And almost two-thirds say they work with six or more data security vendors to secure sensitive data, compromising their overall visibility. The results are frequent data loss incidents and prolonged investigations.
AI: a double-edged sword
While AI adoption introduces new risks, such as data leakage via GenAI tools and unsupervised data access by AI agents, it also offers powerful opportunities. Organizations are harnessing AI-driven capabilities to classify data, detect anomalies, and accelerate incident responses. For a range of key data security priorities, over 50% have already deployed AI-enhanced data security features.
The path forward: unified, AI-driven protection
Fragmented toolsets and limited visibility are major challenges for security teams under strain. Data volumes continue to spiral. And visibility into insiders remains a challenge. But the path forward is clear: unified data security solutions, AI-driven capabilities and behavior-centric security strategies. Over half of respondents believe a unified solution will reduce data loss risk, while 41% cite tool consolidation as a major benefit. Half also see unified data security as critical for enabling safe and productive AI use.
Download the full report
Combining perspectives from security practitioners worldwide with Proofpoint’s unmatched platform intelligence, the 2025 Data Security Landscape report is required reading for security leaders looking to understand emerging risks, benchmark strategies, and validate priorities. Download the full report for essential insights on securing sensitive data and enabling AI-driven innovation in an era of rapid technological change.
