The shift is definitive: AI is no longer a complement but the foundation of the entire protection strategy. This was one of the key conclusions of the latest edition of the RSA Conference 2026, the world’s leading annual cybersecurity event.
Under the theme “The Power of Community,” the conference highlighted that the convergence of diverse perspectives, experiences, and capabilities is more powerful than any single tool. In this context, AI plays a critical role in accelerating the exchange of knowledge and capabilities in multiple ways.
One of the main pillars of AI integration in cybersecurity is the use of intelligent agents. These systems not only automate operational tasks such as detection and incident response, but also interact with one another, creating dynamic ecosystems capable of anticipating attacks. They operate in a coordinated manner to classify and prioritize incidents—or even deliver rapid responses—thereby strengthening organizational resilience.
This represents a fundamental shift in how defenses operate: moving from a traditional reactive model to a proactive and predictive approach capable of anticipating even the most advanced and sophisticated threats.
Governance and Collaboration
Another key topic highlighted during the event was that AI governance requires a comprehensive approach, including the policies, processes, and technologies needed to effectively manage all types of agents.
This involves designing control frameworks that enable organizations to fully leverage the potential of these systems without compromising security. The challenge lies in managing an environment where multiple agents—developed across different areas—interact, operate on critical data, and even acquire unique identities that could be exploited by malicious actors to gain access to sensitive information and permissions.
Proper governance is essential in this new environment, where humans and machines work together. Humans contribute judgment, context, and ethics, while agents bring speed, scale, and consistency. This combination enables faster anomaly detection, coordinated responses, and the anticipation of risks that would otherwise go unnoticed.
However, this collaboration is only effective when it is well governed, with clearly defined roles, boundaries, traceability, and operational rules for agents—ensuring that their decisions are trustworthy, auditable, and aligned with business objectives.
Transformations Ahead
Agents integrated into cybersecurity operations are also transforming Security Operations Centers (SOCs).
In the context of an autonomous SOC aligned with NTT DATA’s strategy, automation is no longer limited to reducing operational workload. Instead, it enables a qualitative leap: faster investigations, lower false-positive rates, and significantly reduced response times.
In this new environment, analysts strengthen their strategic role, supported by systems capable of processing and correlating information at a speed that is impossible to achieve manually.
The landscape is complex and challenging. For this reason, it also requires an additional transformation—one that is more human in nature: empathetic leadership. Cybersecurity leaders must prepare and support their teams to foster trust and resilience.
Ultimately, the success of future cybersecurity strategies will depend on organizations’ ability to integrate these new technologies with sound judgment—balancing automation with control, innovation with governance, and speed with responsibility.