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The Global Cost of Data Breaches has Decreased for the First Time in Five Years Due to the Increased Use of AI and Automation
The global cost of data breaches has decreased for the first time in five years. According to the 2025 Cost of a Data Breach Report, the average cost worldwide dropped by 9% to about USD 4.44 million. This is good news, and experts say it’s mainly because of the increased use of AI and automation, which help companies find and stop breaches faster.
Data breaches have been causing more and more damage over the years, costing businesses a lot of money. But now, with AI and automation being used more often, organizations can respond quickly when a breach happens. Because they react faster, the damage is smaller, and that lowers the overall cost. Right now, companies are catching and controlling breaches in an average of 241 days — the quickest in nine years — and that’s why the global cost of data breaches has decreased.
Still, this positive change doesn’t apply everywhere. For example, in the United States, the average cost of a data breach actually went up by 9%, reaching a record USD 10.22 million. Higher fines and expensive detection processes have made breaches more costly there. So, while the global cost of data breaches has decreased, some countries are not seeing the same improvement.
One new problem the report talks about is the “AI Oversight Gap.” Many companies are rushing to use AI but don’t have good security rules in place yet. The report found that 97% of organizations hit by AI-related breaches didn’t have strong AI access controls. Also, about 63% didn’t have official AI governance policies or were still making them. Because of this, costs go up, especially when “shadow AI” is involved — that’s when AI tools are used without permission. These shadow AI breaches added an extra USD 670,000 on average to the breach costs.
Hackers are also using AI more to attack companies. Around 16% of data breaches involved AI tools like AI-powered phishing attacks or deepfake impersonations, making attacks more tricky and damaging.
Ransomware attacks still cost a lot, averaging USD 5.08 million. But the good news is more organizations are saying no to paying ransoms — this rose from 59% in 2024 to 63% in 2025. Interestingly, fewer companies are calling law enforcement to help, dropping from 53% to 40%.
For the 14th year in a row, the healthcare industry faces the highest costs, with an average breach around USD 7.42 million because patient personal information is highly valuable. Customer personal information is still the most commonly stolen data, but intellectual property breaches cost the most per record — about USD 178 each.
The way attackers get in also affects costs. Malicious insider attacks, where a person inside the company causes harm, are the most expensive, costing nearly USD 4.92 million on average. Phishing remains the most common way attackers break in, responsible for 16% of breaches and costing about USD 4.8 million each time.
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One concern is that fewer companies are planning to spend more on security after a breach — only 49% this year compared to 63% last year. And less than half of those planning to invest want to focus on AI-driven security, even though it has shown great benefits.
The global cost of data breaches has decreased for the first time in five years mainly due to the increased use of AI and automation that helps companies catch breaches faster. But using AI without good oversight can create new risks and extra costs. Even though some places like the United States saw rising costs, many others are benefiting from better defenses thanks to technology. To keep this good trend going, businesses need to keep improving their AI security rules and keep investing in smart security tools.
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