Emerging AI and Identity Threats Put Print Security Back on the Cyber Risk Agenda
July 28, 2026
Cybersecurity, Artificial Intelligence, Security, Managed Print Services, Press Release, Trends
Quocirca’s Print Security Landscape, 2026 study highlights rising concern around AI-enabled attacks, identity integration, and quantum-readiness as organisations continue to rely on print
London, UK – 28 July 2026 – Quocirca’s Print Security Landscape, 2026 study is published today, revealing that print infrastructure continues to represent a significant and growing cybersecurity risk for organisations. The study finds that 67% of organisations across the UK, France, Germany, and the US experienced at least one print-related data loss in the past year, up sharply from 56% in 2025; 43% say they have experienced multiple incidents. Each print-related breach now costs an average of just over £1 million, a rise from £820,000 a year ago.
Despite increasing digitisation, print remains deeply embedded in business operations, with eight out of 10 organisations reporting that they rely on it to support key business processes. Yet many continue to underestimate the security risks posed by print devices, print servers, and document workflows.
The study highlights a widening gap between organisations that have modernised their print security strategies and those that have not. Organisations identified as print security ‘Leaders’ – which have deployed a range of print security tools and policies – experience substantially fewer data losses (56%) than those ranked as ‘Laggards’ (73%), demonstrating the tangible business value of comprehensive print security investment.
“As AI-enabled attacks proliferate and the post-quantum cryptography era approaches, addressing print security through a layered, continuously managed print security strategy that protects devices, users, documents, and workflows as part of the wider enterprise security environment is essential,” said Louella Fernandes, CEO, Quocirca. “Our research clearly shows that organisations with a well-defined print security strategy, that conduct regular assessments and optimisation exercises, benefit from a significantly stronger security posture than those that do not.”
Mixed fleets increase complexity and risk
Multi-vendor printer fleets continue to grow in prevalence, with 64% of organisations now operating mixed fleets, compared to 59% in 2025. Such environments introduce additional management complexity and security gaps that correlate with higher reported rates of print-related data loss.
Organisations running mixed fleets are also more likely to cite concerns around AI-driven threats and firmware vulnerabilities than those operating standardised single-vendor environments.
Identity emerges as a pillar of print security
Identity and access management continues to emerge as a critical element of modern print security strategies. Overall, 84% of respondents say integration between identity platforms, such as Active Directory and Azure AD, and print infrastructure is either extremely or very important.
Among print security Leaders, this rises further, underscoring the role of secure authentication, secure release printing, cloud identity integration, and zero trust principles in reducing exposure across increasingly distributed print environments.
AI presents both opportunity and threat
As AI reshapes the threat landscape, concern about the impact of AI-powered cyberattacks is rising in parallel. More than half (54%) are very or extremely concerned about AI being used to create more sophisticated print-related threats, while 47% believe agentic AI represents a threat for which they are not yet prepared.
At the same time, demand for AI-driven security capabilities is growing. More than half (55%) now view the use of AI and machine learning for threat detection as very important, creating opportunities for print vendors and managed print service providers to differentiate through intelligent security services and proactive guidance.
Preparing for a quantum future
The report finds that 57% of organisations consider quantum-resilient security planning to be very important, reflecting growing awareness that future advances in computing could challenge current cryptographic protections. Security-mature organisations are already beginning to assess how print infrastructure fits into wider post-quantum security strategies, creating a need for clear supplier roadmaps and guidance.
Louella Fernandes continues: “The security landscape is changing fast, and regulatory pressure is forcing organisations to develop more comprehensive strategies for managing cyber and data risk that fully incorporate the print environment. Vendors are strongly focused on developing innovative security solutions across the print lifecycle, and they must support these with clear messaging that educates the market, focusing on security outcomes and the benefits of achieving strong print security governance that integrates with broader cybersecurity, identity, cloud, and compliance programmes.”
Strong momentum among leading print vendors
Quocirca’s detailed vendor assessment highlights continued innovation among leading print manufacturers, with security increasingly positioned as an endpoint, identity, and workflow discipline rather than simply a device feature.
The report evaluates the print security capabilities of Brother, Canon, HP, Konica Minolta, Ricoh, Sharp, Toshiba, and Xerox, highlighting advancements in areas including zero trust architecture, cloud-based governance, managed security services, AI-driven threat protection, and post-quantum cryptography readiness.
The Quocirca Print Security Landscape, 2026 study is available for purchase here. A complementary executive summary can also be downloaded.
About Quocirca
Quocirca is a global market insight and research firm providing strategic market analysis and intelligence to print industry business and technology leaders. Quocirca specialises in analysing the convergence of print and digital technologies in the future workplace.
Since 2006, Quocirca has played an influential role in advising clients on major shifts in the market, providing industry-first research across critical topics including Managed Print Services, Cloud Printing, Sustainability, Print Security, and AI. Our consulting and research are at the forefront of the rapidly evolving print services and solutions market, trusted by clients seeking new strategies to address disruptive technologies.
