people · May 16, 2026

Sophos Sponsors 2026 CISO Report Showing 35,000 Full-Time CISOs Worldwide

Sophos sponsored the 2026 CISO Report from Cybersecurity Ventures. The report states there are now about 35,000 full-time CISOs worldwide, an increase of 9% from 32,000 in 2023. Sophos white paper From Security Operations to Security Leadership notes only one in 10,000 companies employs a CISO. Sophos State of Ransomware report found 38% of organizations hit by ransomware already knew they had unaddressed security gaps, while 32% of attacks began with unpatched vulnerabilities. Sophos CISO Advantage program combines AI-driven analytics, continuous control validation, threat intelligence, and human oversight delivered through MSPs and MSSPs.