Rapid7 Omdia Research 2026: AI Governance Gap in the SOC

Artificial intelligence has moved from experimentation into the operational core of security operations centers, but a new question is now dominating boardroom conversations: how is that AI actually governed? A global study commissioned by Rapid7 and conducted by Omdia (a division of TechTarget, Inc.) shows that while AI is trusted on the SOC floor, executive security leaders are significantly more worried than their frontline teams about transparency, accountability, and data handling by AI vendors.

What was announced

On August 12, 2026, Rapid7 (NASDAQ: RPD) released the Omdia research report AI, SOC Transformation, and How AI-Enabled MDR Providers Are Helping Accelerate Velocity. The survey covered 500 qualified security professionals across North America (40%), EMEA (30%), and Asia-Pacific (30%), with organizations ranging from 100 to 20,000+ employees.

The headline finding: executive security leaders are 1.6x more likely than operational security managers to report being highly concerned about how AI vendors handle their organization's security data. Meanwhile, adoption metrics remain overwhelmingly positive.

Key findings

• Positive operational impact: 97% of respondents report AI is having a positive impact on security operations.
• Alert fatigue reduction: 98% of organizations already using AI say it helps reduce alert fatigue.
• Human oversight: 92% agree human oversight remains essential in the SOC.
• AI-enabled MDR advantage: 86% believe MDR providers that integrate AI offer an advantage over traditional MDR services.

Security teams are no longer asking whether AI belongs in the SOC; they are asking how to govern it responsibly. Organizations want AI that helps analysts move faster and work more effectively, but they also expect transparency, accountability, and human expertise to remain central to security operations

Why this matters

For CISOs, CIOs, IT directors, and procurement leaders, the research signals a clear shift in vendor evaluation criteria. AI capability alone is no longer a differentiator — governance, explainability, and data protection are becoming the new competitive battlefield.

Executive concern about how AI vendors handle sensitive telemetry, model outputs, and customer data is now a board-level issue. Respondents identified transparency into AI decision-making, visibility into model performance, and strong data privacy protections as top expectations for AI providers. Procurement teams should expect these questions to feature heavily in RFPs and vendor due diligence.

Our research shows organizations have largely accepted AI as part of modern security operations. The next phase of adoption will be defined by trust. Security leaders increasingly want solutions that combine AI-driven efficiency with transparency, governance, and human expertise

Technical details

• Study scope: 500 qualified security professionals, 95% confidence interval, surveyed between February 10 and March 3, 2026.
• Respondent mix: executive security leaders (CSOs, CISOs) 41%, security and SecOps management 40%, engineers and architects 13%, threat hunters and incident responders 3%.
• Governance concern: executives are 1.6x more likely than practitioners to express strong concern about AI vendor data handling.
• MDR expectation: 86% see AI-enhanced MDR as a competitive advantage versus traditional MDR.
• Rapid7 Command Platform: combines AI-powered detection and response with expert-led MDR, backed by 25 years of expertise and serving more than 11,500 customers worldwide.
• Governance pillars: transparency into AI decisions, visibility into model performance, and robust data privacy protections.

Softprom and Rapid7

Softprom is the official distributor of Rapid7. Organizations looking to modernize their SOC with AI-powered detection, exposure management, and managed detection and response can access the full Rapid7 portfolio and expert enablement through Softprom.

This content was prepared as part of the Softprom DistriFlow project — an automated system for monitoring and adapting vendor news. Original source: original article.