October marks Cybersecurity Awareness Month. While improving cybersecurity is a year-round initiative, this month serves as an excellent opportunity for organizations to reorient their security priorities to better reflect the modern threat landscape. 

Below, security leaders discuss three key ways security teams can empower their organizations to better protect against cyber threats. 

1. Increase Visibility for Artificial Intelligence and Agentic AI 

Prakash Mana, CEO of Cloudbrink:

AI is the next big hurdle for security teams, especially on the software development side. Companies need to make sure that users don’t use AI to create hacking bots either on purpose or accidentally. They also need AI access controls so that AI can only access the services it should. Otherwise you leave yourself open to bad actors who could force agents to access bad sources. Visibility into AI activity is key to safe use.

Agentic AI adoption is increasing at breathtaking speed due to the huge efficiency improvements, but it also throws challenges like shadow AI, AI access controls and of course AI-targeted security attacks like zero-day threats, etc. For both Agentic AI developers, vendors and AI consumers (enterprises using AI agents), it is imperative to give visibility into shadow AI, protect their networks and infrastructure, and do all these without compromising performance of the AI Agents."

Most AI agent developers are focused on efficiency, not security. The first step for security teams is to create visibility. Establish a way to monitor AI to see what it’s accessing, which users are using it, and what they’re using it for. If you don’t have an AI policy already, you need to create one now.

2. Bolster Identity Security 

Karl Holmqvist, Founder and CEO at Lastwall:

“Secure Our World” lands differently this year. Allied security agencies have dropped the euphemisms. Adversarial state actors are pre-positioning in critical infrastructure and on the edge gear we forget to watch. The job this year should be about moving the few levers that bend risk fastest under real-world constraints.

As we vector into 2026, try to start where the adversary does. Require routers, VPNs, and firewalls to produce forensically capable logs and prove you can pull them.

Harden identity, especially where friction pays. Make phishing-resistant MFA mandatory for admins and all critical systems. Shorten token lifetimes and bind sessions to devices. Where you need to, allow exceptions, but log and expire them quickly.

Build or maintain a live cryptography register, make sure you plan your cutovers to NIST’s post-quantum cryptography (FIPS 203/204/205), and have plans to practice rollouts so you know how various networks and systems react.

To borrow a phrase, measure what matters. Build and then improve change-latency metrics. Awareness is the start, but readiness is proof.

Organizations that practice identity integrity, edge evidence, and cryptographic agility will have an easier time navigating 2026. For most, there is a lot to change. For many, it won’t be easy to do all these things, which is why it is important to start taking the action you can now. Don’t wait until it’s too late.

3. Secure File Transfers

Jeremy Fong, VP of Product at OPSWAT:

As the 22nd annual Cybersecurity Awareness Month urges us to “Secure Our World,” the speed at which data moves is as important as the integrity with which it is managed. File transfers remain one of the most common — and most vulnerable — points of exposure. In the AI era, where adversaries weaponize automation to embed malicious content or bypass traditional defenses, organizations cannot afford to treat this as routine infrastructure.

Managed File Transfer (MFT) should be seen not as legacy technology but as a strategic control. Its value lies in verifiable security: encryption, access policies, and auditable trails that demonstrate accountability. These capabilities are increasingly non-negotiable, as regulators from the SEC to the EU’s DORA demand provable safeguards.

To “Secure Our World” year-round, leaders should take three actions:

1. Elevate secure file transfer to the boardroom — it is a trust and resilience issue, not just an IT concern.
2. Mandate consistent controls across cloud, hybrid, and on-prem environments.
3. Continuously test and adapt processes to anticipate AI-driven threats.

Securing how data moves is securing how business operates. In an era defined by speed, complexity, and growing cyber risk, MFT is not optional but foundational to long-term resilience and trust — exactly the kind of proactive measure Cybersecurity Awareness Month urges every organization to adopt.

Improving Defenses This Cybersecurity Awareness Month 

These three steps can go a long way to improve security, but it is not the end of the journey. Cyber threats are constantly evolving, and with them, so must the defenses. 

Ultimately, there is no singular way to guarantee success against cyber adversaries. But by remaining aware and proactive, organizations can bolster their security and be better prepared for tomorrow’s threats.