SAN FRANCISCO – March 17, 2026 – Armis, the cyber exposure management & security company, is warning that cyberwarfare has placed U.S. critical infrastructure at the center of the modern digital battlefield, leaving society at risk. As AI-enabled threats, emerging technologies and heightened geopolitical tensions converge, it’s pivotal that Federal agencies enhance their proactive defenses to protect critical systems and national security infrastructure.
“We are witnessing a fundamental shift in the nature of cyber conflict, and if Federal agencies are too slow to adapt to adversary tactics, they’ll jeopardize the systems that underpin our country’s stability,” said Colonel (Ret.) Joe Wingo, Director of DoD Business Strategy at Armis. “It’s essential that Federal security teams leverage solutions that outpace the adversary with proactive cyber exposure management so they can reduce risk and continuously protect mission-critical assets. The time to harden defenses is before the first shot is fired, not after the damage has already been done.”
New findings from Armis Labs’ fourth annual global Cyberwarfare report, A World Under Pressure: Cyberwarfare in an Age of AI-Fueled Escalation, show that Federal agencies are under mounting pressure. 93% of respondents working for the U.S. Federal government are concerned about the impact of cyberwarfare on their agency as a whole, with 57% saying their agency has been hacked previously and still has not managed to secure their ecosystem adequately. Meanwhile, 60% of Federal IT decision-makers say digital transformation projects have stalled or stopped entirely due to cyberwarfare risks, halting innovation at a time when threats continue to accelerate.
Respondents from Federal agencies admit they struggle to effectively defend against threat actors. Despite 90% of respondents saying they have implemented measures to detect and counter AI-powered threats, 53% believe their agency lacks the necessary expertise to manage AI-powered security solutions. More than a third (39%) are also still detecting and responding to a significant attack as it happens or after it has already occurred.
These security gaps persist beneath a veneer of perceived preparedness. While 81% of Federal IT decision-makers believe they are prepared to handle a cyberwarfare attack and respond to related threats, 58% report their agency has been impacted by an AI-generated or AI-led attack over the past 12 months.
“We are entering a transformative era of cybersecurity where the speed of innovation is the ultimate advantage. Agentic AI swarms represent the next leap in automation, capable of identifying and resolving complex vulnerabilities in seconds,” said Michael Freeman, Head of Threat Intelligence at Armis. “For Federal agencies, this is a call to modernize. While current defenses have served us well, our telemetry shows that the landscape is moving toward autonomous persistence. To stay ahead, we must equip our human analysts with AI partners that can see through the noise and secure essential systems in real-time, ensuring our infrastructure remains as dynamic as the technology that powers it.”
Additional findings based on survey responses from Federal IT leaders include:
- 76% agree that the convergence of AI, quantum and other emerging technologies will create an unprecedented escalation in cyber conflict capabilities.
- 84% agree that the ability of nation-states to harness AI for cyber operations will widen the gap between attackers and defenders.
- 65% believe the current pace of AI innovation is outrunning cybersecurity policy and regulation.
- 73% say Zero Trust is a central pillar of their defense strategy.
- 90% agree public-private partnerships are important, and their agency collaborates with others in the industry (tech partners, industry groups, government agencies, etc.) when it comes to sharing information about threats.
These findings are based on responses from 100 U.S. Federal government IT leaders as part of a larger study of over 1,900 global IT decision-makers and proprietary data from Armis Labs. Read the full report from Armis, including a detailed regional and industry breakdown, here.
For a closer look at the findings and key learnings for Federal agencies, read the blog here.
About Armis
Armis, the cyber exposure management & security company, protects the entire attack surface and manages the organization’s cyber risk exposure in real time. In a rapidly evolving, perimeter-less world Armis ensures that organizations continuously see, protect and manage all critical assets – from the ground to the cloud. Armis secures Fortune 100, 200 and 500 companies as well as national governments, state and local entities to help keep critical infrastructure, economies and society stay safe and secure 24/7. Armis is a privately held company headquartered in California.