In our industry, trust isn’t an abstract concept. It’s the currency of cybersecurity – the foundation of every partnership we build and every protection we provide.
However, a recent independent, vendor-agnostic survey of 5,000 cybersecurity decision-makers across 17 countries reveals a stark reality: we’re facing a trust crisis.
According to our findings in Sophos’ Cybersecurity Trust Reality 2026 report, only 5% of respondents say that both they and their organization have full trust in their cybersecurity vendors.
That’s a number that should serve as a wake-up call for our entire industry.
The high cost of low trust
Assessing trust is inherently difficult. Our research shows that 79% of organizations find it challenging to assess the trustworthiness of new cybersecurity partners, and 62% struggle even with their existing vendors.
The consequences of this uncertainty are tangible. When trust is absent, anxiety fills the void.
We found that 51% of leaders believe a lack of trust leads to anxiety that their organization is more likely to experience a significant cyber incident. Furthermore, 45% say it increases their propensity to switch vendors, and 42% cite an increased requirement for oversight.
What actually drives trust?
To bridge this gap, we’ve got to understand what actually builds confidence. The survey identified the top drivers of trust for both IT teams and senior leadership, and the results were clear. It’s not about marketing claims, it’s about evidence.
- Verifiable artifacts: The number one driver of trust is the presence of verifiable artifacts indicative of cybersecurity maturity, such as an active bug bounty program, a Trust Center with security advisories, and third-party certifications.
- Transparency in crisis: The second most critical factor is transparency and timely communications during incidents and disclosures.
- Expertise and delivery: Following closely are expert commentary during major cyber events, the consistent delivery of high-quality services, and validation through analyst reports.
Our commitment to you
At Sophos, we understand that trust is built, not claimed. We’re committed to earning that trust through transparency, integrity, and a steadfast commitment to protecting your security and privacy.
We’ve aligned our operations directly with these drivers of trust:
Transparency by default: We believe in radical transparency. A prime example: our “Pacific Rim” research, where we provided a full, detailed disclosure of a five-year investigation into China-based threats targeting perimeter devices. We disclosed the timeline, the attack vectors, and exactly how we responded at every stage.
Verifiable maturity: We maintain a comprehensive Trust Center to provide you with the artifacts you need to assess our security posture. We also adhere to leading compliance standards, including ISO, SOC, and PCI DSS.
Secure by Design: We’ve outlined our progress and public commitments under CISA’s Secure by Design pledge, which focuses on seven core pillars including MFA, eliminating default passwords, reducing classes of vulnerabilities, and more. This initiative is an ongoing, industry-wide shift rather than a one-time effort, and we commit to providing regular, open updates on our progress and areas for improvement.
Trust is hard to earn and easy to lose. By prioritizing transparency, third-party validation, and consistent execution, we aim to ensure that when you partner with Sophos, you can do so with complete confidence.
I invite you to review the full findings of our research and visit our Trust Center to see exactly how we’re working to secure your world.
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