- Most IT teams are concerned about data security, particularly around hybrid cloud.
- Entire database needs to be rewritten to improve quality and prepare for AI
- Companies are also struggling with a lack of talent and legacy systems.
More than two in three (69%) IT leaders agree that data security is their top modernization concern by 2026, according to new research from Rocket Software, and just one-third of them feel “extremely confident” that they will pass their next regulatory audit.
The report found that the greatest confidence occurs in relation to insider threats: almost four in five (78%) believe they could detect them.
Instead, most IT leaders are concerned about the evolving complexity of hybrid IT, with half (51%) saying that bridging cloud and on-premises environments is a core challenge.
Data security is a great goal, but it takes a lot of work
At the moment, data quality (62%), access control (52%), secure data movement (50%), governance consistency (46%) and increasing storage costs (45%) are presented as obstacles to hybrid cloud security.
Then there’s the fact that inadequate modernization efforts so far only add to the pressure: 48% still rely on legacy systems for critical operations and 52% are struggling to find qualified workers. Only 35% believe their teams have the right skills to support current systems.
Unsurprisingly, Rocket Software raised AI tools as a potential solution, highlighting their perceived impacts on security and fraud detection, optimizing internal processes, and customer experience.
But even that is not without challenges, with only a quarter being “extremely confident” their current infrastructure can support AI. That’s why, along with investments in data security, two out of three companies are also prioritizing data accessibility for AI systems.
“This research makes clear that IT leaders need integrated, secure ways to connect data and applications between core systems and the cloud,” concluded Data Modernization Business Unit President Michael Curry.
Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to receive news, reviews and opinions from our experts in your feeds. Be sure to click the Follow button!
And of course you can also follow TechRadar on TikTok for news, reviews, unboxings in video form and receive regular updates from us on WhatsApp also.




