The basics

What is AI security?

AI security means protecting the AI systems you build or use, and using AI safely to support your defences. It sits inside cyber security, not beside it.

Last reviewed against NCSC, Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and OWASP GenAI Security Project. Sources

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The definition

Two meanings

The government's code of practice treats AI security as a subset of cyber security [6]. In practice, people mean two things by the phrase. One is securing AI systems against manipulation, data exposure and misuse. The other is using AI safely in defence [3].

The main weaknesses

What goes wrong

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Prompt injection

An input crafted to make a model behave unexpectedly [2].

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Data poisoning

Interfering with the material used to train a model [2].

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Over-trusted output

Hallucinations and bias in what models produce [2].

Who is responsible

Everyone in the chain

The code of practice splits responsibility between developers, system operators and data custodians [6]. The NCSC's guidance for non-technical managers asks them to understand the consequences if an AI system is compromised and to have a response ready [2].

The short version

Security must be a core requirement throughout an AI system's life, not just during development [2].

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Why now

Adoption is already here

The 2025/2026 government survey found 31% of businesses using, adopting or considering AI [10]. The NCSC's guidance for leaders was written so that managers and board members without a technical background can discuss these risks with security staff [2].

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Where next

Keep reading

The risks page sets out the evidence. The controls guide lists what to do, and the questions page answers common queries.

Keep reading

Read next

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OWASP list

The OWASP Top 10 for LLM applications 2025: all ten risks listed, which matter most for UK organisations, and how to use the list in a review.

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Questions

Sourced answers on AI security: what it is, whether prompt injection can be fixed, shadow AI, the UK code of practice and what to do first.

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Risks

The AI security risks UK organisations face, from prompt injection to data exposure and over-broad access, with NCSC and OWASP evidence.

Read the guide

How CyPro can help

Need a hand planning for this?

Understanding the change is one job. Working out what it means for your systems, your suppliers and your roadmap is several more. CyPro's consultants can take any of them on.

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Fractional CISO for the board

A senior security lead who advises the board on what to fix first, what to accept and what to tell customers, and owns the decision record.

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Hardening and segmentation

Our consultants put the controls in place that limit the damage when something is missed: firewall rules, network isolation and tighter admin access.

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Penetration testing

A focused test of your systems and the controls around them, so you know they hold before an attacker finds out for you.

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Vulnerability scanning

Find every internet-facing system you run, including the forgotten ones, and see which are still on a vulnerable build.

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24/7 security monitoring

Our SOC analysts watch your systems day and night for the signs of an attack in progress: unexpected processes, new outbound connections, logins that do not fit.

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Incident responders containing an attack

Incident response

If you may already be compromised, our responders contain it, preserve the evidence, find out what was touched and get you running again safely.

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Plan ahead

Want a plan for your organisation?

AI security starts with knowing which tools are in use, who owns them and what they can reach. CyPro can help set the governance, accountability and controls around that.

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