Data Overtakes Skills as Top Threat Hunting Challenge, SANS Study Finds
SANS 2026 Threat Hunting Survey: data quality/quantity (50%) overtook skills (45%) as hunters' top barrier, while ransomware remains the most-found threat.
SANS polled 500 cybersecurity practitioners across four regions for its 2026 Threat Hunting Survey; 50% named data quality or quantity as their biggest hurdle, up from 41% last year, while skilled staff fell to 45% from 61%. Ransomware (55%), business email compromise (43%), nation states (26%) and insiders (26%) are what hunters most frequently find, with living-off-the-land techniques most common. Only 40% of programs formally measure hunting effectiveness, and AI/ML adoption intent declined to 39% from 48%.
- Data quality/quantity is now the top barrier (50%), surpassing skills (45%) for the first time in five years.
- Formal hunting methodologies dropped from 51% in 2024 to 37%; ad hoc approaches at 39%.
- Ransomware (55%) and BEC (43%) are the threats most often found during hunts.
- Only 40% of programs formally measure whether hunting works.
From the original article
2 min read at infosecurity-magazine.com
SANS Institute report claims data rather than skills is now the main hurdle for threat hunters
By Phil Muncaster · infosecurity-magazine.com
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