The survey polled business leaders across industries including construction, dealerships (car/truck/boat/RV), retail, manufacturing and more to understand how crime, economic conditions and technology are shaping physical security strategies in the year ahead. Key findings include:

Security incidents steady, bottom lines remain at risk

• In 2025, 12% of respondents reported an increase in physical (non-cyber) security incidents, while 76% said incidents stayed the same and only 12% saw a decrease.
• When incidents occur, they hit operations hard: respondents cited damage to assets (27%) as the top impact, followed by impact to inventory (21%) and project delays (18%).

Local crime and economic uncertainty driving concerns

Respondents looked at local conditions and the broader economy as key drivers of physical security risk:

• Among those experiencing more incidents, rising local crime (20%) and the state of the economy (16%) were stated as top factors behind the increase.
• Looking ahead, 46% of respondents said they fear economic uncertainty will negatively impact their business's physical security in 2026.
• The most worrisome economic issues for security programs were inflation (22%), unemployment (15%), and tariffs (14%), followed by interest rates (8%).

AI awareness surges, but adoption still lags

The 2026 report also tracks how businesses are thinking about and using AI in their physical security programmes:

• 15% of respondents now say their physical security strategy utilises AI, more than double the 7% who reported using it in 2024.
• Perceptions have shifted even more dramatically: 61% believe AI can be a useful tool in stopping physical security incidents at their business, while 29% are unsure.
• Yet 60% still say they are not using AI for security, and a further 25% don't know if their systems include AI, indicating significant room for opportunity and adoption.

Despite rising awareness of AI and ongoing incident levels, most organisations have been slow to change course: only 23% of respondents said their physical security strategy changed in 2025, and many who did not change pointed to a perceived lack of incidents or confidence that they are already secure.

Looking ahead to 2026

The outlook for 2026 reflects ongoing anxiety about crime and uncertainty:

• 45% of respondents said they are more worried about crime than they were a year ago.
• A slight majority, 52%, expect physical security incidents at their business to increase in 2026.