Organizations Adopt High-Risk AI Agents Without Controls

Organizations Face Risks When Adopting AI Agents Without Oversight

The growing adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) agents in companies raises concerns about the lack of governance and safety. With more than half of organizations implementing these agents, it is vital that they adopt control measures to avoid risks and ensure ethical development.

Currently, 40% of technology leaders lament not having implemented a solid governance foundation when adopting AI agents. This indicates a rapid and often careless adoption, resulting in deficiencies in responsible and safe technology use policies.

As AI adoption intensifies, it is crucial to balance exposure risk and the implementation of guardrails, preventing possible security failures.

Risk Areas in AI Agent Adoption

There are three main risk areas that organizations should consider regarding AI agents.

The first is shadow AI, which occurs when employees use unauthorized AI tools. This makes oversight from Information Technology (IT) challenging and increases security risks.

The second area is the lack of clarity about ownership and responsibility in incidents involving AI. As the autonomy of AI agents grows, it is vital for teams to know whom to turn to when problems arise.

Finally, the lack of explainability in the actions of AI agents can generate confusion. Organizations must ensure that the decisions made by agents are understandable so that engineers can trace and correct actions that impact existing systems.

Guidelines for Responsible Adoption of AI Agents

After identifying risks, companies need to implement guidelines and guardrails to ensure safe use of AI agents. Here are three essential steps:

1: Ensure Human Oversight

Although AI is evolving rapidly, human oversight remains critical, especially in critical systems. Assign a human responsible for each agent to ensure clear oversight and an approval route for significant actions.

2: Integrate Security From the Start

The tools introduced should not expose the organization to new security risks. Ensure that AI agent platforms adhere to high-security standards and that their permissions are aligned with their owners' responsibilities.

3: Make Outcomes Understandable

The actions of AI should not be a black box. The decisions made by AI agents should be documented and accessible, providing a clear understanding of the reasoning behind each action.

Security is Fundamental to the Success of AI Agents

While AI agents represent an excellent opportunity to improve organizational processes, without effective governance, they can create unwanted risks. As these agents become more prevalent, organizations need systems to measure their performance and act in problematic situations.