What happened
SailPoint research shows 97% of AI agents have access to sensitive data, yet only 21% of organizations are highly confident they can manage AI agent security risks.
Why it matters
This gap means sensitive data sits with agents that most organizations cannot govern, and SailPoint's own research places the confidence figure at just 21%.
What to watch
Whether SailPoint's Agentic Fabric, generally available for about two months, can close this gap, and what customers report about agents found and shut down.
WHO IT HITSChief information security officers and identity and access management teams at enterprises deploying AI agents face a governance gap: the vast majority of agents can reach sensitive data, but few organizations are confident they can manage the associated risks, according to SailPoint research.
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Palo Alto Networks' 2026 Identity Security Landscape report found organizations manage an average of 109 machine identities for every human identity, with AI agent identities expected to grow 85% over the next 12 months. The same research found that more than half of organizations cannot consistently enforce least-privilege access for service accounts across cloud, SaaS and on-premises systems.
On SailPoint's most recent earnings call, management described a proof-of-concept at a Fortune 500 company that uncovered more than 10,000 previously unknown AI agents and thousands of related risks. SailPoint CEO Mark McClain said enterprises need to know what data each agent can access, which human is accountable, and how to revoke access when necessary. SailPoint launched Agentic Fabric in May, which became generally available in August as part of its Identity Security solution.
The outcome hinges on whether identity tools like Agentic Fabric can deliver production proof and integrate with the broader agent stack, and on whether organizations can shift from quarterly reviews to continuous, automated governance for identities created and destroyed in minutes.
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