Most Breaches Start With a Human. Most Humans Were Set Up to Fail.
Thought Leadership Human Risk May 2026 · 8 min read 68% of all data breaches involve the human element. But when you look at what those humans were actually given to work with — no password manager, no number matching on MFA, credentials already for sale that nobody told them about — the question isn't why employees make mistakes. It's why businesses are surprised when they do. Marcus works in accounting at a 40-person professional services firm. He's been there for six years. He's conscientious, detail-oriented, and genuinely cares about his job. He has never intentionally done anything to compromise his employer's security. Last Tuesday at 4:47pm, with two pending deadlines and a client call in 13 minutes, he received an email that appeared to come from his CEO asking him to review an attached invoice before end of day. The email was well-written, used the CEO's real name, referenced an actual c...