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Arabian Post
4 days ago
- Business
- Arabian Post
Generative AI Tools Expose Corporate Secrets Through User Prompts
A significant portion of employee interactions with generative AI tools is inadvertently leaking sensitive corporate data, posing serious security and compliance risks for organisations worldwide. A comprehensive analysis by Harmonic Security, involving tens of thousands of prompts submitted to platforms such as ChatGPT, Copilot, Claude, Gemini, and Perplexity, revealed that 8.5% of these interactions contained sensitive information. Notably, 45.77% of the compromised data pertained to customer information, including billing details and authentication credentials. Employee-related data, such as payroll records and personal identifiers, constituted 26.68%, while legal and financial documents accounted for 14.95%. Security-related information, including access keys and internal protocols, made up 6.88%, and proprietary source code comprised 5.64% of the sensitive data identified. The prevalence of free-tier usage among employees exacerbates the risk. In 2024, 63.8% of ChatGPT users operated on the free tier, with 53.5% of sensitive prompts entered through these accounts. Similar patterns were observed across other platforms, with 58.62% of Gemini users, 75% of Claude users, and 50.48% of Perplexity users utilizing free versions. These free tiers often lack robust security features, increasing the likelihood of data exposure. ADVERTISEMENT Anna Collard, Senior Vice President of Content Strategy & Evangelist at KnowBe4 Africa, highlighted the unintentional nature of these data leaks. She noted that users often underestimate the sensitivity of the information they input into AI platforms, leading to inadvertent disclosures. Collard emphasized that the casual and conversational nature of generative AI tools can lower users' guards, resulting in the sharing of confidential information that, when aggregated, can be exploited by malicious actors for targeted attacks. The issue is compounded by the lack of comprehensive governance policies within organizations. A study by Dimensional Research and SailPoint found that while 96% of IT professionals acknowledge the security threats posed by autonomous AI agents, only 54% have full visibility into AI agent activities, and a mere 44% have established governance policies. Furthermore, 23% of IT professionals reported instances where AI agents were manipulated into revealing access credentials, and 80% observed unintended actions by these agents, such as accessing unauthorized systems or sharing inappropriate data. The rapid adoption of generative AI tools, driven by their potential to enhance productivity and innovation, has outpaced the development of adequate security measures. Organizations are now grappling with the challenge of balancing the benefits of AI integration with the imperative to protect sensitive data. Experts advocate for the implementation of stringent oversight mechanisms, including robust access controls and comprehensive user education programs, to mitigate the risks associated with generative AI usage.
Forbes
17-04-2025
- Business
- Forbes
With Businesses Experiencing A ‘Major Shift,' It's All Hands On Deck For CX
In 2025, businesses need to transform how they look at the customer experience. It's no longer a function of a dedicated department focused on CX. Now, it's the domain of virtually all functions. Organizations that understand this, and strategize accordingly, are far better positioned to beat the competition. This is one of many key findings in a new study, The Leader's Guide to CX Trends in 2025, from my company, Nextiva. In partnership with Dimensional Research, we went looking for the biggest CX trends of 2025, surveying more than 1,000 decision makers responsible for CX, strategy or operations. Their responses show how much the landscape has changed, and where businesses have work to do. After years of being relatively sidelined, the customer experience has become a dominant -- often the dominant -- force in business success. Virtually everyone we surveyed (96%) said their company leadership now believes CX is a key driver of business outcomes. 'In fact, more survey respondents named CX as an important driver of business results than they did operational efficiency or even product quality,' the report explains. 'It's a major shift from years past, as reflected by two-thirds of CX leaders reporting that it's easier now to get approval for CX investments than it was five years ago.' While businesses are ready to invest, they also need to be careful about which investments they make. With so many businesses now jumping on the bandwagon, differentiation comes from addressing the most important needs. For example, organizations may be tempted to focus on hiring more staff in a customer experience division. While this may be part of the answer, it isn't enough. That's because now, a wide range of departments and functions have a dramatic effect on whether CX efforts succeed. 'Today, multiple customer-facing and back office teams play a role in the customer journey, influencing the way users behave in-app, make buying decisions, and receive support,' the survey finds. Respondents 'called out sales, product, digital, marketing, and a handful of other teams as part of delivering a great customer experience.' When asked which functions deliver a great customer experience, nearly three quarters of respondents included traditionally 'back office' teams. More than four in ten cited product development and management. Nearly a third pointed to operations. Eighteen percent said they think of business operations such as legal, finance, and HR. More than a quarter of people surveyed named five or more different teams as part of delivering CX. Many business leaders understand intuitively that people across the company impact what the customer experience is like. But that doesn't mean their organizations are doing enough to get all these departments involved in CX efforts. The overwhelming majority (85%) of people we surveyed said their organizations need more shared responsibility for the customer experience. This new paradigm has practical implications. When people in a wide array of functions are aware of CX as a priority, they're more likely to develop ideas and solutions that help improve it. Unifying communications to improve CX The involvement of so many people across functions makes it more necessary than ever for everyone to share information instantly. People need access to the latest details of customer journeys, requests, pain points, efforts to resolve problems, and more. So a unified customer experience management platform that brings together data from across all different channels must be a staple. It should also be powered by AI, helping everyone glean insights instantly. Numerous studies have explored how valuable a unified communications strategy can be on the customer experience. A new study, published in the Journal of Systems and Information Technology, looked into the success of a chatbot tool embedded in a unified communications framework. Researcher Fernando Almeida found that this model improves completion rates. She also found that when digital marketing organizations use unified chatbots, they improve 'the quality of customer interaction, message personalization and continuous learning throughout the process.' This is just one of myriad ways that integrating communications helps companies improve CX. In deciding which steps your organization should take, 'Take a close look at your data and start with use cases that will produce the most value for your company rather than follow any single trend,' our survey recommends. This could prove to be businesses' biggest opportunity this year. Customers are up for grabs, ready to leave a brand over one bad experience. Businesses that empower their entire workforce to be a part of improving CX in practical ways will have the upper hand.
Yahoo
28-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Customer Experience Transforms into a Revenue Powerhouse, Nextiva Survey Reveals
AI Investments Are Widespread; Tool Overload Stalls Progress for Many; Harmonizing AI and the Human Touch Remains a Struggle SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., January 28, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nextiva, the leading unified customer experience management (UCXM) platform, today announced the results of its recent survey of customer experience (CX) decision-makers, providing insight into the success and challenges businesses are facing and revealing CX trends for the year ahead. The survey, which collected feedback from more than 1,000 in-house customer experience leaders across the US, UK, and Canada in November of 2024, found that CX has transitioned away from being thought of as a cost center, and is now considered a revenue driver for businesses and a leading indicator of business performance. Further survey results indicate what CX leaders and the businesses they manage are planning to do to retain and grow revenue in an increasingly competitive digital economy. For the survey, Nextiva partnered with market research firm Dimensional Research to understand the biggest challenges and opportunities faced by CX practitioners. Six clear trends emerged: 1. CX reputation rises in the c-suite and shines as a revenue generatorCX is no longer just a cost center — 96% of CX leaders report that company leadership sees CX as a key driver of business outcomes and 79% say their corporate leadership now view CX as a crucial revenue driver. This shifting perspective is making it easier to get CX investments approved, with 67% of respondents reporting increased ease in securing funding compared to five years ago. 2. Tech, culture and ROI have shifted CX's perception over the yearsTechnology advances and cultural adaptations have iteratively moved CX's reputation over the years. Nearly half (47%) now cite the increased ability to track the impact of their CX investments (using metrics like CLTV, CAC, and retention rate) as a notable reason for its perception change. Additional factors cited by leaders were the ability to implement new technologies (43%), general changes in attitude across the industry (42%) and better ROI metrics (35%). 3. Tech-debt stalls CX progress as teams struggle with tool overloadOn average, CX teams juggle more than six different tools to interact with customers. This can make delivering consistent, personalized service a challenge. 81% of CX professionals believe consolidating customer data into a single system would improve CX. Shredding tech debt and consolidating into a single CX platform is a trend to watch as companies strive for better and more efficient customer experiences. 4. 92% of businesses embrace AI for CX, but only 9% lead with mature adoptionTo truly impact customers and win in the field of CX, businesses need to embrace AI to help streamline operations and enhance customer interactions. That necessity was reflected in the survey responses, with 92% of CX leaders reporting they have adopted AI. 24% characterize themselves as "early stage," 31% as "in process" and 28% as "established." Just 9% called themselves "mature" in their adoption. 5. Revenue generation was the top AI investment driver, with curiosity motivating a quarter54% of CX leaders cited revenue generation as their primary reason to invest in AI, with process improvements/efficiency gains (46%), customer demand (40%) and competitive pressure (39%) following. Demonstrating innovation (35%) and curiosity (26%) were also cited. Organizations reported a dozen different current and future use cases; using gen AI to write to customers (64%), agent assist tools (60%), self-service (57%) and quality assurance (53%) were the most common use cases. 6. AI-related CX challenges evolve with maturity: data issues drop, complexity risesChallenges shift as companies mature in their AI journey. Data issues peak among "in-process" companies (43%) before dropping among "mature" organizations (31%). "Early stage" companies are far less worried about the regulatory landscape than their "mature" counterparts (24% vs. 35%). Also common among the least mature organizations: a lack of time and resources for experimenting and learning (24%). 7. Out of kilter human-to-AI handoffs hold back nine in ten CX organizationsAlmost all CX decision makers (98%) say a smooth handoff between AI interactions and human agents is essential. Yet, most (90%) CX decision-makers using AI for CX report struggling to reduce friction. Employee resistance tops the list of barriers (36%), followed by customer resistance (29%). Technology issues are also a factor, with the lack of integration (29%) and legacy technology (27%) cited as issues. To resolve the hand-off issues, CX decision-makers say their company would benefit if human agents could oversee AI interactions and assist as needed (51%). "Customer experience is recognized as a strategic investment on the c-suite agenda," said Tomas Gorny, CEO and co-founder of Nextiva. "But to truly capitalize on CX as a revenue driver, businesses need to overcome tech-debt, accelerate AI adoption and focus on harmonizing AI and the human touch. The emphasis should be on simplifying operations, consolidating technologies and creating seamless, personalized experiences for customers. Companies that embrace these trends will be rewarded with the loyalty of customers whose expectations continue to rise." For complete survey results, see the Dimensional Research-produced report The 2025 CX Landscape, sponsored by Nextiva, at: For Nextiva's guide to the trends and advice for contact center professionals, see The Leader's Guide to CX Trends in 2025 at: About Nextiva Nextiva powers over a million users and billions of interactions annually with its customer experience platform. From one AI-powered customer experience hub, Nextiva Unified-CXM transforms how businesses engage with their customers with orchestrated customer journeys that help businesses acquire, retain, and grow customers. The company's commitment to Amazing Service® and a customer-focused approach has been the cornerstone of its success. Nextiva was established in 2008 and is headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona. Discover more at View source version on Contacts US MediaPatrick Lenihannextiva@ UK MediaRuth Jones/Beth Coombesnextiva@ Sign in to access your portfolio
