The “A for effort” era has ended, with CEOs now demanding measurable results (and proof of it) from senior leaders and junior staff alike, pressure which has forced many to turn to unregulated “shadow AI” and risky workarounds to meet expectations, according to research from BlackFog.

Polling 2,000 enterprise employees across the UK and US, the cyber firm found that 86% now use AI tools at least weekly for work-related tasks, but more than a third (34%) are using publicly available versions of authorised AI applications.

Almost two-thirds of employees (60%) said that using unapproved AI is worth the security risks if it helps them work faster or meet deadlines, with 21% believing their employer would “turn a blind eye” as long as work is completed on time.

This ‘speed outweighs security’ mindset was most prevalent among senior leadership, with BlackFog finding 69% of those at president or C-level, and 66% of directors and senior VPs, believe speed trumps privacy or security. 

That’s a sharp contrast to the 37% of staff in administrative roles and 38% in junior executive positions who shared this view, and evidence of the unrelenting pressure those at the top are now under to justify their salaries. 

Among those relying on unsanctioned tools, more than half of employees (58%) are using free versions, which often lack enterprise-grade security, data governance, and privacy protections, with 33% admitting to uploading research or sensitive data to these platforms.

Risking privacy and compliance breaches, more than a quarter (27%) have even shared employee data such as staff names, payroll, or performance information, while 23% have shared financial statements or sales data.

Just as bad, half of all employees admitted to connecting or integrating unapproved third-party AI tools with their work systems or apps without IT department oversight, with 63% believing it’s okay to use unauthorised AI tools without IT knowing when no company-approved option is provided.

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BlackFog said the findings raise major concerns about where sensitive corporate data is being stored, processed, and accessed, with both junior staff and senior leaders taking risks that weaken security controls and increase the chance of compliance breaches.

“This research is a stark indication not only of how widely unapproved AI tools are being used, but also the level of risk tolerance amongst employees and senior leaders,” said Dr. Darren Williams, CEO and founder of BlackFog.

“This should raise red flags for security teams and highlights the need for greater oversight and visibility into these security blind spots. AI is already embedded in our working world, but this cannot come at the expense of the security and privacy of the datasets on which these AI models are trained.”