Deltek's 2026 Clarity Report finds 30% of UK architecture, engineering and consulting firms rank improving cybersecurity as a top priority, just ahead of operationalising and optimising AI (29%) and investing in or implementing new technologies (25%).
Seven in ten (70%) UK firms report being targeted by a cyber-attack in the past three years, and 64% are extremely or very concerned about cybersecurity risks in 2026. Of the UK firms hit, half (50%) suffered financial losses. Firms that have been attacked are more likely to put cybersecurity first than those that have not (29% against 17%).
The most commonly reported attacks were customer or client data breaches (28%), ransomware or malware on internal systems (28%), intellectual-property breaches (27%), fraud or theft such as invoice scams (23%) and ransomware or malware affecting external client services (20%). Across all markets surveyed, 31% of organisations hit by a successful attack reported reputational damage.
Becca Harness, Chief Information Security Officer at Deltek, said: “A single vulnerable entry point can be enough for cybercriminals to gain access, so cybersecurity has rightly become a board-level business issue rather than simply an IT concern.”
Deltek released the figures to mark Cybersecurity Awareness Month. The company sells project, ERP and accounting software to project-based businesses.
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