API Security Lapses Cost APAC Firms Over $1 Million Each on Average

The report by Akamai Technologies highlighted that 81 per cent of organisations in the region experienced at least one API security incident in the past 12 months.

The average cost per incident has risen sharply from around $580,000 in last year's study to more than $1 million, reflecting growing cyber risks as AI adoption accelerates, the report said.

It noted that attacks involving APIs connected to AI technologies, including applications, AI agents and large language models (LLMs), emerged as the most common type of security incident, cited by 43 per cent of respondents.

Moreover, India and Singapore reported the highest exposure to API-related attacks, with 93 per cent and 90 per cent of organisations, respectively, reporting at least one incident during the year.

Meanwhile, Japan recorded the highest average financial impact per breach at $1.59 million, followed by Singapore at $1.33 million per incident.

The report also pointed to a major visibility gap in enterprise security systems, as only 22 per cent of respondents said they maintained a complete inventory of APIs and knew which of them handled sensitive data.

However, while 72 per cent of organisations said their focus on API security increased over the past year, only 19 per cent reported fully embedding security testing into their API software development and deployment processes.

Reuben Koh said organisations across APAC are rapidly scaling AI adoption, but the security foundations supporting those systems remain inadequate.

He noted that APIs are becoming critical infrastructure for AI-powered services, and weak visibility or governance could lead to service disruptions, higher recovery costs and loss of consumer trust.

The report cautioned that weak API visibility is emerging not only as a cybersecurity risk but also as a compliance challenge, especially as AI services become more deeply integrated into business operations.

- IANS