REPORT
State of API Security 2026
Real world Vulnerabilities and Emerging Risks in an AI-Driven World
The State of API Security 2026 report delivers a data-driven analysis of real-world API vulnerabilities, showing how common mistakes in implementation translate into security risks in production. We draw on extensive vulnerability and exploit cases, as curated by our APIsecurity.io editorial team over two years, to highlight the most common API flaws, from broken input validation and missing authentication to operation-level authorization failures.
Readers will gain actionable insights into the scenarios most likely to expose sensitive data, enabling you to prioritize the defenses and governance across your API landscape.
The report also explores the risks and the opportunities presented by APIs in an AI-driven ecosystem, emphasizing the importance of high-quality, consistent APIs for emerging AI agents and LLMs.
Key Insights
Broken Input Validation
The most common category of API Flaws, covering injection, mass assignment and path traversal
BOLA & BFLA Failures
Broken authorization remains a leading API security risk, exposing sensitive resources.
Missing Authentication
The most frequently reported vulnerability in 2025, highlighting gaps in API access controls.
Alignment with OWASP Risks
Our four most prevalent flaws correspond to four of the top five OWASP API risks.
The “Trusted Client” Fallacy
Evidence that API teams often rely on frontend clients to enforce security.
Few Shadow API Exploits
Breaches or vulnerabilities in unmanaged or undocumented APIs are uncommon.