EP265 Beyond Shadow IT: Unsanctioned AI Agents Don't Just Talk, They Act!

EP265 Beyond Shadow IT: Unsanctioned AI Agents Don't Just Talk, They Act!

From Cloud Security Podcast by Google by Anton Chuvakin

March 2, 2026 · 29 min · Season 1 · Episode 265

About this episode

The episode discusses the risks and governance of unsanctioned AI tools, featuring insights from Alastair Paterson of Harmonic Security.

Guest: Alastair Paterson , CEO and co-founder @ Harmonic Security Topics: Harmonic Security focuses on securing generative AI in use. Can you walk us through a real, anonymized example of a data leak caused by employee AI usage that your platform has identified? AI governance gets thrown around a lot. What does this mean in the context of Shadow AI? How should organizations be thinking about governing AI in light of upcoming AI regulations in the US and in the EU? If we generally agree that employees are using AI tools before they are sanctioned, how can organizations control this? Network, API, endpoint? Many organizations struggle with the "ban vs. embrace" debate for generative AI. Based on your experience, what's a compelling argument for moving from a blanket ban to a managed, secure adoption model? Can you share a success story where this approach demonstrably reduced risk? The term "shadow AI" is often used interchangeably with "shadow IT" (but for AI-powered applications) but you've highlighted that AI is a different beast. What is the single biggest distinction between managing the risk of unsanctioned AI tools versus unsanctioned IT applications? Looking forward, where…

People in this episode

Host: Anton Chuvakin

Guest: Alastair Paterson

Topics covered

  • shadow AI
  • AI governance
  • generative AI
  • data leak
  • risk management
  • AI regulations

Keywords

  • shadow IT
  • data leak
  • AI tools
  • generative AI
  • AI regulations
  • risk management
  • Harmonic Security

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Harmonic Security

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