Belgian companies seek more local options and greater digital resilience, but remain heavily dependent on their critical suppliers
Brussels, 15 October 2026 – Belgian companies are responding more strongly to international tensions than their counterparts abroad. They want to bring their data and systems closer to home and reduce their dependence on a single supplier. However, companies seeking to leave their IT partner face contractual barriers and dependencies. These are the findings of the Belgian results from PwC’s 2027 Global Digital Trust Insights Survey, which surveyed almost 4,000 business leaders and IT decision-makers across 71 countries, including 75 in Belgium.
Wanting to leave, but locked in
Belgian companies want to reduce their dependence on foreign IT suppliers. Almost six in ten are backing up their systems in their own country or region (59%) or moving to a European or regional cloud provider (57%). However, these intentions run up against practical constraints. Two in three companies (64%) are unsure how they would move away from their main IT supplier if necessary. Six in ten (61%) also find it difficult to hold that supplier to its commitments in terms of service delivery and security. Companies thus want more control, but remain heavily tied to their current partners. As a result, closer monitoring of suppliers and subcontractors is the change they mention most often (57%).
These concerns are not unfounded. The major cyberattacks in Belgium in recent months all originated through an external party, ranging from a vulnerability at a security software provider to compromised software at a subcontractor. Your own security is only as strong as that of your suppliers.
Plenty of discussion about cyberattacks, but limited preparedness
Cybersecurity features more prominently on board agendas in Belgium than elsewhere: 57% strongly agree that this is the case, compared with 47% globally. Yet action does not always follow. Only 22% of Belgian companies have a fully developed cyber incident response plan, just over half the global figure. The topic is also discussed less frequently by executive committees, where day-to-day decisions are made (36% versus 45% globally).
Belgian companies also feel less prepared for ‘traditional’ attacks that target people: scams that manipulate employees, such as phishing (38% versus 22% globally), CEO fraud and compromised email accounts (36% versus 24%), and attacks that bring down websites by overwhelming them with traffic (34% versus 25%).
More funding for cybersecurity, but not for AI
Almost all Belgian companies (91%) are allocating more funding to cybersecurity in 2027. One third are increasing their budgets by more than 10%, compared with just one in five companies globally. Where that funding is being directed is striking. Globally, more than half of companies (58%) rank AI among their main cybersecurity investments. In Belgium, this is true for only three in ten (29%). Belgian companies are prioritising the fundamentals: strengthening network security (41%) and outsourcing security to specialist partners (41%). Responsibility for overseeing AI also differs. In Belgium, this most often lies with the head of IT security (58%, compared with 17% globally). A dedicated AI leader on the executive team remains rare: only one in ten companies has one (9%), compared with one in four globally (26%).
“Belgian companies clearly recognise that international tensions also pose a digital risk. They want to bring their data closer to home, and that is a sensible response. But that alone does not make you secure. The real question is: what will you do on the day your main IT supplier is hacked or becomes unavailable? Today, only one in five companies has a fully developed answer. That is where the first step needs to be taken.” - Xavier Verhaeghe, Leader Advisory Services PwC Belgium.
PwC experts:
- Xavier Verhaeghe, AI Expert – AI Co-Leader, PwC Europe & Advisory Leader, PwC Belgium
- Pascal Tops, Risk, Compliance & Cybersecurity Expert – Partner, PwC Belgium
- Wim Rymen, IT Risk & Assurance Expert – Partner, PwC Belgium
About the survey
For the 2027 Global Digital Trust Insights Survey, PwC surveyed 3,934 business leaders and IT decision makers in 71 countries between 6 May and 15 July 2026, including 75 in Belgium. Three quarters of respondents hold senior executive positions. Some questions were put only to specific roles (56 to 59 respondents in Belgium). These results are indicative. The full report is available at pwc.com/dti.
About PwC
At PwC, we help clients build trust and reinvent so they can turn complexity into competitive advantage. We’re a tech-forward, people-empowered network with more than 364,000 people in 136 countries and 137 territories. Across audit and assurance, tax and legal, deals and consulting, we help build, accelerate and sustain momentum. Find out more at www.pwc.com.
‘PwC’ refers to the PwC network and/or one or more of its member firms, each of which is a separate legal entity. Please see www.pwc.com/structure for further details.
© 2026 PwC. All rights reserved.
Tess Minnens
