Chapter 2: Safety and Security

With reduced struggle around meeting regulations and greater emphasis on secure processes, the industry appears to be shifting its compliance mindset from “which rules do we follow?” to “how can we prove coverage and provenance continuously?” To answer, leaders will need to evaluate which tools provide the greatest security and efficiency and how to implement them in existing workflows. 

Traceability 

Traceability was a new response option in the 2026 survey. It’s significant to note that 15% of respondents cited it as their primary safety concern, tying it for third place. In contrast, responses around ISO 26262 and safe coding standards dropped significantly.  This suggests that teams are focused on reducing the time and effort they spend proving end-to-end coverage rather than how to meet specific regulations.  

Collaboration 

Collaboration and traceability go hand-in-hand. Not only must organizations ensure compliance, but they must also manage data provenance and security across teams and suppliers. In the 2026 survey, concerns around the need for secure collaboration (22%) surged. As the mindset shifts from rules to evidence, teams will need secure collaboration through well-governed, fully traceable channels.