The global average cost of a data breach jumped to an all-time high for the second year in a row, but companies can reel in the ballooning drag on profits by adopting cybersecurity artificial intelligence (AI), according to an IBM report.

The “Cost of a Data Breach Report 2024,” published Tuesday, surveyed 604 companies between March 2023 and February in 16 countries/regions, with 19 years of data benchmarked to date. Year over year, the average cost of a breach climbed 10 percent from $4.5 million to $4.9 million. Post-breach response and lost business costs increased 11 percent above 2023 levels, according to the poll.

The cost of a data breach was highest in the United States at about $9.4 million, continuing a 14-year trend, followed by the Middle East with about $8.8 million. Benelux, the economic union that includes Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg, was next on the list at $5.9 million, followed by Germany ($5.3 million) and Italy ($4.7 million). Canada and Japan saw their average costs decrease compared to last year, the report noted.