Stop shadow AI before it puts your entire business at risk
Strengthen your shadow AI security by blocking access to unauthorized AI tools across your organization.
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15,000+ businesses trust NordLayer to help them stay secure, compliant, and in control
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OVERVIEW
What is shadow AI?
Shadow AI refers to the use of artificial intelligence tools within an organization without the knowledge of IT or security teams. Employees often turn to these tools to speed up daily tasks, but doing so without proper oversight can lead to data leaks, compliance violations, and severe security risks for the entire organization.
NordLayer helps businesses mitigate the risks of shadow AI by blocking unsanctioned AI usage, limiting AI tools’ access to internal company resources, and isolating affected parts of the infrastructure if issues arise.
CHALLENGES
The biggest shadow AI risks
With the growing adoption of artificial intelligence in the workplace, managing the threats posed by shadow AI usage has become one of the biggest challenges for organizations.
Data leaks and sensitive data exposure
Employees may enter confidential data into AI tools, which then store or use it to train models. Once that data leaves your environment, you lose all control over who can access it.
Compliance violations
If sensitive data is processed through unapproved AI tools, your organization risks violating regulations such as GDPR or HIPAA, which can lead to fines and legal proceedings.
Expanded attack surface
Every unsanctioned AI tool added to your environment is a potential entry point for attackers. Often lacking proper security controls, AI tools can create hidden vulnerabilities for your IT team.
Financial and reputational harm
A single shadow AI incident, such as a data breach, compliance fine, or leaked client document, can cause financial losses and erode customer trust. Rebuilding this trust may take years.
Operational inconsistency
When teams use different, unapproved AI tools, output quality and reliability can vary. This leads to decisions based on inconsistent or inaccurate information.
Keep AI usage within approved tools with NordLayer
FUNCTIONALITY
How NordLayer helps to prevent shadow AI risks
Secure access to internal systems
Challenge: AI tools and users require access to the company infrastructure, including systems, APIs, and data.
Risk: Excessive access, limited control over who can connect.
With NordLayer, you can:
- Control who can access your systems (ZTNA).
- Grant access by identity, not by network.
- Enable secure remote access to internal resources.
- Allow only trusted users and devices to connect.
Limit data exposure to AI
Challenge: AI tools and users can access multiple systems and data sources.
Risk: Unwanted data exposure and potential lateral movement.
With NordLayer, you can:
- Restrict access to only the required resources (Network Segmentation).
- Isolate critical systems and environments.
- Define access per user and per resource.
- Prevent lateral movement by default.
Prevent data leakage via AI tools
Challenge: Employees use AI tools and may share company data.
Risk: Sensitive data may be exposed externally without control.
With NordLayer and the NordLayer Browser, you can:
- Block AI tools using DNS Filtering by category.
- Allow access only to AI tools that your company trusts (via NordLayer Browser).
- Ensure a secure browsing environment for all users.
- Restrict copy/paste and block unauthorized data transfers (via NordLayer Browser).
Stay ahead of AI risks
Challenge: AI tools and systems are deployed without proper configuration.
Risk: Unknown external exposure and misconfigured access.
With NordLayer and NordStellar, you can:
- Identify exposed company assets.
- Restrict and secure access to resources.
- Avoid public exposure with a controlled access setup.
- Validate security posture before incidents happen.
Contain incidents quickly
Challenge: A user account, system, or AI workflow is compromised.
Risk: Access spreads across systems, increasing impact.
With NordLayer, you can:
- Isolate affected systems (Network Segmentation).
- Revoke access immediately.
- Limit access by default (least privilege).
- Control all parts of the network from one place.
DEPLOYMENT
Protect your business from shadow AI
No hardware or professional services needed. Your IT team can deploy NordLayer across your organization in a single sprint.
Connect your IdP
Sync SSO via Okta, Entra ID, Google Workspace, OneLogin, or JumpCloud. SCIM integration is also available with Okta and Entra ID.
Set access policies
Define who can access which apps, from which devices, under which conditions with templates included.
Deploy to teams
Push the lightweight agent via MDM or invite users directly. Average rollout: < 1 day per 100 users.
Control AI use in your organization with NordLayer
Our reputation
Why we believe businesses choose NordLayer
Good maintenance, modern solutions, and robust network security must achieve a solid defense against risk and unauthorized access.
In Security Service Edge category
NordLayer in numbers
15,000+
Businesses protected
10 min
Average time to deploy
40+
Global service locations
integrations
Works instantly with the tools you already run
NordLayer connects to your identity providers, cloud platforms, and endpoint tools from day one.
Additional info
Frequently asked questions
Shadow IT refers to employees using unauthorized apps, devices, or services without IT’s knowledge or approval. Shadow AI is a subset of shadow IT and specifically means the unauthorized use of AI tools such as ChatGPT and Copilot. The key difference lies in scope, as shadow IT covers any unapproved technology, while shadow AI focuses specifically on AI tools that may process sensitive company data. Effective shadow AI management is therefore about gaining visibility, maintaining control, and enforcing clear governance over AI use.
Shadow AI detection requires visibility into which AI tools employees are using and how data flows through your organization. To do so, you can:
- Monitor network traffic for connections to known AI platforms like ChatGPT and Gemini.
- Review browser activity to identify AI tool usage that hasn’t been approved by IT.
- Audit SaaS subscriptions to detect out-of-policy AI tools your employees may have signed up for.
- Use endpoint monitoring to identify AI-related apps or extensions installed on company devices.
ChatGPT falls under shadow AI when employees use it for work outside the IT team’s oversight or approval. Only when a company formally approves and manages ChatGPT usage is it no longer considered shadow AI.
A common example of shadow AI is an employee copying and pasting confidential company data into an unauthorized AI tool to draft a report or summarize meeting notes. Another example is a sales team using an out-of-policy AI transcription tool to record and analyze client calls. In both cases, sensitive company data may be processed by external AI services that the company has no control over.
The most at-risk data includes proprietary business information like financial reports, strategic plans, and internal documents that employees might enter into AI tools for analysis. Customer and employee personal data, such as names, email addresses, and payment details, is also highly vulnerable. Without proper data security measures, this information can be exposed to external services over which the company has no control.
Shadow AI prevention starts with creating a clear policy that outlines which AI tools are approved for use and how employees can request access to new ones. From there, you can use solutions like NordLayer to monitor network activity and block access to unauthorized AI platforms. Finally, you should educate your employees on the risks of sharing sensitive data with unapproved AI tools so they understand the reasoning behind the restrictions.