This report examines the growing impact of API security incidents across government organizations. In 2024, 86.1% of public sector respondents experienced an API incident, up from 76.8% the previous year. Average U.S. incident costs reached $717,500, exceeding the cross-industry average. Major consequences included increased pressure on security teams, damaged credibility with leadership, and regulatory fines. Although 66.9% maintained an API inventory, only 18.5% knew which APIs handled sensitive data. Weak authentication, traditional security tools, shadow APIs, legacy systems, and poor visibility remain major risks. The report recommends stronger API discovery, governance, monitoring, access controls, and proactive protection to preserve operations, compliance, and public trust.

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