Zscaler has announced plans to acquire AI security firm Symmetry Systems and has launched a partner initiative, Project AI-Guardian, aimed at addressing security and governance challenges created by the use of autonomous AI agents in enterprise environments.
In a press release issued on 27 May 2026, the company said the Symmetry Systems deal is intended to add “access graph” capabilities that map how identities access data across SaaS applications, public cloud services, data stores and AI systems. Zscaler said the acquisition is expected to close “in the coming days”, subject to customary conditions.
The company also announced Project AI-Guardian, a collaboration with global system integrators including Cognizant, EY, HCLTech, Infosys, TCS and Wipro. Zscaler said the initiative is designed to help organisations identify and govern “shadow AI”, understand data and identity relationships associated with AI assets, and assess risks including supply chain, posture and sensitive-data exposure.
The announcements come as organisations expand use of “agentic” AI systems—autonomous agents that can operate across environments using dynamic or ephemeral identities and inherited permissions. Zscaler argued that security models designed primarily for human users do not scale to large numbers of AI agents, and that new attack paths can emerge through indirect prompt injection and complex permission chains.
According to Zscaler, Symmetry Systems’ technology ingests access logs and correlates them into an access graph showing which identities are accessing which data and how. The company said integrating this with its Zero Trust Exchange platform would support tasks such as building least-privilege policies for AI agents, tracing data lineage, detecting anomalies and assessing potential blast radius if an identity is compromised.
“As enterprises rapidly adopt AI, the old playbook for governing access built around users and directories cannot scale to millions of AI agents,” said Jay Chaudhry, chairman and CEO of Zscaler. “With Symmetry Systems, we are adding the access graph that maps how every identity, application, and data source connects across the enterprise.”
Mohit Tiwari, CEO of Symmetry Systems, said: “We believe the dominant security platforms of the AI era will govern how information flows between identities across zero-trust networks.”
Several of the system integrator partners also positioned the collaboration as a way to extend governance and security controls to AI deployments and agentic systems. Project AI-Guardian is expected to draw on Zscaler’s AI Protect portfolio, including AI Asset Management, Secure Access to AI, and Secure AI Infrastructure and Apps, the company said.
