Why zero trust shouldn’t stop at the printer tray

Ask any enterprise what their most pressing concern is and you’re likely to hear one recurring answer: security. Threats are rife. Risks are great. The fear of data breaches runs at an all-time high.

But even as IT teams lock down every other internet-connected device, it’s the printer that gets overlooked and side-lined in the corner of the office. It’s a risk enterprises can’t afford to take.

In Quocirca’s Print Security Landscape 2026, the study found that “67% of organisations across the UK, France, Germany, and the US experienced at least one print-related data loss in the past year.” It’s a dramatic 11% increase on the year before, with the cost for each breach averaging more than £1 million.

Digital data breaches are the chief driver - notably, AI-enabled attacks, aided by out-of-date printer firmware, weak access controls, insecure network settings, and data stored on the printer’s hard drive or flash memory. For savvy threat actors, it’s effectively an unlocked back-door into business operations.

In a dangerous pincer move for enterprises, this is coupled with physical breaches. The most famous recent example came in 2025, hours before a high-profile summit, when US State Department documents left in an Alaskan hotel printer revealed government employee phone numbers, seating charts, and a schedule.

The twin security risks highlight the necessity for strong printer security. For those already undertaking this change, it’s paying off. According to the Quocirca report, 56% of those businesses initiating a series of print security tools and policies experience fewer data losses compared to those whose security is best described as lax.

Why traditional approaches to print security are no longer enough

So why, when it comes to security, does the printer remain a low priority? Enterprises excel at developing processes for securing laptops, servers, and even phones.

Yet, printers often fall outside of the same stringent security processes with on-going oversight. Set up a printer once, and so long as no-one complains that it isn’t working, it gets all but forgotten.

When security policies are applied inconsistently, it leaves clear gaps in basic controls. From vulnerabilities like retaining default passwords and leaving print jobs unencrypted to management issues such as knowing what devices are connected to the network and the firmware they’re running, the printer has become a security trap.

Complications around fleets also play their part. Increasingly, businesses operate multi-vendor printer fleets - that’s to say, models from different manufacturers, all with their own settings and device-level security configurations. This adds an additional layer of complexity that makes it more difficult to establish and apply uniform printer security controls.

The problem, therefore, isn't simply whether an individual printer has security features. It's whether those protections are consistently configured, monitored, and maintained throughout the device's operational life.

This is where traditional approaches built around periodic manual checks and device-by-device administration begin to fall short. For IT decision-makers, print security needs to move beyond individual device protection and become part of the organisation's wider endpoint security strategy.

Building security into the print infrastructure

A more effective approach begins by treating printers as connected enterprise endpoints from the outset. That means considering security throughout the device lifecycle, from initial deployment and access management to ongoing monitoring, firmware updates, and compliance. It also means recognising that stronger security should not necessarily create additional work for already stretched IT teams.

HP’s Color LaserJet Enterprise MFP 4801fw is an example of how enterprise print technology is evolving to address these requirements, combining advanced security capabilities with simplified management in a compact design.

Centralised control and automated security updates form the core part of this strategy. HP FutureSmart is an operating system-style platform found on supported HP Enterprise printers. This printer firmware gives IT teams granular control over the fleet's capabilities and security, from streamlining updates and productivity upgrades across all devices to crafting consistent interfaces for end-users.

Under the hood, it’s equipped with HP Wolf Enterprise Security which helps protect against cyber threats through security capabilities designed to detect attacks and support recovery. This is particularly relevant as attackers increasingly look for weaknesses in connected devices that may not receive the same scrutiny as traditional computing endpoints.

Alongside this is HP’s Zero Trust Print Architecture. This operates on the principle of “never trust, always verify.” It’s a strict gatekeeper preventing unauthorised devices and users from accessing an organisation’s printer infrastructure.

HP Security Manager software, addresses this by enabling IT teams to manage and monitor security across the whole fleet of HP printers. Together, the three provide multiple layers of defence and compliance for individual printers and IT management. That fleet-level overview is critical. After all, security policies deliver the most value when they’re properly configured, and centrally maintained.

Preparing for the next generation of cyber threats

Modern security controls need to become proactive, not reactive. Quantum computing is one such challenge, with the potential to undermine widely used cryptographic protections as the technology advances.

While the threat may seem distant, organisations are already preparing. Quocirca’s own report revealed that quantum-resilient security planning was considered “very important” by 57% of respondents,reflecting growing awareness of the need to protect long-term technology investments.

With enterprise hardware often remaining in service for years, businesses need to consider how today's security decisions will withstand tomorrow's threats. This is particularly important for printers, where firmware integrity relies on cryptographic protections to verify that device software is authentic and has not been tampered with.

HP’s own Wolf Enterprise Security is one example, building in protection against future quantum-computing threats, with printer models including the HP Color LaserJet Enterprise MFP 4801fw featuring quantum-resistant BIOS firmware integrity schemes.

Stronger security meets IT efficiency

Ultimately, the broader idea for leadership is to evaluate security and manageability together. That requires going beyond the feature list of protections offered by devices. It also means asking how teams configure the printers, monitor compliance, and keep the fleet up to date.

Print security is at its most effective when it’s part of routine IT operations. A stronger defence doesn’t come from yet another set of manual tasks, but from the ability to consistently apply policies, review devices, and manage firmware.

Printers like the HP Color LaserJet Enterprise MFP 4801fw are designed to support that balance, giving IT teams the tools they need to turn an often overlooked security risk into a resilient endpoint. When zero trust is the standard, it can’t stop at the printer tray.