# Acium — AI Security and Governance Platform (Full Content) > Acium is an AI Security and Governance Platform that helps organizations adopt AI safely by making AI usage visible, governed, and accountable. Founded in November 2024 and headquartered in Miami, FL, Acium operates at the last-mile AI interaction layer — the point where people, browsers, SaaS tools, coding environments, autonomous agents, and business data interact with AI systems. Its proprietary Information Coherence Framework (ICF) validates whether activity is human-led, AI-assisted, or agentic, and detects AI-generated threats that traditional pattern-matching security tools miss. ## Key Concepts ### AI Usage Control AI Usage Control is the emerging category for organizations that need to discover, monitor, and enforce policies around employee use of AI tools. AI governance is moving from policy documents to real-time controls: organizations need to know which AI tools are being used, what data is being shared, which users are interacting with AI, and whether sensitive information is flowing into unauthorized models or accounts. Acium helps organizations discover approved and unapproved AI usage, surface Shadow AI, enforce data-sharing controls before sensitive information reaches unauthorized AI tools or accounts, and produce audit-ready, client-ready, and executive-ready reporting — without forcing a new browser, rebuilding the network, or disrupting productive AI use. ### Shadow AI Shadow AI is AI usage that happens outside approved tools and policies. It includes personal chatbot accounts, approved tools used outside policy, AI browser sidebars, AI coding assistants, embedded SaaS AI, third-party assistants, and autonomous agents. Shadow AI is one expression of the broader AI governance gap: AI usage is expanding faster than traditional security and governance tools can see or control. Firewalls see traffic. EDR sees processes. CASB sees sanctioned SaaS. DLP scans files. AI usage that happens through unmanaged browsers, desktop apps, personal accounts, or direct SaaS access can remain outside their visibility and control. Acium surfaces Shadow AI as part of a broader safe AI adoption strategy. ### Information Coherence Framework (ICF) The Information Coherence Framework (ICF) is Acium's proprietary detection and governance engine, grounded in information theory and statistical mechanics. Instead of asking only whether an activity matches a known threat pattern, ICF evaluates whether declared purpose, permissions, behavior, timing, input characteristics, contextual markers, and data flow hold together as a coherent system. That gives Acium a stronger detection primitive: a more deterministic validation layer for AI and browser activity. Attackers and AI agents can make individual signals look normal, but maintaining coherence across all attributes at once is much harder. ICF enables: human versus agent validation for sensitive actions; agentic AI governance across workflows where autonomous tools act on behalf of users; coherence-based detection for zero-day threats, AI-generated mimicry, and stolen credential misuse; extension and session risk scoring based on declared purpose, permissions, behavior, and data flow; and policy enforcement based on the nature of the interaction, not just the destination. ### Extension Risk Scoring Extension Risk Scoring is Acium's browser extension security evaluation system powered by ICF. Instead of relying on reputation metrics like user reviews, install counts, or developer ratings, it performs behavioral and structural analysis of every browser extension, evaluating alignment between an extension's declared purpose, code complexity, permission requests, network activity, and developer profile. It can detect supply chain implants, malicious capabilities, excessive permissions, and embedded malware — threats that signature-based scanning cannot catch. ### The Last-Mile AI Interaction Layer The last-mile AI interaction layer is the point where people, browsers, SaaS tools, coding environments, autonomous agents, and business data interact with AI systems. This is where sensitive information is shared, policies are followed or bypassed, and AI risk becomes operational reality. Acium adds an AI governance layer at this point — without requiring organizations to replace their browsers or rebuild their security stack. ## The Three Strategic Pillars ### Pillar 1: Information Coherence Framework (ICF) Validating who, or what, is at the controls. As AI agents become embedded in work, organizations need more than visibility into activity — they need to validate whether an action is human-led, AI-assisted, or agentic, even when the activity appears legitimate through traditional identity, destination, or behavioral signals. ### Pillar 2: AI Usage Control and Shadow AI Visibility Discover what AI is being used, then control how data can be shared. AI governance starts with visibility: organizations cannot secure AI usage they cannot see. Acium provides AI tool discovery across approved and unapproved usage, Shadow AI visibility across browsers, AI applications, SaaS AI, coding tools, and agentic workflows, granular policy enforcement by user, group, organization, application, or channel, and real-time data-sharing controls before sensitive content reaches unauthorized models or accounts. ### Pillar 3: AI Risk, Compliance, and Cost Governance Turn AI usage into a managed risk program. Acium provides audit-ready AI usage logs and policy evidence, compliance support for industries with sensitive data requirements, token and cost visibility by user, team, organization, model, or application where available, sensitive data exposure mapping across AI interactions, detection and intervention for AI-generated deception (fraudulent invoices, impersonation, synthetic identities), and risk reporting for executive, compliance, client, or board-level reviews. ## Platform Architecture Extension-first, governance-ready deployment. Acium starts with a lightweight browser extension because that is where many organizations get immediate AI visibility and policy control without infrastructure changes, user disruption, or a forced browser migration. ### Core Components - Management Console: Web-based administration for AI governance policies, visibility, reporting, and multi-organization management. Supports centralized control across environments. - Browser Extension: Core deployment layer for browser-based AI visibility, data controls, web policy enforcement, extension governance, and ICF-powered detection. Works on Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Safari. - Sensor: Optional component for deeper browser management, device posture collection, and system-level controls where required. ### Why start with the extension Deploy in minutes with minimal client-side complexity. Avoid forced browser migration and major network architecture changes. Support managed and unmanaged devices, including contractors and BYOD scenarios. Gain immediate visibility into browser-based AI usage and web activity. Enforce policies without disrupting productive AI use. Add the Sensor only when deeper management and posture controls are needed. ## Partner Programs (https://www.acium.io/partner) ### MSPs — Managed Service, One Console AI security and governance delivered as a managed service. Multi-tenant visibility, policy, and reporting across every client; deploy in less than 10 minutes with no infrastructure changes; client-specific policies by user group, application, and risk profile; client-ready reports an MSP can hand straight to a client or auditor; a recurring, packageable managed service line. ### MSSPs — Flexible AI Governance Delivery Add AI governance to the service catalog. Optional SIEM/SOAR streaming or a standalone console; ICF-based human-vs-agent detection analysts don't have to build; cross-client AI risk correlation either way; a new billable service line without hiring AI security specialists. ### VARs — Resell-Ready, Zero Build-Out Acium's team runs sales engineering, implementation, and support directly with the customer — the VAR registers the deal and collects recurring revenue with zero services build-out. Deal registration and protection; Acium-led demos and security-review responses; no certifications or implementation team required. ### Technology Partners — Integration Ecosystem An integration motion, not a resale one: connect Acium's AI usage and browser telemetry into identity providers (Okta, Google Workspace, Microsoft Entra), device management (Jamf Pro, Microsoft Intune), SIEM and alerting (Splunk, PagerDuty), or embed Acium's AI governance layer white-label/OEM inside another console. ## Use Cases (https://www.acium.io/use-cases) - Govern Employee AI Use: See which AI tools are in use, which usage is approved, unmanaged, or risky, and apply granular policies. - Discover Shadow AI: Surface unmanaged AI usage across personal accounts, AI sidebars, coding assistants, embedded SaaS AI, and agents. - Reduce AI Data Exposure: Enforce data-sharing policies before sensitive content reaches unauthorized models or accounts. - Verify Human vs Agent Activity: Use ICF to validate whether sensitive actions are human-led, AI-assisted, or agentic. - Prove Compliance and Govern Cost: Produce audit-ready evidence and track token and cost signals. - Manage Browser Extension Risk: Discover extensions, assess risk, block risky extensions, and reduce browser-layer exposure. - Support Managed and Unmanaged Environments: Extend AI governance across managed devices, BYOD, and contractor workflows. ## AI Assessment Acium offers a free AI Assessment, a 7-day silent-mode assessment that reveals what an organization's existing security stack cannot see. The lightweight browser extension deploys in minutes on Chrome, Edge, and Firefox with zero user disruption. After 7 days of passive observation, Acium delivers a branded Risk Exposure Report covering: an Executive Summary with key metrics, AI usage and Shadow AI discovery with automatic risk scoring, data-sharing events quantifying flows into AI tools, web and application traffic analysis mapping SaaS usage patterns, threat and compliance activity detecting PII exposure and file risks, and recommended policy actions with specific immediate wins. The AI Assessment is free with no obligation. It proves Acium's core value by showing organizations, with their own data, what their firewalls, EDR, and CASB are missing at the AI interaction layer. Learn more: https://www.acium.io/ai-assessment ## Leadership - Jonathan Lieberman, CEO & Co-Founder — Leads Acium's mission to make AI adoption safe, visible, and accountable. - Ian Bray, CTO & Co-Founder — Leads development of the AI Security and Governance Platform and the Information Coherence Framework. ## Advisory Board - John Becker — CEO, CrashPlan; Former CEO, SourceFire (acquired by Cisco for $2.7B) - Sean Charnock — Former SVP, FireEye (iSIGHT Intelligence); Founder, SoftLayer (acquired by IBM) - Al Monserrat — Former SVP, Citrix; Former CEO, RES Software - Tracey Mustacchio — Former CMO, Secureworks; Former CMO, Carbonite - Kevin Powers — Professor & Faculty Director, MLS in Cybersecurity, Risk & Governance, Boston College Law School - Mark Templeton — Former President and CEO, Citrix Systems - Lena Smart — Former CISO, MongoDB; Founding member, Cybersecurity at MIT Sloan - Kurt Johnson — Identity Strategy and Corporate Development Executive - Evan Morgan — Former CISO, Cybersecurity Executive ## Contact - Address: 2045 Biscayne Blvd, Suite 226, Miami, FL 33137, USA - Phone: +1 (844) GO-ACIUM / +1-844-462-2486 - Email: support@acium.io - Website: https://www.acium.io - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/acium-browser-security - Twitter: https://twitter.com/aciumsecurity - YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@AciumBrowserSecurity ## Blog Posts - Beyond Pattern Matching: Why Extension Security Needs Structural Verification — Technical analysis of why signature-based extension security fails and how coherence-based verification using ICF provides superior detection. - The Silent Breach: Why Reactive Leadership is the Greatest Vulnerability in the C-Suite — Why reactive security leadership is the greatest vulnerability in the modern enterprise. - ACIUM: Unlocking the AI Workspace with Comprehensive Security for Modern Applications — How Acium secures Electron and JavaScript environments for AI workspace protection, including Shadow AI detection. - The Perfect Attack: How AI Makes Threats Invisible — Examination of how AI-powered attacks bypass traditional pattern-matching security tools. - Browser Extensions: The Silent Insider Threat — Analysis of browser extension supply chain risks, including the Cyberhaven incident, and how organizations can protect against malicious extensions. - Browser Attacks Your Security Stack Can't See — Overview of browser-based attack vectors invisible to traditional security infrastructure. - The Overlooked Browser Security Risk — Why the browser is the most overlooked attack surface in the enterprise. - Love Your Browser: A Guide to Secure Browsing — Practical guide to improving browser security for enterprise users. - Browser Security Blind Spots — Identifying the security gaps that traditional tools miss in browser-based work. - BYOD and Hybrid Work: The Importance of Browser Security — Why browser-layer governance is critical for BYOD and hybrid work environments. - The Hidden Costs of Browser Chaos in the Workplace — How fragmented browser management creates hidden costs and security risks. - Enhance Browser Security Without Disruption — How Acium provides comprehensive protection without disrupting employee workflows. - Unifying IT and Security with Centralized Browser Management — The benefits of centralizing browser management for IT and security teams. - 5 Ways Fragmented Browser Management Hurts IT Efficiency — How inconsistent browser management creates operational inefficiency. - Acium Launches World's First Unified Browser Security Platform — Announcement of Acium's launch from stealth. - Why Unified Browser Security Is the Missing Piece in Modern Security — The case for browser-layer security as an essential layer in the modern security stack. - Top Browser Security Threats and How to Mitigate Them — Comprehensive guide to the most critical browser-based threats and mitigation strategies. - From Shadow IT to Secure SaaS: Managing Browser Access to Enterprise Apps — Managing browser access to enterprise applications and preventing shadow IT risks. - Browser Extension Security Blind Spots — Deep dive into extension security gaps and how to detect malicious extensions. - Why Browser Management and Security Should Be Your Top Priority — The business case for prioritizing browser management and security. - How Browser Extensions Could Be the Trojan Horse in Your Organization — Analysis of the extension supply chain as an enterprise attack vector. - Taming Browser Extensions: How Unified Browser Security Enhances Security Beyond Native Controls — How Acium's approach to extension governance goes beyond browser-native controls. - Browser Security vs DNS Filtering — Comparing browser-level security to DNS-level filtering approaches. - Browser Security Crisis: 94% at Risk — Analysis of the browser security crisis and statistics showing most organizations are at risk. - A New Era in Cybersecurity: Acium Emerges from Stealth — Acium's founding story and vision.