APPLIED AIGLOSSARY

ByJulian Calvo, Ed.D.Founder, DecipherU

What is Data Poisoning in Applied AI?

AI x Cybersecurity Convergence
ByDecipherU Editorial
Version 1.0 · Published April 2026 · Last verified April 2026

An attack where the adversary injects malicious examples into the training data to change the model's behavior at inference time. Targeted poisoning makes specific inputs misclassify; backdoor poisoning installs a trigger that activates a hidden behavior. The MITRE ATLAS taxonomy treats data poisoning as a first-class technique.

Why Data Poisoning Matters for Your AI or Cybersecurity Career

Any team that trains on user-generated, scraped, or vendor-supplied data must defend against poisoning. AI security and AI governance roles design those defenses.

Related Applied AI Terms

Cybersecurity Convergence

The cybersecurity glossary covers a parallel term for this concept on the cyber side of the convergence.

Read about Data Poisoning in cybersecurity →

An attack where the adversary injects malicious examples into the training data to change the model's behavior at inference time. Targeted poisoning makes specific inputs misclassify; backdoor poisoning installs a trigger that activates a hidden behavior. The MITRE ATLAS taxonomy treats data poisoning as a first-class technique.

Any team that trains on user-generated, scraped, or vendor-supplied data must defend against poisoning. AI security and AI governance roles design those defenses.

Last verified: April 2026?Report an inaccuracy