Shadow IT Index: September 2026
Web browsers top September's Shadow IT Index, with Apple Safari first at 15% adoption.
Updated October 8, 2026 · ChangelogSource: Torii Research, anonymized and aggregated usage data. Published September 1, 2026. Summary figures computed from the 28 apps in this report.
What kinds of apps
Every edition, by theme →Not in this edition, but in August 2026: AI agents (13%), AI assistants (7%), AI notes and voice (7%).
Share of the 28 apps in this edition, by theme. Each app has one theme, assigned by Torii Research from what the product does; AI marks the AI themes. Select a theme to filter the list below. How themes work.
Top of the index
Ranked by adoption.
All 28 apps
Apps from #14 down share 4% adoption; this edition shows a selection of them.
IT & Security
Apple Safari
Browser · Data Privacy · Web Security
About Apple Safari
Safari is Apple web browser, known for its speed, efficiency, and integration across Apple devices. Designed with a focus on user privacy, Safari offers features such as Intelligent Tracking Prevention, which helps block trackers from profiling users.
Theme: Browsers and search
Productivity
ScreenPal
Transcripts · Screen Capture · Screen Recording
About ScreenPal
Enables screen and webcam capture with AI editing, transcripts, captions, quizzes, and polished sharing for clear knowledge videos.
Theme: Design and video
IT & Security
Alice
Web Security
About Alice
Secure the AI apps and agents you build and deploy with red teaming and runtime guardrails powered by real-world adversarial data.
Theme: Security and IT
IT & Security
Brave
Browser · Data Privacy · Web Security
About Brave
Brave is a fast and private web browser that blocks ads and trackers, and rewards users with Basic Attention Tokens (BAT).
Theme: Browsers and search
Sales & Marketing
RB2B
Slack Bot · Manage Sales Pipeline · Lead Generation
About RB2B
Identifies anonymous website visitors in real time, delivers profiles and emails to Slack or CRM, and helps teams qualify traffic and turn pageviews into leads.
Theme: Sales, marketing, and CX
Productivity
Superhuman
Email Client · Email Search · Team Communication
Developer Tools
Devin
DevOps · Code Collaboration · AI Agent
About Devin
Devin is a collaborative AI tool designed to enhance the productivity of engineering teams by efficiently managing large refactoring tasks. It has been successfully implemented at Nubank, leading to significant time and cost savings.
Theme: AI coding and building · AI-native
Productivity
Obsidian
Note Taking · Mind Maps · Notes
About Obsidian
Obsidian is the private and flexible note‑taking app that adapts to the way you think.
Theme: Personal productivity
Operations
ElevenLabs
Artificial Intelligence · Text to Speech · Voice Generator
Developer Tools
Bruno
Version Control · API Documentation · API Development
About Bruno
Bruno is a fast and Git-friendly open-source API client. It stores API collections as plain text files in folders on your filesystem, supporting version control tools like Git for collaboration. Bruno operates offline and will not support cloud sync to ensure data privacy.
Theme: Developer and data tools
Operations
OneDrive
File Storage · File Sharing · Document Management
About OneDrive
OneDrive is a Microsoft web-based file hosting and sharing software.
Sales & Marketing
PandaDoc
Document Workflow Automation · Proposal software · Digital Signature
Operations
WorkOS
User Onboarding and Engagement · SSO · API Integration
About WorkOS
WorkOS provides APIs to make your app enterprise-ready, with pre-built features and integrations required by IT admins.
Theme: Developer and data tools
IT & Security
Bionic
Application Management · Document Workflow Automation · API Security
About Bionic
The Bionic platform gives the power to properly manage your application security posture.
Theme: Security and IT
Operations
Discord
Live Chat · Audio Conferencing · Internal Social Networks
IT & Security
Microsoft Edge
Browser · Data Privacy · Web Security
About Microsoft Edge
Microsoft Edge is a modern browser by Microsoft built on Chromium for faster, secure browsing. Features include privacy mode, Collections, and integration with Microsoft products.
Theme: Browsers and search
Productivity
Telegram
Instant Messaging · Group Messaging
About Telegram
Cloud-based mobile and desktop messaging app with a focus on security and speed.
Theme: Personal and consumer apps
Developer Tools
OpenCode
Debugging · IDEs and Text Editors · AI Agent
About OpenCode
Enables coding within any terminal or IDE by providing an open-source AI agent that supports multiple models and simultaneous sessions for enhanced productivity.
Theme: AI coding and building · AI-native
Developer Tools
DBeaver
Database Management
Developer Tools
FileZilla
FTP and File Uploads · File Storage · Cloud Storage
About FileZilla
Transfer files using FTP, SFTP, FTPS, and Cloud Services including Amazon S3, Backblaze B2, Google Drive, and Microsoft Azure
Theme: Developer and data tools
IT & Security
Firefox
Browser · Web Security · Browser Security
About Firefox
Firefox, developed by Mozilla, is a web browser that prioritizes user privacy and customization. It offers extensive features for blocking trackers and maintaining security, alongside support for numerous extensions and themes.
Theme: Browsers and search
Operations
Spotify
Podcasting · Audio Marketing · Media Players and Streaming Platforms
About Spotify
Spotify is a digital music service that gives you access to millions of songs. It is a Swedish music, podcast, and video streaming service that provides digital rights management, protected content from record labels and media companies.
Theme: Personal and consumer apps
Finance
TradingView
Investor Marketplace · Market Research · Investment Management
About TradingView
Offers a comprehensive platform for traders and investors to chart, analyze, and discuss market trends while accessing a wealth of user-generated insights and ideas.
Theme: Personal and consumer apps
Operations
Certified Mail
Compliance Automation · Address Verification API · Shipping and Fulfillment
About Certified Mail
Enables USPS Certified Mail label creation, postage, tracking, delivery confirmation, and long-term compliance archives with email notifications, return receipt storage, and address verification.
Theme: Ops, HR, and finance
IT & Security
NordVPN
Virtual Private Network (VPN) · Data Privacy · Network Security
Developer Tools
LM Studio
LLM · AI Development · AI Platform
About LM Studio
Enables users to run a variety of local AI models on their computer, ensuring privacy and free access while leveraging powerful tools for personalized data processing and analysis.
Theme: AI coding and building · AI-native
Productivity
PDFgear
PDF Readers and Editors · File Converter · E-Signature
About PDFgear
Enables users to read, edit, convert, merge, and sign PDF files effortlessly across devices without a fee or sign-up, enhancing accessibility and efficiency in managing PDF documents.
Theme: Personal productivity
Operations
WeTransfer
File Sharing
About WeTransfer
WeTransfer is a cloud-based computer file transfer service. The core service is free, with more features available for premium accounts. Premium account offers features like password protection, channel customization and 100 GB storage.
Theme: Personal productivity
Source: Torii Research, anonymized and aggregated usage data. Published September 1, 2026. Summary figures computed from the 28 apps in this report.
What the data says
Apple Safari (15% adoption) and the screen recorder ScreenPal (15% adoption) share the highest adoption, ahead of the AI security tool Alice (13% adoption).
Four browsers make the list: Apple Safari, Brave, Microsoft Edge, and Firefox. IT & Security (7) and Operations (7) are the largest categories.
The median Shadow IT index is 70, and 2 of the 28 apps score 90 or higher: Bionic at 92 and Alice at 91.
This edition covers August 2026 usage data.
The data
Show the full data table (28 rows)
| Rank | App | Category | Theme | AI-native | Adoption (%) | Shadow IT index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Apple Safari | IT & Security | Browsers and search | No | 15 | 68 |
| 2 | ScreenPal | Productivity | Design and video | No | 15 | 87 |
| 3 | Alice | IT & Security | Security and IT | No | 13 | 91 |
| 4 | Brave | IT & Security | Browsers and search | No | 12 | 70 |
| 5 | RB2B | Sales & Marketing | Sales, marketing, and CX | No | 7 | 86 |
| 6 | Superhuman | Productivity | Personal productivity | No | 6 | 67 |
| 7 | Devin | Developer Tools | AI coding and building | Yes | 5 | 73 |
| 8 | Obsidian | Productivity | Personal productivity | No | 5 | 72 |
| 9 | ElevenLabs | Operations | AI content and media | Yes | 5 | 64 |
| 10 | Bruno | Developer Tools | Developer and data tools | No | 5 | 73 |
| 11 | OneDrive | Operations | Work suites and collaboration | No | 5 | 52 |
| 12 | PandaDoc | Sales & Marketing | Sales, marketing, and CX | No | 5 | 67 |
| 13 | WorkOS | Operations | Developer and data tools | No | 5 | 70 |
| 14 | Bionic | IT & Security | Security and IT | No | 4 | 92 |
| 15 | Discord | Operations | Personal and consumer apps | No | 4 | 69 |
| 16 | Microsoft Edge | IT & Security | Browsers and search | No | 4 | 57 |
| 17 | Telegram | Productivity | Personal and consumer apps | No | 4 | 70 |
| 18 | OpenCode | Developer Tools | AI coding and building | Yes | 4 | 84 |
| 19 | DBeaver | Developer Tools | Developer and data tools | No | 4 | 68 |
| 20 | FileZilla | Developer Tools | Developer and data tools | No | 4 | 74 |
| 21 | Firefox | IT & Security | Browsers and search | No | 4 | 59 |
| 22 | Spotify | Operations | Personal and consumer apps | No | 4 | 64 |
| 23 | TradingView | Finance | Personal and consumer apps | No | 4 | 76 |
| 24 | Certified Mail | Operations | Ops, HR, and finance | No | 4 | 88 |
| 25 | NordVPN | IT & Security | Security and IT | No | 4 | 63 |
| 26 | LM Studio | Developer Tools | AI coding and building | Yes | 4 | 81 |
| 27 | PDFgear | Productivity | Personal productivity | No | 4 | 75 |
| 28 | WeTransfer | Operations | Personal productivity | No | 4 | 69 |
Free to quote with attribution to Torii Research and a link to this page. A plain-text version is at shadow-it-index-september-2026.md.
How to read this index
- Adoption
- The percentage of monitored organizations where the app was adopted during that month: a monthly figure, not a running total. The list is ranked on this number where it is available.
- Shadow IT index
- How often the app is left as "discovered" rather than sanctioned through SSO or procurement, normalized to 0 to 100.
- Why it surfaced
- The app's top functional tags. Open an app for its full profile across every edition.
Definitions in the glossary; formulas and limitations on the Methodology page.
Changelog
- UpdateReleased after its edition date.
