Artificial intelligence (AI) is creating ripples in every industry. For many years, people feared the rise of the machine, and their own inventions becoming more intelligent than them and taking over.

Yet nothing could be farther from the truth. AI and machine learning (ML) are fuelling massive change. Importantly, AI is also being used to protect businesses and people from the never-ending scourge of cyberattacks. Having said that, as with any new technology, there are positives and negatives.

Faster, better, more accurate

For one, AI can help security practitioners detect and respond to threats more rapidly. By harnessing the power of AI, security heads can better understand their networks by pinpointing anomalous behaviours that might indicate an attack is taking place quicker than ever before. AI-powered solutions can also sift through massive floods of data to identify suspicious activity to quickly determine if a company is under attack — by a new zero-day exploit, for example.

AI also has the ability to automate a wide range of security processes, such as patch management and updates, making it easier for security leaders to stay on top of their company’s cybersecurity needs. It can help them respond more quickly to attacks by automating additional tasks, for instance, rerouting traffic away from a compromised server or raising a red flag for the IT team to alert them of any potential issues.

When it comes to efficiency, AI-based cybersecurity solutions promise enhanced accuracy and efficiency in comparison to yesterday’s security tools. For example, AI can scan systems and devices for possible vulnerabilities in a fraction of the time it would take people to do this job manually.

Moreover, AI algorithms can recognise patterns that would easily slip past the human eye, resulting in greater accuracy when detecting malicious activity.

Saving money and time

Another area in which AI shines is its ability to automate mundane and onerous security tasks, freeing up valuable resources to focus on more important business tasks.

Furthermore, with AI businesses can process huge amounts of data rapidly and accurately to identify threats faster than any person could. This not only helps cut response times to security events, but it also helps reduce the cost of defending against cyber threats, as well as the huge expenses associated with the aftermath of a successful breach.

Cybersecurity tools that are infused with AI are also able to help organisations identify malicious activity by correlating different data points, allowing them to protect their systems proactively. These solutions are easily scalable, meaning additional protection can be purchased without significant hardware or personnel costs.

The potential for abuse

Although AI is being leaned on more and more to bolster cyber defences, there are many risks involved in depending on this technology.

For one, AI is only as reliable as its data, and biased or bad decision making can happen if data sets are not clean, contain biased or bad data, as they lack the objectivity to make proper decisions. This, in turn, can have severe consequences for any organisation.

Moreover, AI solutions’ algorithms to make decisions about security threats often lack the necessary transparency, leaving companies wide open to potential bias or manipulation. Without the appropriate skills, AI can be difficult to interpret, making it tricky to grasp why decisions were made or how they can be improved.

Another reason why using AI is a double-edged sword is that as much as it can help the good guys, it can help the bad guys, too. After all, attackers have always been early adopters of the latest technologies and AI is no different.

It is common knowledge that AI is already being employed by threat actors to improve the efficacy of traditional cyberattacks. One way they do this is by building applications that focus on bypassing the automated defences.

One example that has been seen on underground criminal forums is the use of AI to break Captchas that many websites use to ensure the visitors are humans and not bots. Bad actors are also using AI to gather information on potential victims, which includes pinpointing all the social media profiles a given target uses and matching their user pictures across the various platforms.

Armed with this information, they can more easily trick victims by using fake images or audio to fool their victims into believing they are interacting with a person they know and trust.

With power comes responsibility

Therefore, while AI can provide enormous value, it’s important to ensure that entities use it responsibly. For instance, people can automate arduous tasks such as report generation or data processing, but nothing can hold a candle to genuine human connection when it comes to making business critical decisions or interpreting complex data.

Staying a step ahead of threat actors may seem a daunting task, so as attacks evolve and grow in frequency, businesses need to understand that a single approach to cybersecurity is no longer effective. Using AI combined with human knowledge and instinct is the best way to stay safe and secure in today’s digital age.

About CoCre8 Technology Solutions
CoCre8 Technology Solutions was born from Fujitsu South Africa, which transformed its operating model in the region. The South African investment consortium acquired the Fujitsu shareholding, creating a 100% locally owned entity as of 1 April 2020. CoCre8 achieved a level-1 B-BBEE rating and looks after Fujitsu’s interests in South Africa and English-speaking Africa by being the exclusive Fujitsu OEM representative for the region.

CoCre8 is able to fulfil its digital transformation mandate by partnering with vendors and solution providers to ensure that it is able to best serve its customers. CoCre8’s go-to-market strategy is focused on direct touch with clients but fulfilled via the channel. This approach allows the best of both worlds where the customers’ challenges are understood and addressed first-hand, while fulfilling through partners to respect the channel. CoCre8 invests in the channel by providing training, marketing and service backing.