Nearly One-Third of CISOs Have Adopted AI in Response to Cybersecurity News, Study Finds

According to recent research, cybersecurity news headlines featuring ever-more sophisticated attacks have influenced almost one-third of chief information security officers (CISOs) to adopt artificial intelligence (AI) for data security.

Cisco’s “2018 Annual Cybersecurity Report,” which examined a wide cross-section of trends and patterns in data theft, data loss, malware and other issues, found that 32 percent of security leaders are “completely reliant” on AI to safeguard sensitive corporate information.

The Rise of Encryption Drives Increased AI Adoption

AI technology encompasses a number of different tools. For instance, 34 percent of respondents to the Cisco survey said they use machine learning to detect anomalies and alert IT departments about potential vulnerabilities threatening their systems. Meanwhile, 39 percent said they were using automation to deal with the kinds of attacks that regularly make cybersecurity news.

The increase in AI usage can be explained in part by the growth of encryption, ITProPortal reported. According to the study, half of global web traffic was encrypted as of October 2017. While it is difficult for humans to distinguish legitimate threats from an overwhelming volume of false positives, an AI algorithm can be trained to look for suspicious activity, even within encrypted network communication.

Meanwhile, a recent report titled “The Malicious Use of Artificial Intelligence: Forecasting, Prevention, and Mitigation” noted that cybercriminals are eager to use AI for their own nefarious gain. For CISOs and their teams, it may be a race to see how quickly they can make better use of the technology to protect everything from supply chains to network endpoints.

Generating Positive Cybersecurity News in 2018

One of the brighter stats in the Cisco report is a big improvement in the time to detection for security issues, which went from 14 hours in 2016 to 4.6 last year. As more enterprises adopt AI to stay ahead of threat actors, here’s hoping the cybersecurity news cycle features more victories in 2018.

Shane Schick

Writer & Editor

Hive0137 and AI-supplemented malware distribution

12 min read - IBM X-Force tracks dozens of threat actor groups. One group in particular, tracked by X-Force as Hive0137, has been a highly active malware distributor since at least October 2023. Nominated by X-Force as having the “Most Complex Infection Chain” in a campaign in 2023, Hive0137 campaigns deliver DarkGate, NetSupport, T34-Loader and Pikabot malware payloads, some of which are likely used for initial access in ransomware attacks. The crypters used in the infection chains also suggest a close relationship with former…

Unveiling the latest banking trojan threats in LATAM

9 min read - This post was made possible through the research contributions of Amir Gendler.In our most recent research in the Latin American (LATAM) region, we at IBM Security Lab have observed a surge in campaigns linked with malicious Chrome extensions. These campaigns primarily target Latin America, with a particular emphasis on its financial institutions.In this blog post, we’ll shed light on the group responsible for disseminating this campaign. We’ll delve into the method of web injects and Man in the Browser, and…

Crisis communication: What NOT to do

4 min read - Read the 1st blog in this series, Cybersecurity crisis communication: What to doWhen an organization experiences a cyberattack, tensions are high, customers are concerned and the business is typically not operating at full capacity. Every move you make at this point makes a difference to your company’s future, and even a seemingly small mistake can cause permanent reputational damage.Because of the stress and many moving parts that are involved, businesses often fall short when it comes to communication in a crisis.…

Security Intelligence

{{title}}

{{title}}

{{title}}

Topics

The Rise of Encryption Drives Increased AI Adoption

Generating Positive Cybersecurity News in 2018

More from

Hive0137 and AI-supplemented malware distribution

Unveiling the latest banking trojan threats in LATAM

Crisis communication: What NOT to do

Topic updates