Page 86 - Cyber Defense Magazine for August 2020

AI-Powered Hackers and the Increased Pace of Attacks

Compounding the challenges posed by flawed cybersecurity solutions, hackers are increasingly
leveraging automation to diversify their attacks and execute them at an accelerated pace. The AV-Test
Institute found that over 350,000 new malware are generated every day and networks regularly
experience thousands of security events daily– making it all the more difficult for human security
professionals to sift through all potential threats. Even the largest, most skilled cybersecurity teams can’t
be expected to handle this load. And when cybersecurity teams successfully detect a threat, they often
run out of time to respond before hackers have already caused substantial damage.

Take the 2019 Equifax data breach. In the wake of the breach, Equifax’s security team worked 36-hour
shifts, which the company’s CISO acknowledged had come at a great cost to the team’s mental health.

On average, it takes 191 days – half a year – to identify an attack. Without the luxury of months to spare,
how should organizations adjust their cybersecurity approach?

A Cyber Paradigm Shift

In the short term, adding more cyber professionals to IT teams can help – but even a large and
experienced team won’t be able to compensate for subpar security tools.

Because today’s hackers are operating autonomously, cyber solutions need to do so, as well. Such
solutions require minimal staff intervention, enabling teams to triage potential security events and prevent
time wasted on false positives. Deep learning-based autonomous solutions also offer powerful
capabilities for detecting and preventing attacks before they are executed – potentially helping
organizations save millions.

It’s little wonder, then, that two-thirds of IT and IT security leaders believe that using automation and
advanced AI like deep learning, will improve their ability to prevent attacks and that they plan to implement
these solutions within the next two years.

While beefing up staffing isn’t a panacea, implementing autonomous solutions isn’t about putting cyber
professionals out of work. Instead, it’s about putting their essential skillset towards more efficient and
strategic use while simultaneously tightening and improving existing cybersecurity measures.

The dizzying pace at which today’s cyber threats are evolving underscores the need for a cyber paradigm
shift that emphasizes autonomous protection and attack prevention. Humans alone can’t combat the
hyper-efficient machines hackers are employing. Only when malicious actors’ sophisticated technology
is met by even more sophisticated technology, will organizations achieve resilient protection.

Cyber Defense eMagazine – August 2020 Edition 86
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