Cybersecurity has always been a race between attack technology and defence technology. Today, the tech leading both sides of the race is artificial intelligence (AI). Companies are layering AI into their IT networks to secure their data in the cloud, while criminals are adopting ever-more sophisticated AI capabilities.
Criminal and non-criminal organisations use AI technologies such as machine learning, smart automation and virtual modelling in a similar way and for similar reasons. Both sides incorporate AI components into their existing apps and infrastructures to add visibility, insight and efficiency. Hackers, for example, can buy AI components via the dark web to modernise malware such as TrickBot, a six-year-old Trojan that now boasts smart automated capabilities and is many times more dangerous than it used to be.
But before we get carried away with nightmare tales of weaponised AI and automated data theft, let’s explore why, and how, emerging technologies such as AI are essential for protecting your data.