Today’s era is driven by technology in every aspect of our lives, so much that we’ve now increased our dependence on technology on a daily basis. With an increase in the dependency, we’re now very vulnerable and exposed to the intermittent threat posed as cyber-attacks. Cyber-attack threats have plagued businesses, corporates, government, and institutions. According to a recent study by leading IT analyst firm Frost & Sullivan, around 83 percent of organizations in the Asia Pacific region do not think about cyber security while embarking on digital transformation projects, while 69 percent of Indian companies and 63 percent of Australian companies are most at risk of cyber-attack. The total cost of online crimes is projected to surpass one trillion dollars in 2019.
Any discussion about technology has to involve, not just facets but all of, next-generation technologies like Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Big Data among others. Artificial Intelligence’s popularity has led its implementation across industries. In recent times, artificial intelligence has proven to be the most efficient technology and has no limit. Our day to day conversations are all about Alexa, Siri, Cortana, etc. and have become a major part of our lives. To keep pace with the ever-evolving threat landscape, solutions such as those rooted in artificial intelligence can be used. Adoption of artificial intelligence based technologies in cyber security enables IT professionals, to accurately predict and react to upcoming cyber threats in an efficient manner. These technologies are a valuable ally when it comes to defending against hackers for it can be trained to learn patterns and identify any deviation from the set norms and generate an automated response.
Smart systems powered by data-centric algorithms working in tandem with machine learning can enhance cybersecurity in various ways. They are more proactive to respond to threats instantly and prevent it in real time. As a matter of fact, Artificial Intelligence is both an attacker and a defender. It is advantageous in multiple ways since the technology has the capability to learn, understand and accommodate to its surroundings, especially during the time of a threat or an attack. When Artificial Intelligence is utilized in a correct way, it will collect data and learn from instances of security breaches, attempt, failed or blocked attacks and help secure the data by reacting instantly and also remove thee threats. These features will take cybersecurity to the next level. Artificial Intelligence can go through a large amount of information and AI facilitates this by applying advanced math and complex algorithms on huge information which is needed to mitigate threats. Advanced mathematical calculations can be performed using artificial intelligence in comparison to humans. Artificial Intelligence has the potential of increasing its ability in the future. Cybersecurity intelligence can be integrated into Artificial Intelligence technology, making it a much more powerful tool. AI can’t only detect and fight the threats, but will also continue to search the web for information regarding the secretive threats that exist.
There are plenty of examples where known companies are utilizing Artificial intelligence to strengthen their cybersecurity. Gmail uses machine learning technology to filter emails and provide a safeguard from malicious emails. Along with this, Google also uses Deep Learning for its other platforms which help to address threats proactively as per the data-driven insights. IBM launched its Watson cognitive learning which extended the power of for machine learning for threat detection and cybersecurity purposes.
Alternatively, AI could prove a threat to cybersecurity in a different way. With more and more companies who are on the verge of adopting AI-driven and machine learning products as a part of their defense strategy, researchers worry that this could lull employees and IT professionals into a false sense of security. Yet lowering our guard in the face of rising cybercrime trends could be a fatal mistake. With a perfect amalgamation of human mental capacity and machine’s intelligence, we can take advantage of machine knowledge to maximize human intelligence.
Arguably, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning can redefine cybersecurity and have the potentiality to provide a remarkably huge advantage to the overall structure of an organization’s cybersecurity defense. But the technology is as much as a threat as it is an advantage in the field of cybersecurity. In reality, Artificial Intelligence is also a destructive tool when fallen in wrong hands.
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