Artificial Intelligence in Cybersecurity: Exploring the Potential of AI

Protecting our organisations from cyber threats has become increasing complicated as the threat, security technology and our digital ecosystems have expanded. Within this complexity, Artificial Intelligence (AI) in cybersecurity emerges as a beacon of untapped potential, promising to transform security operations.

How will AI Impact Security Operations?

However, despite the proliferation of advanced security tools, AI’s precise role and efficacy in fortifying cybersecurity remain enigmatic. Recent research conducted by Adarma underscores the ambiguity surrounding AI’s contribution to cybersecurity.

This uncertainty is reflected in our latest research, which surveyed 500 security operations leaders in UK organisations boasting over 2,000 employees, probing their insights into security operations. The results revealed that 74% of these professionals struggle with the concept of how AI can augment their daily responsibilities. Nonetheless, the horizon of AI applications in cybersecurity is promising, as 61% of respondents envisaging automation taking charge of up to 30% of tasks currently entrusted to human security professionals. Additionally, 17% of respondents believe AI could shoulder more than 50% of these responsibilities.

Streamline Reporting Processes

Our research found that AI can potentially play a pivotal role in cybersecurity, primarily in two key domains. The first domain revolves around minimising the occurrence of false positives—a persistent daily challenge for security teams. Presently, each false-positive alert necessitates human scrutiny, creating a compelling case for AI to assess these occurrences and provide context-specific determinations rapidly.

Intriguingly, 53% of respondents express a strong desire to streamline the time-consuming reporting task, yet a substantial 70% acknowledge their present underutilisation of automation in this respect. Furthermore, 42% believe that AI could provide superior contextual information, enhancing decision-making. This underscores the substantial scope and potential for automation to assume responsibility for repetitive and mundane tasks, ultimately enhancing efficiency, precision, and reducing the burden on security teams.

Threat Isolation and Containment

The second crucial application of AI in cybersecurity pertains to threat isolation and containment. When appropriately configured, AI has the power to substantially diminish the risk of threats spreading throughout an organisation’s IT environment.

Realising the benefits of AI technology hinges on the level of trust vested in it by security leaders. However, it is understandable for them to harbour reservations about entrusting critical systems to AI, considering the technology’s relative infancy. The cybersecurity industry requires an infusion of AI expertise, and establishing faith in the technology, along with the development of essential skills, will indeed take time.

Notably, respondents embarking on the automation journey reported moderate success, though they encountered challenges in implementation, finding it demanding and time intensive. An impressive 73% of them, however, found the investment in automation to be entirely worthwhile.

Security Leaders are in an Adoption Period

It is evident from these findings that security leaders are still adapting to the concept of AI and are proceeding with justified caution. The adoption of any emerging technology necessitates vigilant oversight to establish confidence in its capabilities. To achieve desired outcomes, continuous monitoring and an in-depth understanding are essential. Security leaders must balance AI-driven innovation with risk management.

As organisations deal with cyber-threats moving forward, AI’s efficiency and precision stand ready to become the cornerstone of resilient cyber protection. For a more comprehensive analysis of these insights, we invite you to download our full report.

If you would like to learn more about how Adarma can support your organisation’s cyber resilience, please get in touch with us at hello@adarma.com.

To hear more from us, check out the latest issue of ‘Cyber Insiders,’ our c-suite publication that explores the state of the threat landscape, emerging cyber threats, and most effective cybersecurity best practices.

You can also listen to our new podcast, which explores what it’s really like to work in cybersecurity in today’s threat landscape.

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