Innovative AI is transforming cybersecurity, supporting both attackers and defenders. Cybercriminals are exploiting AI to launch sophisticated and novel attacks on a massive scale. And defenders are using the same technology to protect critical infrastructure, government organizations and corporate networks, said Christopher Ahlberg, CEO of threat intelligence platform Recorded Future. know.
Creative AI has helped the bad guys innovate and develop new attack strategies, allowing them to stay one step ahead in cybersecurity defenses. AI helps cybercriminals automate attacks, scan attack surfaces, and create content tailored to different geographies and demographics, allowing them to target a wide range of potential victims than in different countries. Cybercriminals have used this technology to create convincing phishing emails. AI-generated text helps attackers create highly personalized emails and text messages that are more likely to fool the target.
“I think you don’t have to think very creatively to realize that, man, this can really help. [cybercriminals] As the author, that’s a problem,” Ahlberg said.
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Defender is using AI to resist attacks. Organizations are using this technology to prevent leaks and proactively find network vulnerabilities. It also automates tasks like setting up alerts for specific keywords and detecting sensitive information online. The threat hunter is use AI to identify anomalous patterns and summarizing large amounts of data, connecting dots across multiple information sources, and hidden patterns.
The work still requires human experts, but Ahlberg says the general AI technology we’re seeing in projects like ChatGPT can help.
“We want to speed up the analysis cycle [to] helps us analyze at the speed of thought,” he says. “It’s a very difficult thing to do and I think we’re seeing a breakthrough here, which is quite exciting.”
Ahlberg also discussed potential threats that very intelligent machines can bring. As the world becomes increasingly digital and interconnected, its ability to warp reality and shape perception can be exploited by the bad guys. These threats are not limited to countries, making the landscape more complex and asymmetrical.
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AI has the potential to help protect against these emerging threats, but it also comes with its own set of risks. For example, machines with high processing power can hack systems faster and more efficiently than humans. To combat these threats, we need to ensure that AI is used defensively and understand who is in control.
As AI becomes more integrated into society, it will be important for lawmakers, judges, and other decision-makers to understand the technology and what it means. Building strong alliances between technical experts and policymakers will be critical in navigating the future of AI in threat hunting and beyond.
The opportunities, challenges, and ethical considerations of AI in cybersecurity are complex and evolving. Ensuring AI models are unbiased and keeping humans involved in decision-making will help manage ethical challenges. Vigilance, cooperation, and a clear understanding of technology will be critical in addressing the long-term potential threats of highly intelligent machines.
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Ahlberg also raised concerns about China, Russia and economic rivals deploying autonomous machines. These countries probably won’t slow down AI development or share ethical considerations. While the ability to “unplug” such machines is a smart defense, he thinks the integration of technology into society and the global economy will likely make it difficult to separable. Ahlberg emphasizes the need to design products and machines with clarity about who controls them.
“The big thing that the internet has done in all of this is that the internet has become the place where all the world’s information moves,” says Ahlberg. “These massive language models are doing wonders… to speed up that thought cycle.”
He added, “In the next 25 years, the world will become a mirror image of the Internet.”
