Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, organizations and individuals have been under increasing attack from cybercriminals. Hackers are taking advantage of remote working and our total reliance on the internet to do business.
Many of us weren’t ready to make the switch, and have been forced to adapt in the last 12 months. Luckily, there are a number of fresh new companies that are utilizing AI to protect us against these threats. Read on as we explain exactly how technology can help, and the three up-and-comers set to storm the industry.
Why Are the Number of Cyber Attacks Rising?
Before we delve into the companies themselves, it helps to understand why attacks are on the rise. Essentially, we’ve now become so dependent on the internet that new avenues of attack are being opened every year. Take the Internet of Things (IoT), for example. Our homes and businesses are now full of smart devices, including security systems, appliances and mobile devices. Each one represents a different set of vulnerabilities that needs to be monitored.
This risk was highlighted back in early March when a hacking group gained access to thousands of security cameras across the globe, including those in Tesla factories. The software was provided by third-party platform Verkada, which also suffered breaches across its entire security camera network, including access to cameras inside psychiatric health clinics as well as facial recognition tools.
In a similar breach back in 2019, a number of Xiaomi’s smart scooters were hacked, and the attackers were able to speed up or slow down the vehicles by exploiting a Bluetooth vulnerability.
However, gaining control of devices isn’t the only goal of cybercriminals, company and financial data represent an incredibly juicy target for them too. With remote workers and unsecured internet access representing critical weaknesses, there are more ways than ever to access this information. As recently as February 2021, during the Solar Winds hack, source code elements for Microsoft Azure were stolen from the software giant, highlighting that even mega-corporations aren’t completely safe.
These types of attacks are only going to increase with time, and it’s become more and more difficult for security teams to keep up with the threat landscape. It looks like AI may be the best solution to stay one step ahead of the hackers.
How AI Can Be the Solution
When artificial intelligence is embedded into an organization’s security network, it provides a number of key advantages. AI can respond to threats immediately, without having to rely on a human being to review the attack. The security system itself will isolate a threat, lock down a user’s device and prevent malware from spreading to the rest of your network, mitigating some of the risk presented by IoT devices.
In addition, machine learning allows systems to carry out ongoing trend analysis of threats, scanning thousands of perimeter attacks per day. It can then build up a threat map of the types of attacks that are being thrown against boundary defenses, and implement a new strategy to mitigate against them.
However, AI doesn’t just monitor against external threats, it proves just as invaluable in protecting internal networks too. You can see exactly which users are logged in, what activities they’re performing and what data they’re accessing. AI will be on the lookout for any suspicious behavior such as multiple failed login attempts to certain systems or an unusually high number of data downloads to a user’s device.
AI is going to be an essential tool in every organization’s fight against cybercrime.
3 Companies Leading the Way
Darktrace
Darktrace is a completely autonomous cyber defense platform. The Darktrace platform really excels when it comes to behavioral analytics, and is constantly assessing and protecting against new threats. It’s a popular solution for organizations that might not have the in-house IT expertise to operate their own security perimeter.
Perimeter 81
This organization has seen some explosive growth in the last few years, and the Perimeter 81 SASE platform is at the cutting edge of access control. This solution is focused on controlling access right at the edge of your network, at the point each user logs in. It gives you total control over everyone that logs into your systems or data and is all managed through a single platform. It’s ideal for those companies that are reliant on remote working.
Argus Cyber Security
Argus is the world leader in automotive cybersecurity, securing your smart car from a range of attacks. It might just be the most experienced in the industry too and has been in operation since 2013. It provides innovative security solutions to both retail owners and commercial fleets.
