Cybersecurity experts say ransomware attacks have increased considerably in recent years.
“Today, as we know, any serious company assumes there’s going to be a breach,” said James Gerber, SimSpace’s chief financial officer. “They have to assume that attackers are going to get in, because they will. The question is, once they’re in, how quickly can you spot them and how well can you contain what they’re potentially capable of doing?”
Many companies are turning to artificial intelligence to detect and defend against bad actors.
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“Some people say that to fight AI, you have to fight AI, you have to use AI,” said Bruce Caulkins, director of Cyber Range at Cyber Florida.
Artificial intelligence is advancing rapidly, bringing unprecedented benefits, but it also poses serious risks, experts say. (Cyberguy.com)
SimSpace, a cyber defense training company, uses artificial intelligence in its cyber defense systems. It creates synthetic data that allows users to improve their response capabilities.
“What’s really special about our platform is that we mimic any existing network topology. We can mimic the users of the network. We can also mimic the attackers,” said William “Hutch” Hutchinson, CEO of SimSpace.
Gerber says the technology allows human defenders to operate alongside AI-trained defenders.
“We know there aren’t enough people, even though we want to train as many as possible,” Gerber said.
“We will need to have artificial intelligence and defensive tools that will work alongside them.”
The government also uses artificial intelligence for certain services, including health care, transportation and environmental risks.
“We’re trying to keep up, and these threats are increasing every year,” said Arizona Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly. “It’s up to us in the United States Congress to make sure our agencies have the tools they need to defend against this.”
Cybersecurity experts say ransomware attacks have increased significantly in recent years. (iStock)
In many cases, attackers are also using similar artificial intelligence technology to target U.S. entities.
“I think our technology is better. I think our AI is better. The difference is we have it in the private sector,” said Rep. Mike Waltz, Republican of Florida.
Microsoft says it uses artificial intelligence to detect risky logins on its platforms. This technology also helps detect malware and fake accounts. IBM uses AI to protect users, detect threats, and verify its users.
“In the United States, for a variety of reasons, we have barriers between government and the private sector,” Waltz said. “What our adversaries do, particularly China and Russia, is their governments use their private sector players as extensions and substitutes, and they just flood the space. So I think we need to think differently about this.”
Last year, President Biden signed an executive order aimed at strengthening the use of artificial intelligence for security purposes.
“This represents an enormous promise of risks to our society, our economy and our national security, but also of incredible opportunities,” Biden said in his July speech.
Many companies are turning to artificial intelligence to detect and defend against bad actors. (Reuters/Dado Ruvic/Illustration)
The order established a cybersecurity program to develop AI tools. It also included efforts to help Americans better identify technology in attacks such as phishing campaigns or surveillance operations.
“Your emails now contain AI-generated content, and you have to look twice to make sure it’s your colleague and not an AI that’s somehow imitating them,” Gerber said.
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Government agencies have said they could face millions of cyberattacks every day. Experts warn that artificial intelligence will become more advanced over time as malicious actors become able to generate data faster and create more human-like interactions.
“We live in a dangerous environment. Whether it’s artificial intelligence, quantum computing, issues related to our maritime industry, hypersonic missile systems, conventional missiles or the development of fifth-generation fighters, we have many challenges in all of these areas,” Kelly said. “We just have to continue to innovate to stay ahead of our adversaries.”
