Artificial intelligence worries CISOs

In mid-October, 2023, the US firm Splunk published its CISO Report, a study of trends, threats and strategies in the cybersecurity field. It relies on quantitative studies carried out among 350 CISOs throughout the world. AI is at the heart of their concerns.

Indeed, seventy percent of CISOs believe that AI benefits cybercriminals more than it does defenders. At the top of the related threats list, 36% believe the technology makes attacks quicker and more effective, and 36% fear identity theft through the use of deepfakes.

Thirty-five percent of those surveyed claim to use AI for their cyber defense, in particular for malware analysis and workflow automation. Eighty-six percent also think generative AI can help fill gaps and skill shortfalls in a security team. By taking over time-consuming and labor-intensive tasks, it frees up cyber experts, allowing them to focus on more strategic objectives.

Among other findings in the report, it should be noted that 83% of CISOs whose organization has suffered a ransomware attack admit their head office paid the ransom. Eighteen percent paid the attackers directly, 37% paid through their cyber insurance and 28%, through a third party.

Respondents agree on the need to strengthen partnerships between an entity’s various businesses to optimize cyber protection. Ninety-two percent of them are also observing a “significant” or “moderate” increase in cybersecurity collaboration between IT and engineering security teams.