Home NSA says cybersecurity will gain many benefits with generative AI

NSA says cybersecurity will gain many benefits with generative AI

Will the use of generative AI in Cybersecurity help countries and nations combat threats in cyber wars? The NSA thinks so. The attackers are chomping at the bit to cause problems to anyone online, and they are ramping up their technology skills to cause harm. Global cybercriminal groups have been on the offensive for years, but Rob Joyce, director of cybersecurity at the US NSA agency, told attendees at the Fordham University event in New York that generative AI is
“absolutely making us better at finding malicious activity,” and he outlined the key benefits of the technology for use within security personnel.

Generative AI tools have been leveraged in a big way. Joyce noted that over the past year, a disproportionate effort has been placed by nefarious individuals to deploy the application of generative AI in the cybercriminal community.  Joyce said that “cybercriminal groups have been leveraging generative AI tools to “turbocharge fraud and scams.”

The NSA continued that “generative AI in cyber security will offer practitioners marked benefits in combating attacks and cracking down on global cyber criminal groups.”

Generative AI in cybersecurity will offer heightened benefits to security

Over the past year, generative AI has enabled bad actors to have the ability to launch a barrage of powerful and personalized social engineered attacks upon the online community at large. Researchers from Darktrace have raised concerns because of the increased AI-supported phishing attacks and have warned that hackers will use technology to fine-tune their techniques and attack and scam users. Rob Joyce, director of cyber security at the US NSA agency, goes on to assure the country that the national security bodies “are harnessing the AI tools to great effect.” He promises cybersecurity experts are getting as much out of generative AI as criminals.

In the cybersecurity conference, Joyce cites examples and use cases to show how to combat the threats of those who hide on the internet to cause harm, all the while posing as safe accounts. AI has long been a misunderstood research field. Still, it is unlikely that generative AI will ever be a “silver bullet” for cybersecurity practitioners, and it is not a super tool that will make an incompetent person competent.”

Featured Image Credit: Cottonbro Studio; Pexels

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The ReadWrite Editorial policy involves closely monitoring the tech industry for major developments, new product launches, AI breakthroughs, video game releases and other newsworthy events. Editors assign relevant stories to staff writers or freelance contributors with expertise in each particular topic area. Before publication, articles go through a rigorous round of editing for accuracy, clarity, and to ensure adherence to ReadWrite's style guidelines.

Deanna was an editor at ReadWrite until early 2024. Previously she worked as the Editor in Chief for Startup Grind, Editor in Chief for Calendar, editor at Entrepreneur media, and has over 20+ years of experience in content management and content development.

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