On Our Radar
With all of the recent advancement in technology, cyberattacks are also evolving, forcing companies to consider how they should prioritize investing in resources that help protect their business. As Alym Rayani, Vice President of Microsoft Security, noted, once an attacker compromises an organization through a phishing email, for example, it takes 72 minutes for them to get sensitive information, including intellectual property. That means a defender has less than two hours to react. In 2023, Microsoft blocked about 70 billion attacks. At the time, Microsoft had 10,000 employees that were focused on security, so that translates to 7 million attacks per employee, or put another way, 58 attacked blocked per minute. To help combat cyberattacks, Microsoft is leaning into artificial intelligence (AI).
“Microsoft’s perspective is that generative AI and AI isn’t an optional thing for security; it’s actually required and mandatory,” Rayani said. “If you look at what attackers are doing, it’s really necessary for any security program to scale over time.”
The role AI plays in cybersecurity is also critical for the healthcare industry and its inherent responsibility to protect sensitive, personal data. Congresswoman Victoria Spartz, Senior Member of the U.S. House Judiciary Committee, stressed the need for the government to build a framework that balances protecting people’s privacy while not harming innovation in the space.