AI and Cybersecurity in 2024

Artificial Intelligence is revolutionizing everything and cybersecurity is no exception. A growing number of industry experts and professionals are beginning to reflect on the benefits and risks of this innovative technology within the cybersecurity framework.

AI can be used to enhance protection for businesses against threats but, on the flip side, it can also be applied to refine cybercriminal attacks. In fact, Generative AI is already a cause for concern among industry professionals, with 29% considering this technology one of the top threats the cybersecurity sector faces in the coming months, according to a recent study.

Given these rising concerns, it’s important for companies, cybersecurity professionals, and solution providers alike to grasp what we can expect from AI in terms of the opportunities it delivers and be aware of the risks it entails.

3 Top AI applications in Cybersecurity for 2024

As the year draws to a close, Watchguard is analyzing the trends for 2024 and AI is undoubtedly one of the key drivers. Taking into account the growing interest from industry experts regarding the potential uses of this technology, we highlight below three trends (positive and negative) that will dominate 2024:

Increase in Vishing: a type of attack carried out via a phone call. Although vishing is currently limited, the combination of convincing deepfake audio and large language models (LLMs) capable of holding conversations with victims to the point where human involvement is no longer needed suggests that the scale and volume of vishing attacks will soar in 2024.
Rise of AI-powered tools: over the next year we expect an increase in the use and purchase of AI-powered tools by cybercriminals, making them the best-selling tools on the dark web. Cybercriminals are highly likely to use AI to refine their attacks over the coming months.
AI use by MSPs: AI will be an essential tool for MSPs in 2024. Watchguard expects MSPs to turn to unified platforms with strong automation through AI and machine learning to optimize their business models. MSPs could double their business capacity and address the rising demand for cybersecurity services by implementing AI in their service offerings.

These are just three trends emerging from AI use in cybersecurity. After pinpointing these drivers, it’s crucial that businesses and cybersecurity providers work out how to benefit from AI use and understand the dangers involved when malicious actors apply this technology in cyberattacks.

If you are interested in learning more about how AI will shape the cybersecurity industry next year, as well as other trends that will influence the coming months, be sure to check out our security predictions for 2024.