Is artificial intelligence (AI) really being used in cybersecurity or is it simply fake news? The term is often misused in cybersecurity and the reality is that true AI is simply not yet achievable. What is actually being utilized in the IT security industry refers to a subcategory of AI technology – something known as Machine Learning (ML).
AI refers to an intelligent and self-sustainable machine that can learn independently and is based only on inputs from the environment – with no human interference. Whereas ML, following training using human expertise, enables computers to find patterns in vast amounts of data and organize them to act on the findings.
In the context of cybersecurity, machine-learning algorithms can be used to sort and analyze samples, identify similarities and aim to produce a probability value for the processed object – putting it in one of three main categories: malicious, potentially unwanted or clean.
While ML is incredibly useful to the industry, it is nothing new. It has been used since the 1990s and, as we have discussed, is a very different game from AI. Remember there is no silver bullet in cybersecurity, so be weary of the vendors claiming their solutions are based on AI and choose an expert you trust.