What are your thoughts on the emerging threat of AI-powered attacks? Have you already considered how to upgrade incident response capabilities to ensure you’re prepared, or do you think it’s too early to know what will be required?

1. AI-powered attacks target humans, so the most effective prevention would also target humans. Awareness and training will help.
2. AI will also increase the detection and response capabilities and we will facilitate that.
3. Tighten already existing measures like access rights and ensure that access management uses MFA wherever appropriate.

AI-powered attacks present a rapidly evolving threat landscape for companies in the energy sector. While still nascent, the potential for AI to enhance phishing, malware development, and even physical security breaches through automated drone attacks is significant. Thinking about upgrading incident response capabilities is prudent, even if the exact requirements are still somewhat unclear.

One key area to consider is the speed and scale AI-enabled attacks could achieve. Traditional incident response models may struggle to keep pace. Automated detection and response systems, potentially powered by AI themselves, will become crucial in fighting them. These could analyze network traffic and system logs for anomalies indicative of AI-driven attacks, flagging suspicious activity and even initiating containment procedures at least semi-autonomously. I foresee greater functionality being developed in this direction.

Due to this, incident response playbooks need to be updated. Existing playbooks likely don't adequately address the unique challenges posed by AI-driven attacks. Simulations and tabletop exercises focused on these threats will be crucial for preparedness. Training security personnel on these new attack vectors will also be paramount.

Lastly, it’s important to remember that attacks using AI are still attacks, requiring a robust security posture in general. Basic security hygiene such as multi-factor authentication, robust patching regimes, and access control are essential prerequisites and will minimize the attack surface, regardless of how sophisticated the attack methods become. While the future is uncertain, proactive planning and investment in robust, adaptable incident response capabilities are crucial in preparing for this evolving threat environment.

It's still early days for AI-powered attacks. I handle a significant number of attacks and they remain largely traditional. I recently encountered an AI-generated email thread that attempted to impersonate my CEO, so it is important that your users understand the potential for attackers to use AI in crafting more sophisticated phishing attempts. But, while AI can aid in data correlation and packaging information, the use of AI in automated attacks is still evolving. The threat of deepfakes and impersonation is real, but we have yet to see widespread AI-generated attacks. It's a frequent topic at conferences, but I think we have a lot to learn before fully understanding its implications.

At this point, I believe it's too early to make definitive decisions about AI-powered attacks. While AI and machine learning are frequently mentioned in the context of cyber attacks, much of what we see is still driven by algorithms. In the education sector, we're more focused on adapting our teaching methods to incorporate AI, such as grading students on the quality of their prompts rather than worrying excessively about AI-driven cheating. When it comes to actual incident response use cases, I think it will take some time before we can comfortably rely on AI.