Whether it’s having the latest smartphone, insisting on BYOD or remote working, the way we work today often puts convenience before security. It creates new challenges for companies at a time when the number of cyberattacks are growing. In the latest of Lenovo’s predictions we look at how artificial intelligence (AI) is both the best protection for your workplace – and the biggest threat.
We humans are often seen as the weakest link in security. While we may have an increasing awareness of the need to protect our work devices, and consequently the company network, it doesn’t override our interest in having the latest, smartest technology.
Machines on the other hand don’t prioritise convenience over compliance. So, artificial intelligence (AI) is often seen as the best way to protect businesses and stay ahead of the threats.
AI is the ability of machines to mimic the logic of the human brain when it comes to making decisions. It relies in part on machine learning (ML) algorithms, built up by analysing a mass of data, that can forecast likely results when something new happens.
This does work across the four key areas where companies need to protect themselves – data, identity, online and devices.
For security vulnerabilities, AI sees patterns where we would only see a mass of data. We humans simply can't work as fast and effectively as ML-driven systems can to process and analyse the massive amounts of data needed to spot unusual trends or behaviour – whether that’s phishing emails or detecting fake websites online.
The alerts provided through this automated analysis cuts through the mountain of warnings, false positives and the like that take up so much IT time.
With identity, AI and ML can help us understand who has access to what and whether they should. This way we can spot risky user behaviours or compromised accounts – and even create a sort of inoculation, using digital antibodies, to stop attacks before they begin.
On devices themselves, ML algorithms can check passwords and suggest stronger ones and drive more sophisticated multifactor authentication designed to make devices harder to infiltrate.
So far, so good. But there’s a problem. What works for you securing the workplace and increasing efficiency works just as well for the criminals.
They use AI and ML to better profile their victims and increase the frequency and sophistication of attacks.The result is a constant race, automated malware versus AI-powered defences.
To improve workplace efficiency this means providing end-to-end protection that secures your business without impacting the way your people work, like ThinkShield which secures from supply chain to device.
The rise of smart devices used in both the home and office is also an increasing security threat. For effective protection, you have to understand a whole raft of technological changes as well as the different needs and attitudes of today’s multigenerational workforce.
As Lenovo COO, Gianfranco Lanci points out [Link to https://news.lenovo.com/lenovo-coo-predicts-tech-trends-2019/] one smart way to address this in the days of increased mobile working is Device-as-a-Service (DaaS). In the face of challenges such as staying up-to-date, customisation and managing BYOD, a Gartner study shows that almost 30% of CIOs1 are already looking at DaaS as part of their device strategy.
