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BREAKING DOWN THE AI KILL CHAIN

Artificial Intelligence ( AI ) is changing cyber security . Defenders are increasingly using it to mitigate risk and prepare for resiliency . Employees can use it to increase productivity , although this introduces new potential avenues for data loss , bias , and misinformation .

We are also at the beginning of malicious actors ’ applying AI techniques to automate more laborious aspects of their attacks . This is the early warning signs that AI will be used to enhance and automate cyber-attacks .

We can expect Offensive AI – including natural language processing , large language models , and additional techniques – to be used throughout the attack lifecycle . From understanding written language to craft contextualised spear-phishing emails at scale , to image classification speeding up the exfiltration of sensitive documents once an environment is compromised , AI will make it possible for machines to deploy unique attacks at scale – always on , continuously morphing at machine speed .

In 2023 , generative AI has already opened the door to providing offensive tools to more novice threat actors . But the efficacy of these tools will only be as good as those directing them . In the near term , we expect to see an increase in the speed and scale of familiar attack methodology . As our adversaries learn and apply new AI techniques , this will change the threat landscape .

This makes it imperative for defenders to invest in the right AI techniques to defend against an everchanging threat landscape . This white paper explores how cyber adversaries can use generative AI as well as other AI techniques to their advantage through the lens of a sample AI-augmented attack – broken down across every stage of the attack kill chain , from reconnaissance to data exfiltration and encryption .

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