Defending Against Zero-day Attacks through Automation and Artificial Intelligence

Posted January 19, 2021

The increase in cyber-attacks and data breaches last year has further heightened awareness of how important cybersecurity is. A breach today goes beyond just an annoyance of having your computer infected — it affects business resiliency. Nearly every enterprise board of directors is discussing methods to thwart the determined adversaries that are attacking our government and corporate networks. Building security by design is a primary focus for most organizations as we embark on the new year. 2020 turned out to be the worst year on record for cyber-attacks. Throughout the year businesses learned that technology, people, processes, and regulation are all critical components in keeping our data and infrastructure secure. And due to the stealthy nature of the latest attacks, many businesses don’t even know their network has been infiltrated until it is too late. This lack of visibility to an attack was witnessed in the latest T-Mobile data breach occurring in December. This was the second T-Mobile breach in 2020 and hackers gained access to customer information such as phone numbers, call records, and billing data.

In defending networks against the latest attacks, knowledge is power, and knowledge comes from sharing information. Security professionals today need access to data and security systems that share insights into the latest attacks being defended against. As WatchGuard reports, over 50% of malicious files encountered in Q3 2020 were zero-day threats. That means half of the malware attacks are not detected using signature-based protections. Artificial intelligence (AI) is helping to accelerate and automate the sharing of data to more quickly defend against these zero-day threats. By applying AI and deep learning, organizations with fewer IT professionals are able to deploy specialized solutions to respond to advanced security issues. AI and deep learning buy time for an organization by identifying attacks more quickly and reducing the mean time to respond (MTTR). The application of AI in cybersecurity improves the detection and prevention process and also automates the deployment of countermeasures. AI form the groundwork for the most advanced cyber threat and cybersecurity intelligence and is critical to the new protection models. Expert analysts simply can’t handle the sheer volume of data produced by today’s level of attacks but analysts working in tandem with the latest AI systems create a significant advantage for corporate defenses.

Effectively protecting networks and endpoints going forward requires this fast access to data sharing and eliminating blind spots. Zero-Trust Application services combine the human component from analysts and security experts with machine learning and cloud processing to handle the vast amounts of data required to defend against zero-day attacks. Leveraging machine learning and automation allows for reducing detection and exposure time and enables a faster response. The data collected during the automated investigation also provides actionable insights into the latest attacks which are then shared across the network to help defend against future attacks. This fast response and data-sharing model effectively shrink the attack surface which instantly improves an organization’s security posture.

Kyle Vinar

Kyle Vinar is Partner / President of Verus Corporation. He oversees all business operations and coaches Verus teams to continually improve on their solutions from client experience to product development and overall solution implementation. He works with all Verus resources to increase efficiencies and excellence in every aspect of their organizational roles. Kyle believes that people are the last real competitive edge that a company can have and constructing a rich culture is a vital step in running a world-class organization. Therefore he strives to create a culture within Verus that allows everyone to show up authentically and grow both personally and professionally, which in turn allows Verus Corp team members to provide clients with top-of-the-line service. Kyle helps balance strategy, capacity, and culture in such a way that has allowed Verus Corp to achieve exponential growth since he joined the company in 2013. One of Kyle’s greatest professional achievements has been in helping lay the foundation upon which Verus Corporation could be named the 2nd Best Place to Work by the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal. Kyle holds a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from St. Cloud State University. He lives in Champlin with his wife and 3 children. He has enjoyed volunteering as a soccer coach for over 6 years and was the former Director of Coaching for Rebels Soccer Club. If Kyle isn’t on the sidelines of one of his children’s soccer games or in the audience of his eldest’s musicals, he can often be found cruising scenic routes on his Harley, in a deer stand, or on the golf course.