GenAI: Security Teams Demand Expertise-Driven Solutions – Source: www.infosecurity-magazine.com

Generative AI (GenAI) integration continues to be at the top of many cybersecurity leaders’ minds, but not at all costs, according to a new CrowdStrike survey published on December 17.

Of the 1022 global cybersecurity and IT professionals approached for the State of AI in Cybersecurity Survey, 64% are either researching GenAI tools or have already purchased one.

Additionally, 70% of respondents said they intend to make a GenAI purchase within the next 12 months.

Respondents overwhelmingly believe GenAI will ultimately optimize the analyst experience, not replace human labor.

Integrated Cyber GenAI Platforms Win

However, behind the flagrant interest, the survey reveals that security leaders are still early in their GenAI integration journey, with only 6% having actually implemented such a tool and just 18% actively testing one.

When it comes to choosing the right GenAI tool, almost eight in ten security leaders (76%) favor tools purpose-made for cybersecurity over domain-agnostic tools.

This choice is primarily due to a fear of making wrong decisions because of a GenAI tool, with 83% of respondents saying they would not trust tools that provide unsuitable or ill-advised security guidance.

Finally, eight in ten security leaders prefer a platform-based approach with which they can deploy GenAI for several use cases rather than deploying GenAI on a case-by-case basis.

A total of 63% of respondents said they would change security vendors to use the GenAI of another vendor if it fitted their needs.

ROI Outweighs Cost, but Concerns Remain

When evaluating a GenAI tool, most security leaders believe the return on investment (ROI) outweighs the investment cost. They’re mainly looking for GenAI to help them:

1. Optimize the use and reduce the cost of security tools (31%)
2. Reduce security incidents (30%)
3. Enable security teams to spend less time managing security tools (26%)
4. Shorten security training time and cost (13%)

Security leaders are split regarding the security and privacy risks of GenAI, 39% believe the benefits to be greater and26% think the risks still outweigh the rewards and 40% are of the opinion that they are comparable.

The top concerns include:

1. Sensitive data exposure to underlying large language models (LLMs)
2. Adversarial attacks on GenAI tools
3. Lack of guardrails or controls in GenAI tools
4. AI hallucinations
5. Insufficient public policy regulations for GenAI use

CrowdStrike worked with research firm ViB to survey 1022 global cybersecurity and IT professionals worldwide over three months in 2024.

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