Networking and security solutions vendor Cisco has advanced the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in cybersecurity. The company’s unified, AI-driven, cross-domain security platform, the Security Cloud, is evolving, and the release of the Cisco AI Assistant for Security would be a significant step forward. The goal of this new AI assistant is to help its clients make better decisions, increase the functionality of tools, and automate complex processes.
The CEO of Cisco and General Manager of Security and Collaboration, Jeetu Patel, underlined the need of adopting a data-first mindset to fully realize the promise of artificial intelligence. Cisco's ability to provide cybersecurity solutions that enable enterprises to function at machine size is made possible by its comprehensive native telemetry. According to Mr. Patel, this advancement offers clients AI integrated across the Cisco Security Cloud, dramatically tipping the scales in favor of defenders.
Ransomware and extortion attacks are still common in cybersecurity, despite the field's continuous change. The Cisco Talos 2023 Year in Review report states that 20% of Cisco Talos Incident Response engagements this year were related to these kinds of threats. Furthermore, there has been a discernible rise in more complex attacks, especially from state-sponsored entities, on networking equipment. It would be necessary to implement machine-scale defenses due to the increasing speed and complexity of cyberattacks.
With over 550 billion security events analyzed every day across many digital platforms, the Cisco AI Assistant for Security was trained on one of the world's biggest security-focused data sets. Seeking to close the gap between cybersecurity intents and results, it would excel at incident triage, impact assessment, root cause analysis, and policy building. To ensure safe and moral usage of AI, Cisco develops all of its AI capabilities in accordance with its Responsible AI Framework.
The AI Assistant for Firewall Policy is one of the major improvements that Cisco is launching as part of its ongoing innovation push. The Cisco Defense Orchestrator and Firewall Management Center, which are hosted on the Cisco Cloud, now provide this functionality. Setting and keeping firewall policies and regulations straight is made easier by it. Natural language searching allows administrators to find policies and get suggestions for rules, which helps to streamline workflows and get rid of redundant and incorrectly set rules.
7.4.1 Operating System
An innovative feature that is available for all firewall types is the AI-driven Encrypted Visibility Engine. Given that the majority of data center communication is encrypted, examining it presents difficult operational, security, privacy, and compliance issues. Encrypted Visibility Engine is a feature of the most recent 7.4.1 Operating System, which is compatible with all Cisco Secure Firewall models. By recognizing the client program and operating system of origin, an AI-powered engine can detect if encrypted communication contains malware without the need for decryption.
Excitement for the Cisco AI Assistant for Security was expressed by Graham Robinson, Chief Technology Officer of Data#3, a Cisco partner. Particularly in firewall management, he thinks this innovation will provide clients AI-driven efficiency. Cisco says it provides a thorough and engaging security experience when paired with the added capabilities of the 7.4.1 software version and the Encrypted Visibility Engine.
As a result of offering strong capabilities to counteract increasingly complex cyberthreats, Cisco's launch of the AI Assistant for Security, in summary, marks a major development in cybersecurity. Innovating, AI-driven solutions to safeguard and enable organizations worldwide are what Cisco does best, and this step further solidifies its leadership in the space.
