How to Use Automation to Enhance Security and Efficiency

Traditionally, automation has been about moving faster and creating more efficient work processes. However, simply automating tasks often results in short-term savings and locked processes, making continuous transformation impossible. Recent advancements in cloud applications and generative artificial intelligence (AI) give organizations the opportunity to reinvent the way they work. Reframing automation as an organizational change rather than a single-use technology is the key to enabling your organization to evolve.

This is especially true when it comes to security.

The Need for Security Automation

Organizations face a complex and dangerous digital landscape. Cyberattacks are becoming increasingly sophisticated with a much shorter response window, and a lack of resources makes it challenging for organizations to maintain a robust security posture.

More Advanced Cyberattacks

Attacks driven by automation and AI can be faster, more effective, and more impactful than manual attacks. As modern cyberattacks move more quickly through an organization, the response window shrinks, making it more challenging for security teams to detect and respond in time. The longer the attack goes undetected and unresolved, the higher the cost.

Automation has the ability to protect your organization and detect an attack faster than human recognition.

Lack of Resources

A shrinking talent pool makes it difficult for organizations to find qualified talent. When they do, not only are they expensive to hire, but they are often overworked, which leads to burnout, disengagement, and high turnover.

Human operators are inundated with an abundance of security alerts, which can lead to what is known as “alert fatigue.” A recent study by IDC Research indicates that companies of all sizes are ignoring up to one-third of security alerts and are spending just as much time investigating false positives.

Gartner predicts that by 2025, the lack of cybersecurity professionals will be responsible for more than 50% of significant cybersecurity incidents.

Security automation can aid with accelerated threat detection and help alleviate the strain on human operators.

Security Automation in Action

The Anti-Phishing Working Group (APWG) reported over 4.7 million phishing attacks in 2022. Though software like Microsoft Outlook allows users to easily report suspected phishing emails to their organization’s security department, a manual security environment means each submission must be reviewed to determine if it is malicious or safe.

When a large number of emails are submitted as suspected phishing attempts each week, security personnel can suffer alert fatigue and become disengaged. Although about 94% of reported emails may be legitimate emails from a marketing list, each email must be diligently categorized. The effects of falsely categorizing a phishing email as safe could be devastating.

Automating the decision process for submitted emails gives time and energy back to security teams.

The Value of a Platform-Agnostic Tool

Platform-agnostic automation and integration tools are designed to work across a variety of platforms and systems. Because of this, they seamlessly integrate with other tools and applications from any technology vendor, offering a customized experience for the user. Platform-agnostic tools also allow for wider adoption outside of IT and cybersecurity. From marketing and HR to finance, using the same automation tool across all departments saves organizations time and money.

Automate Your Security with Confidence

The decision to embrace security automation for your organization requires careful consideration of your business needs, available resources, and potential challenges. A trusted business advisor can help you determine the best way to enhance your security posture, reduce the risk of breaches, and operate more efficiently.