Press Release Device & IoT Threat Detection & Defense

Vectra AI Targets Generative AI Attacks in Platform Update

CSA Editorial May 9, 2024

2 minutes read

Vectra AI, Inc., the leader in hybrid attack detection, investigation and response, today announced an expansion of the Vectra AI Platform to protect enterprises from new threat vectors introduced by the rapid adoption of Generative AI (GenAI) tools. The Vectra AI Platform’s patented Attack Signal Intelligence™ uses behaviour-based AI to defend against cyber attackers abusing GenAI – empowering security operations centre (SOC) teams to fight GenAI attacks with AI.

Rapid advancements have resulted in organisations increasingly turning to GenAI-powered tools to streamline processes and enhance their work. GenAI tools like Microsoft Copilot aim to increase efficiency and productivity for employees but they also create new attack surfaces as the large language models (LLMs) that power these tools are given access to proprietary corporate data. So, while GenAI tools increase the speed at which employees and organisations can operate, they also afford adversaries the same luxury, enabling them to increase the speed and scale at which they abuse identities to spread their attacks.

“At Vectra AI, we’ve been at the forefront of leveraging AI to combat advanced and emerging threats for more than a decade. Our mission has been and always will be to deliver the most accurate attack signal at speed and scale, enabling us to find and identify attacks that other solutions can’t,” said Hitesh Sheth, founder and CEO of Vectra AI. “With more enterprises now using GenAI tools to boost employee productivity, SOC teams face a new attack surface, one that can only be protected with AI. Our new AI-driven detections for GenAI attacks empower SOC teams to fight AI with AI, enabling them to operate at the same speed and scale as attackers.”

SOC defenders must leverage AI to defend against AI-powered attacks. The Vectra AI Platform harnesses AI and machine learning (ML) to detect threats across network, identity, cloud, SaaS and GenAI attack surfaces. Attack Signal Intelligence triages, correlates and prioritises threats with the highest degree of accuracy so SOC defenders can isolate and contain real attacks in a matter of minutes. With the addition of GenAI coverage, the Vectra AI Platform equips SOC teams to see and stop emerging attacker techniques that abuse GenAI tools.

The Vectra AI Platform now detects attackers that compromise an identity and abuse Microsoft Copilot for M365 to execute their attacks and gain access to sensitive applications and data in a matter of minutes. To achieve this, the Vectra AI Platform delivers:

GenAI detection coverage for Microsoft Copilot abuse including suspicious access, data discovery and jailbreak attack techniques.
Correlation and attribution of GenAI detections with identities across Microsoft Entra ID, Microsoft 365, AWS, and Active Directory.
Prioritisation of Microsoft Copilot GenAI detections with detections across networks (Vectra NDR), Identity (Vectra ITDR), and cloud (Vectra CDR).
Integration of metadata across network, identity, cloud and GenAI attack surfaces for Instant and Advanced Investigations
Native, automated, and managed response actions to lock down hosts and accounts involved in the attack.

“Over 40% of Vectra AI’s identity customers have begun to adopt Microsoft Copilot for M365 in their enterprise,” said Jeff Reed, chief product officer of Vectra AI. “This new expansion of the Vectra AI Platform helps SOC defenders protect identities and stop attackers abusing GenAI tools.”

“The rapid digitisation of organisations coupled with the integration of Gen AI tools like Microsoft Copilot introduces both immense opportunities and significant risks. The traditional defence strategy of ‘building a moat around your castle’ is no longer applicable in today’s modern threat landscape,” said Sharat Nautiyal, Director of Security Engineering, APJ, Vectra AI. “Gen AI is being weaponised by cyber criminals and security leaders must also adopt AI as part of their defence and response strategies to ensure they remain resilient and agile.”