How Traditional Machine Learning Is Holding Cybersecurity Back

While global cybersecurity spending now surpasses $100 billion annually, 64 percent of enterprises were compromised in 2018, according to a study by the Ponemon Institute. The standard answer is that wily cyber-criminals are employing ever-evolving, increasingly sophisticated attack methods, part of a never-ending game of cat-and-mouse in which they all too often outsmart the good guys. This is undoubtedly true – but the root of the problem is that traditional machine learning-based cybersecurity solutions fail to keep up with the growing sophistication of today's cyber threats, both those that are created by hackers and AI alike. Why does machine learning so often come up short – and how should cybersecurity evolve to meet the scale and complexity of the challenge? There's no question that machine learning has driven significant improvements in cybersecurity.