It's a good time to be a machine learning engineer. According to Indeed's best jobs in the US report for 2018, the position of machine learning engineer ranked fourth, behind commercial project manager (first), full stack developer (second) and computer vision engineer (third). In fact, machine learning engineers have seen an increase of 166 percent in the number of job postings from 2014 to 2017. As AI and machine learning are being bandied about, many organizations find themselves asking if they are ready to bring in a machine learning engineer. And according to a Wired report, not all organizations are there yet.

At its simplest level, machine learning is defined as "the ability (for computers) to learn without being explicitly programmed." Using mathematical techniques across huge datasets, machine learning algorithms essentially build models of behaviors and use those models as a basis for making future predictions based on newly input data. It is Netflix offering up new TV series based on your previous viewing history, and the self-driving car learning about road conditions from a near-miss with a pedestrian. So, what are the machine learning applications in information security? Get the latest from CSO by signing up for our newsletters.

At its simplest level, machine learning is defined as "the ability (for computers) to learn without being explicitly programmed." Using mathematical techniques across huge datasets, machine learning algorithms essentially build models of behaviors and use those models as a basis for making future predictions based on newly input data. It is Netflix offering up new TV series based on your previous viewing history, and the self-driving car learning about road conditions from a near-miss with a pedestrian. So, what are the machine learning applications in information security? In principle, machine learning can help businesses better analyze threats and respond to attacks and security incidents.

Part of a growing trend, MobileIron announced today that it is adding machine learning-based threat-detection software to its enterprise mobility management (EMM) client, which it said will help address an increase in mobile attacks. The Mountain View, Calif.-based company said it has partnered with Zimperium, a maker of machine learning-based behavioral analysis and threat detection software that monitors mobile devices for nefarious activity and apps. MobileIron said it will integrate Zimperium's z9 Engine software with its security and compliance client. The software will reside on users' iOS or Android smartphones or tablets, and it will also become a part of IT administrators' EMM control consoles. That upgrade to MobileIron's EMM client will "automate the process of detecting and responding to mobile threats," MobileIron stated.