AI in Cybersecurity

Astrologically speaking, 2025 is supposed to be a fantastic year for me. So far, I must say, there have been an anomalous amount of random, arbitrary – haphazard even, doors left wide open for me to simply step through. One of those doors, a highly unexpected gateway actually, has dropped me into the realm of Cybersecurity. I would like to take this opportunity to discuss.

First and foremost, before we go any further, it is important to note that Artificial Intelligence, or AI, has been working alongside us in our most common tools for quite some time now. It is in these past few years, with the tremendous progress that we have experienced in Generative AI, that it has become this household monster of a name. That being said, AI is not, in my humble opinion, “taking over” or “stealing our jobs” –well at least not yet. Instead, I prefer to think of it as something that aids in our productivity and detracts from our critical thinking skills.

After being referred for an internship position, back to back interviews, coming to terms with my lack of qualification, the joy of an offer, and settling into the doom of imposter syndrome, I have now found myself on the front lines of cybersecurity. I imagined the action to look and feel more like The Matrix, where I had to fight off Agents, hackers, and imminent threats where if I did not succeed the world would come crumbling around me. Much to my relief, there is a comprehensive system of tools, that integrate AI into their most valuable functions, that keeps me from being the first line of defense against any malicious links, or phishing emails, or port scans, or anything in between. 

To the best of my knowledge, which is still limited, these tools utilize AI to conduct scans, tests, or trigger alerts of any suspicious activity, anomalies –my new favorite word in case you could not tell– potential hacks, scams, etc.. However, after intensive training, trial and error, poking around, and falling down many rabbit holes, I have discovered a new found disrespect for AI. It is not as smart as all the hype has made it seem. My inbox is constantly being flooded with tickets concerning the most mundane, safe, and routine tasks that I have begun to seriously wonder if the AI function of any of these tools is even necessary. The autonomous processes provided by firewalls and certain applications that utilize AI are absolutely necessary and the only thing in between human error and a disastrous attack, but the self issued ratings indicating high levels of threat are so off that absurd would not be a powerful enough adjective to describe it.

I am quite fond of my position, and do admit that I enjoy the challenges that have come from this experience. As I continue to stick my nose into everything I have been granted limited access to, my stance may change. Going forward, beware of the fear mongering around AI. It can do so many amazing things, and truly is a weapon in our arsenal, but it is not so human yet.