Former Google employees create new system against AI-powered cyberattacks

Cybercriminals are taking email-based attacks to a new level by leveraging the capabilities of artificial intelligence (AI). Especially at a time when the risk of "spear phishing" based on personal data has increased sharply, the AegisAI startup, founded by former Google security executives, is offering an effective solution against these threats. This is reported by Techcrunch.com reports .

AegisAI founders Sai Hormae and Ryan Luo previously worked at Google on developing secure browser technologies and the reCAPTCHA system. Their decade of experience showed that traditional security rules based on "if-then" logic are failing to stop complex messages created by modern AI. For this reason, the startup has developed special AI agents capable of analyzing every email like a human.

According to TechCrunch, the project recently raised $36 million in an investment round led by Battery Ventures. The company's total capital has now reached $49 million. Investors view the AegisAI system as the most promising technology to replace outdated cybersecurity tools.

The dangers of AI attacks

Currently, hackers are using AI to instantly gather information about a user's colleagues, current projects, and even recent travels to prepare highly convincing messages. According to Sai Hormae, attacks carried out with the help of artificial intelligence are bypassing more than half of current defense systems. This means the effectiveness of such attacks has doubled compared to before.

The advantages of the AegisAI system include:

• Detecting small anomalies that even the most complex control lists cannot perceive;
• Scanning malicious PDF files protected by passwords or CAPTCHA;
• Analyzing the context of an email to expose messages written in the name of a fake persona;
• Stopping attacks in real-time without human intervention.

Currently, the new technology is being used by dozens of major clients, such as the crypto-payment company Mash, the startup LangChain, and the Google-backed platform Lokker. Experts believe that as cybercriminals increase the speed of attacks via AI, they can only be countered by building defenses with more powerful AI agents.

Although there are major competitors in the market such as Proofpoint, Mimecast, and Abnormal Security, the vast experience of the AegisAI founders in ensuring Gmail security gives them an edge. Battery Ventures partner Dharmesh Thakker noted that protection against cyberattacks will become a top priority for many companies in the coming years.