Turning the Tables: How to Use AI to Get Ahead of Security Threats

Turning the Tables: How to Use AI to Get Ahead of Security Threats

When agents handle routine monitoring and other security tasks, it frees up teams to refocus on strategic priorities.

Share article

As Artificial Intelligence (AI) becomes more integral to our everyday lives, attackers are looking for ways to exploit AI models directly. Cybercriminals are already using AI to create more effective and scalable attacks, from personalized phishing emails to generating new malware. Traditional, signature-based security tools struggle to keep up with this rapid pace of innovation. They're designed to react to known threats, but what happens when a threat is brand new and has never been seen before?

While ensuring the security of AI systems like Agentforce is critical, that's only half of the equation. In addition to protecting AI-specific processes, you can also use AI to detect and respond to security challenges.

The AI paradox in cybersecurity

Our State of IT: Security Report highlights a unique "AI paradox": 80% of IT leaders see both new security challenges and immense potential for AI to strengthen their security posture. This sentiment was echoed at the 2025 RSA Conference, where a key theme for more than 40,000 professionals was AI's rapid reshaping of the cybersecurity landscape‌ - ‌bringing both unprecedented opportunities and significant challenges.

What are security teams struggling with?

Not all security teams are created equal. Many SaaS business owners, for example, are responsible for managing the security of their environments but lack the necessary experience and expertise. For them, detecting, investigating, and remediating a security incident can be a difficult, time-consuming, and even overwhelming task.

Seasoned security professionals, on the other hand, are experts in security, but often lack the deep, platform-specific knowledge needed to effectively protect every part of a business. In both scenarios, traditional security tools can't easily bridge this gap.

Three ways AI can augment your security posture

AI is uniquely positioned to address these challenges by augmenting human capabilities and automating critical security tasks. By automating threat detection, prevention, and response, AI-powered systems help organizations respond to cyber threats quickly and accurately. Here are a few ways AI can provide much-needed support:

Detecting anomalies

Instead of relying on predefined rules, AI can analyze vast amounts of data to learn what "normal" behavior looks like. When a deviation occurs‌ - ‌even a subtle one‌ - ‌AI can flag it in real-time, helping to identify zero-day attacks and insider threats that would otherwise go unnoticed.

Investigating security incidents

When a potential incident is detected, AI can act as a tireless investigator. It can quickly correlate data from various sources, such as user activity logs, network traffic, and system events, to build a comprehensive timeline of the incident. This drastically reduces the time it takes for a human analyst to understand the scope and impact of an attack.

Proposing a remediation plan

Once an investigation is complete, AI can provide a head start on recovery. By analyzing the incident and learning from past remediation efforts, it can propose a clear, actionable plan to contain the threat and restore the system to a secure state, enabling teams to act faster and more effectively.

Looking Ahead: The Future is Now

It's getting to be that time again when budgets are being planned for the next year. According to our State of IT: Security Report, 80% of security leaders anticipate their security budgets will increase. As you start to plan yours, keep in mind how budgeting for AI initiatives can help you not just keep up, but get ahead of the threats. And don't forget to register for Dreamforce to see what innovations Salesforce has in store to help as well.

Share article

Just For You

Explore related content by topic

• Agentforce
• AI
• Data
• IT
• Salesforce Platform
• Security

Cynthia Huang is a Product Marketing Manager for Salesforce Shield.