Can a company's cyber defense approach be automated? A US/European consortium believes it is indeed a viable option. It consists of telecom provider KPN, enterprise architecture firm BiZZdesign, virtualization specialist VMware and TNO, a Dutch research organization.

The platform is called the Automated Security Operations platform (in Dutch). It will be built on an adaptive cybersecurity strategy that is focused on the business impact of cyberattacks. The platform will be vendor-independent and modular, so organizations can choose exactly what cybersecurity solution is best for them.

As a result of ASOP, machine learning algorithms will detect cyberattacks on the IT infrastructure. In order for these algorithms to work, they need to have a very low chance of false alarms, which can be very costly. When a cyber incident is detected, a decision is automatically made on the best possible response based on combined data flows. Business continuity is also considered in this decision.

In software-defined IT environments, the platform is able to automatically adjust the IT infrastructure to mitigate the impact of a cyber attack, without having to take functionality offline temporarily.

Right now, a first prototype is being tested. The platform should be ready by 2024.

Photo credit: Towfiqu Barbhuiya