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August 19, 2021

Black Hat USA 2021 Takeaways & the Cyber Security Landscape

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Aug 2021
Read about the impactful takeaways from Black Hat USA 2021 conference and how the cyber security landscape is changing. Learn about the trends here!

Earlier this month, the industry’s largest hybrid event – Black Hat USA 2021 – took place online and at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas. The event, which highlighted the latest security trends and technology best practices, attracted over 6,000 in-person attendees, while over 14,000 tuned in via the virtual platform. Eloy Avila shares his six key takeaways.

1. The cyber security landscape is changing, but the threat types remain the same

As hackers continue to innovate and the attack surface widens, the threat landscape is evolving drastically. Despite a massive shift to remote work, the significant threats themselves have not changed since Black Hat 2020 and the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Zero-days, ransomware, APTs, supply chain attacks, targeted phishing, and threats to OT and IoT environments are still the top concerns, though we have seen an increase in attacks on the email and SaaS side. While the attack methods largely remain the same, high-profile attacks like that on Colonial Pipeline have business leaders paying increased attention.

2. CISOs rise to new prominence within the C-suite

CISOs report that their engagement with the rest of the C-suite has dramatically improved due to new priorities and discussions around cyber security. Broader fears about hackers’ sophistication – and that nation-state attacks can directly impact private sector companies even outside of critical infrastructure – have spotlighted the vital role a CISO plays within an organization.

3. The future of security tools: Understanding both OT and IT

Over the past year, more operational technology (OT) institutions have moved away from security tools that focus solely on OT environments to those that understand IT and OT. Before Stuxnet in 2010, most cyber-attacks targeted traditional IT environments. Now, operational technology environments are victims, too (for example, the attacks on Colonial Pipeline and JBS).

With the digitization of our world, IT and OT have become more interconnected (also known as IT/OT convergence), forcing OT security practices to adapt. CISOs are now widely recognizing the importance of tools that can defend both OT and IT. Security tools need to operate in both IT and OT environments with a multi-layered approach to intelligently interrupt cyber threats early in the kill chain, on both sides of the network, and minimize disruption.

4. Supply chain attacks heavily reduce the operational cost of mass exploitation

Supply chain attacks create indiscriminate damage, as we saw with SolarWinds in December 2020 and Kaseya in July 2021. Regulation alone will not be enough to combat supply chain attacks, so businesses themselves need to invest in the right security tools and procedures to ensure cyber health and resilience. Supply chain attacks are virtually impossible to detect with legacy, signature-based security: the malicious software is packaged as legitimate and delivered into the heart of thousands of organizations by trusted suppliers and partners.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is making huge steps forward in this area. Today, the most cyber-mature organizations already rely on AI systems to continually monitor their risk across globally distributed networks, made up of multiple third parties worldwide.

5. Zero-day vulnerabilities are on the rise

Newly identified zero-day vulnerabilities in the wild have steadily risen over the past few years. 2021 saw an unprecedented spike in zero-day vulnerability detection, rapid reconnaissance, and active exploitation. Data compiled by Google’s Project Zero reveals that 2021 is the biggest year on record for ‘in the wild’ zero-day exploits. While security professionals can usually anticipate 20 to 25 exploited zero-days in any given year, 2021 saw a massive 33 before July alone. Notably, both supply chain attacks listed above (SolarWinds and Kaseya) resulted from hackers exploiting zero-day vulnerabilities.

6. Offensive vs. defensive security

Cyber compromises have increased over the past decade, and defenses that look in the rear-view mirror are struggling to withstand the new wave of attacks.

Improving defensive security is possible with a better understanding of “action bias” (e.g., individuals will act without fully understanding o­r evaluating the situation). Security professionals need to fully understand what occurs when compromised before acting, even when the case is stressful or time sensitive.

Innovations like AI help augment human teams by providing complete visibility into the network, giving context around an attack, and helping human teams triage, prioritize, and summarize incidents. We need to put cyber teams on the front foot: proactively monitoring and investigating threats in real-time as they develop instead of consistently reacting to threats that have already escalated into attacks.

Inside the SOC
Darktrace cyber analysts are world-class experts in threat intelligence, threat hunting and incident response, and provide 24/7 SOC support to thousands of Darktrace customers around the globe. Inside the SOC is exclusively authored by these experts, providing analysis of cyber incidents and threat trends, based on real-world experience in the field.
Author
Eloy Avila
Chief Technology Officer, Americas

Eloy Avila has over fourteen years’ experience in enterprise software. Based in San Francisco, he works closely with Darktrace’s R&D team to develop its world-leading Self-Learning AI, and oversees the technology’s strategic direction in the US, Latin America and Canada. He currently sits on The Experiences Per Mile (EPM) Advisory Council, which brings together industry leaders to discuss the future of automotive and mobility industry. Prior to Darktrace, Eloy led global engineering teams at a number of listed technology companies, and has helped design and build ultra-efficient electric vehicles in the US and Australia. Eloy holds a degree in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University, California.

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March 28, 2025

Darktrace Recognized as the Only Visionary in the 2025 Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for CPS Protection Platforms

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We are thrilled to announce that Darktrace has been named the only Visionary in the inaugural Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS) Protection Platforms. We feel This recognition highlights Darktrace’s AI-driven approach to securing industrial environments, where conventional security solutions struggle to keep pace with increasing cyber threats.

A milestone for CPS security

It's our opinion that the first-ever Gartner Magic Quadrant for CPS Protection Platforms reflects a growing industry shift toward purpose-built security solutions for critical infrastructure. As organizations integrate IT, OT, and cloud-connected systems, the cyber risk landscape continues to expand. Gartner evaluated 17 vendors based on their Ability to Execute and Completeness of Vision, establishing a benchmark for security leaders looking to enhance cyber resilience in industrial environments.

We believe the Gartner recognition of Darktrace as the only Visionary reaffirms the platform’s ability to proactively defend against cyber risks through AI-driven anomaly detection, autonomous response, and risk-based security strategies. With increasingly sophisticated attacks targeting industrial control systems, organizations need a solution that continuously evolves to defend against both known and unknown threats.

AI-driven security for CPS environments

Securing CPS environments requires an approach that adapts to the dynamic nature of industrial operations. Traditional security tools rely on static signatures and predefined rules, leaving gaps in protection against novel and sophisticated threats. Darktrace / OT takes a different approach, leveraging Self-Learning AI to detect and neutralize threats in real time, even in air-gapped or highly regulated environments.

Darktrace / OT continuously analyzes network behaviors to establish a deep understanding of what is “normal” for each industrial environment. This enables it to autonomously identify deviations that signal potential cyber threats, providing early warning and proactive defense before attacks can disrupt operations. Unlike rule-based security models that require constant manual updates, Darktrace / OT improves with the environment, ensuring long-term resilience against emerging cyber risks.

Bridging the IT-OT security gap

A major challenge for organizations protecting CPS environments is the disconnect between IT and OT security. While IT security has traditionally focused on data

protection and compliance, OT security is driven by operational uptime and safety, leading to siloed security programs that leave critical gaps in visibility and response.

Darktrace / OT eliminates these silos by providing unified visibility across IT, OT, and IoT assets, ensuring that security teams have a complete picture of their attack surface. Its AI-driven approach enables cross-domain threat detection, recognizing risks that move laterally between IT and OT environments. By seamlessly integrating with existing security architectures, Darktrace / OT helps organizations close security gaps without disrupting industrial processes.

Proactive OT risk management and resilience

Beyond detection and response, Darktrace / OT strengthens organizations’ ability to manage cyber risk proactively. By mapping vulnerabilities to real-world attack paths, it prioritizes remediation actions based on actual exploitability and business impact, rather than relying on isolated CVE scores. This risk-based approach enables security teams to focus resources where they matter most, reducing overall exposure to cyber threats.

With autonomous threat response capabilities, Darktrace / OT not only identifies risks but also contains them in real time, preventing attackers from escalating intrusions. Whether mitigating ransomware, insider threats, or sophisticated nation-state attacks, Darktrace / OT ensures that industrial environments remain secure, operational, and resilient, no matter how threats evolve.

AI-powered incident response and SOC automation

Security teams are facing an overwhelming volume of alerts, making it difficult to prioritize threats and respond effectively. Darktrace / OT’s Cyber AI Analyst acts as a force multiplier for security teams by automating threat investigation, alert triage, and response actions. By mimicking the workflow of a human SOC analyst, Cyber AI Analyst provides contextual insights that accelerate incident response and reduce the manual workload on security teams.

With 24/7 autonomous monitoring, Darktrace / OT ensures that threats are continuously detected and investigated in real time. Whether facing ransomware, insider threats, or sophisticated nation-state attacks, organizations can rely on AI-driven security to contain threats before they disrupt operations.

Trusted by customers: Darktrace / OT recognized in Gartner Peer Insights

Source: Gartner Peer Insights (Oct 28th)

Beyond our recognition in the Gartner Magic Quadrant, we feel Darktrace / OT is one of the highest-rated CPS security solutions on Gartner Peer Insights, reflecting strong customer trust and validation. With a 4.9/5 overall rating and the highest "Willingness to Recommend" score among CPS vendors, organizations across critical infrastructure and industrial sectors recognize the impact of our AI-driven security approach. Source: Gartner Peer Insights (Oct 28th)

This strong customer endorsement underscores why leading enterprises trust Darktrace / OT to secure their CPS environments today and in the future.

Redefining the future of CPS security

It's our view that Darktrace’s recognition as the only Visionary in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for CPS Protection Platforms validates its leadership in next-generation industrial security. As cyber threats targeting critical infrastructure continue to rise, organizations must adopt AI-driven security solutions that can adapt, respond, and mitigate risks in real time.

We believe this recognition reinforces our commitment to innovation and our mission to secure the world’s most essential systems. This recognition reinforces our commitment to innovation and our mission to secure the world’s most essential systems.

® Download the full Gartner Magic Quadrant for CPS Protection Platforms

® Request a demo to see Darktrace OT in action.

Gartner, Magic Quadrant for CPS Protection Platforms , Katell Thielemann, Wam Voster, Ruggero Contu 12 February 2025

Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its research publications and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner’s research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

GARTNER is a registered trademark and service mark of Gartner and Magic Quadrant and Peer Insights are a registered trademark, of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally and are used herein with permission. All rights reserved. Gartner Peer Insights content consists of the opinions of individual end users based on their own experiences with the vendors listed on the platform, should not be construed as statements of fact, nor do they represent the views of Gartner or its affiliates. Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in this content nor makes any warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this content, about its accuracy or completeness, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

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About the author
Pallavi Singh
Product Marketing Manager, OT Security & Compliance

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March 28, 2025

Survey Findings: AI Cybersecurity Priorities and Objectives in 2025

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AI is changing the cybersecurity field, both on the offensive and defensive sides. We surveyed over 1,500 cybersecurity professionals from around the world to uncover their attitudes, understanding, and priorities when it comes to AI cybersecurity in 2025. Our full report, unearthing some telling trends, is available now.  

Download the full report to explore these findings in depth

It is clear that security professionals know their field is changing fast, and that AI will continue to influence those changes. Our survey results show that they are aware that the rise of AI will require them to adopt new tools and learn to use them effectively. Still, they aren’t always certain about how to plan for the future, or what to invest in.

The top priorities of security stakeholders for improving their defenses against AI-powered threats include augmenting their existing tool stacks with AI-powered solutions and improving integration among their security tools.

Figure 1: Year-over-year changes to the priorities of securitystakeholders.

Increasing cybersecurity staff

As was also the case last year, security stakeholders are less interested in hiring additional staff than in adding new AI-powered tools onto their existing security stacks, with only with 11% (and only 8% of executives) planning to increase cybersecurity staff in 2025.

This suggests that leaders are looking for new methods to overcome talent resource shortages.

Adding AI-powered security tools to supplement existing solutions

Executives are particularly enthusiastic about adopting AI-driven tools. Within that goal, there is consensus about the qualities cyber professionals are looking for when purchasing new security capabilities or replacing existing products.

  • 87% of survey respondents prefer solutions that are part of a broader platform over individual point products

These results are similar to last year’s, where again, almost nine out of ten agreed that a platform-oriented security solution was more effective at stopping cyber threats than a collection of individual products.

  • 88% of survey respondents agree that the use of AI within the security stack is critical to freeing up time for security teams to become more proactive, compared to reactive

AI itself can contribute to this shift from reactive to proactive security, improving risk prioritization and automating preventative strategies like Attack Surface Management (ASM) and proactive exposure management.

  • 84% of survey respondents prefer defensive AI solutions that do not require the organization’s data to be shared externally

This preference may reflect increasing attention to the data privacy and security risks posed by generative AI (gen AI) adoption. It may also reflect growing awareness of data residency requirements and other restrictions that regulators are imposing.

Improving cybersecurity awareness training for end users

Based on the survey results, practitioners in SecOps are more interested in improving security awareness training.

This goal is not necessarily mutually exclusive from the addition of AI tools. For example, teams can leverage AI to build more effective security awareness training programs, and as gen AI tools are adopted, users will need to be taught about data privacy and associated security risks.

Looking towards the future

One conclusion we can draw from the attitudinal shifts from last year’s survey to this year’s: while hiring more security staff might be a nice-to-have, implementing AI-powered tools so that existing employees can work smarter is increasingly viewed as a must-have.

However, trending goals are not just about managing resources, whether headcount or AI investments, to keep up with workloads. Existing end users must also be trained to follow safe practices while using established and newly adopted tools.

Security professionals, including executives, SecOps, and every role in between, continue to shift their identified challenges and priorities as they gear up for the coming year in the Era of AI.

State of AI report

Download the full report to explore these findings in depth

The full report for Darktrace’s State of AI Cybersecurity is out now. Download the paper to dig deeper into these trends, and see how results differ by industry, region, organization size, and job title.  

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