Zaheer Ebrahim, solutions architect, Middle East and Africa, at Trend Micro.

In 2023, email remains the most vulnerable threat vector for gaining access to corporate networks. It’s no wonder Tessian Research calls email “every company’s riskiest channel” in its most recent report, which found that nearly one in five advanced email attacks is successful. Over 90% of organisations have had to deal with a data breach caused by an end-user email error, and despite having a cloud security solution is place, six in 10 businesses have experienced threats that have bypassed those defences. So, what does it take for a business today to keep the keys to the kingdom safe, especially when you take into account that there’s been a major shift from on-premises to cloud email security providers?

Anna Collard, SVP content strategy and evangelist at KnowBe4 Africa, says AI- and ML-empowered next-generation capabilities can augment security teams by providing constant analysis and faster and more accurate threat detection. “As most security teams are overstretched and understaffed, it makes sense to use as much automation as possible to support the initial response and analysis phase.” Jolene Castelyn, a marketing executive at Ricoh Southern Africa, says that even though AI-driven threat detection is becoming more sophisticated, identifying patterns and anomalies to combat evolving threats, balancing human error with next-gen tech involves creating a synergy between the two. “While AI can provide swift and accurate threat detection, human oversight is crucial to interpret complex threats, refine AI algorithms, and address nuanced attacks that AI might miss,” she says. “Regular training and communication help users make informed decisions and minimise errors. Human analysts should always review and verify AI-generated alerts to prevent false positives or negatives, while implementing solutions that learn from user behaviour to adapt and improve accuracy over time.”