When it comes to email security, AI-based filtering tools are a great resource, but they are not an infallible solution. Attackers are also evolving, taking advantage of easily accessed AI and ML tools to craft deeply researched and highly targeted phishing campaigns that can bypass both traditional and ML model-based secure email gateways (SEGs) at an alarming rate. The solution? Human intelligence at scale.

The Power of Institutional and Contextual Knowledge

The average employee possesses something no AI technology can replicate. Through years of professional and interpersonal experience, humans can identify normal communication patterns and, more importantly, anomalous ones. This understanding is essential in identifying inconsistencies that could indicate a potential scam. Thanks to AI, threat actors can now create cosmetically perfect and personalized phishing emails that are nearly impossible for automated systems to distinguish from legitimate messages. Properly trained employees, on the other hand, can flag an email that “just doesn’t feel right.”

This is where we can bridge the gap left by machines. By harnessing human intelligence, it is possible to diversify your defense strategy in a way that complements AI-based security platforms but also utilizes the existing expertise that only real people possess.

Creating a Virtuous Cycle

1. Transform employees into cyber-resilient assets.

The foundation of a human-vetted intelligence strategy is having resilient and well-trained employees. Unfortunately, much of the existing security awareness training (SAT) industry focuses on conceptual content that employees are unlikely to encounter. Employee training should focus on teaching staff to recognize phishing attempts that traditional and AI SEGs miss. The best way to do this is to feed them simulations from real-world threats that have bypassed SEGs in the wild. Rather than accepting passive metrics like reduced click rates, utilize active measurements like reporting rates as cyber-resilience KPIs.  The Cofense solution does all of this.

When employees are trained effectively, they become a powerful line of defense, reporting anything suspicious before a breach occurs.

At Cofense, we believe the key to utilizing human intelligence is to scale it to a much broader, global resource. We achieve this by utilizing human intelligence at three distinct levels.

• Internal employee reports: Internal employee reports are a valuable source of human intelligence within an organization. These reports come from employees who have firsthand knowledge or experience with potential threats, such as phishing scams or social engineering attacks.
• Analyst Insights: In addition to utilizing human intelligence at the employee level, Cofense also leverages the expertise of our team of analysts in the Phishing Defense Center (PDC). These analysts have extensive experience in threat intelligence and are constantly monitoring for new and emerging threats. By tapping into their knowledge and insights, we can provide timely and accurate information to our clients about potential risks and how to mitigate them.
• Global Employees: Through our worldwide network of 35 million Cofense-trained employees, we have access to phishing reports from companies around the world. This global reach allows us to gather diverse perspectives and insights on potential threats, making our human intelligence even more comprehensive and effective.

2. Analyze and remediate employee reports.

The Cofense Phishing Threat Detection and Response (PDR) Platform enables analysts with threat-hunting and remediation tools to rapidly identify emails that have slipped through filtering defenses and remove them from mailboxes. It is this unique, in-depth human intelligence that enables security teams to identify and remove malicious emails almost immediately after they have been reported. The use of these automated tools in conjunction with human intelligence creates a synergistic cycle that ensures all malicious emails are caught, including both traditional and AI-based attempts.

3. Feed these threats back into your SAT.

At Cofense, we promptly feed these day-zero threats back into your SAT, creating a continuous and robust cycle of protection. However, we don’t stop there. With SEG-miss data from our vast global reporting network, we have a comprehensive threat intelligence feed that spans various organizations and industries. This data offers insight into threat trends and tactics that we use to create SAT content based on current real-world scenarios. This ensures that your employees are always up-to-date on the latest phishing tactics, making them increasingly resilient over time.

Close the AI Email Security Gap with Human Intelligence

The challenges presented by email security threats will always require both cutting-edge technology and human insight. By leveraging human intelligence at scale, you can close the gaps left by even the most advanced AI systems. Training your employees to be vigilant, using automation to handle reports quickly, and tapping into collective intelligence can make your organization much more secure.

Ready to learn more about how Cofense leverages human intelligence at scale to close the AI email security gap? Contact us today.