Looking Ahead Cybersecurity Trends to Watch Looking Ahead Cybersecurity Trends to Watch NEAR-TERM NEAR-TERM MEDIUM-TERM LONG-TERM A Cloud of Crown Jewels Rise of the Machines — Boon or Bane 5th Generation (5G) — The New Era of High Speed Connectivity Quantum Leap into the Unknown WHAT IS IT? WHAT IS IT? WHAT IS IT? WHAT IS IT? Organisations are increasingly moving to the cloud Artificial Intelligence (AI) involves machines 5th Generation communications (5G) Although quantum computing is still at a to address their data storage and computing needs. simulating human intelligence processes to reason heralds a new era of faster speeds and greater nascent stage of development, they are strongly For many businesses, the use of cloud services and perform tasks. The workplace has been bandwidth which will relieve network congestion predicted to disrupt and impact how industries means significant cost savings, as they no longer revolutionised with the introduction of AI, which has and improve the mobile experience. Beyond just operate. 2019 saw many breakthroughs in have to invest heavily on software and hardware. helped companies automate tasks to a large degree. connecting people, 5G will unlock the potential quantum computing, with Google’s experiment Furthermore, the mobility and reliability of cloud Businesses can also become more efficient through of connectivity with Internet of Things (IoT) taking 200 seconds to perform a task that would services provide huge convenience to users, who AI, as their digital platforms get “trained” and devices in multiple aspects of life, from home and take the fastest supercomputer 10,000 years to are now able to work on-the-go as long as they are become smarter, performing better in various tasks. industrial automation to autonomous vehicles. complete. Quantum computers have the potential connected to the Internet. AI can also enhance an organisation’s cybersecurity This will precipitate a major change in essential to become exponentially more powerful than posture, by analysing user behaviour, identifying networks, which in turn, will have long-term today’s supercomputers. Unlike the current anomalies, and pinpointing irregularities within a impact on a large range of applications in smart binary model of computing adopted by classical network. This, in turn, enables organisations to cities, manufacturing processes, and homes. computers, quantum computers work on millions WHY DOES IT MATTER? Cloud security is a shared responsibility between Cloud Service Providers (CSPs) and its users. CSPs are generally only accountable for the security of the infrastructure or services in the cloud, while its users are responsible for securing their data residing there. A common misconception is that CSPs will take care of absolute security in the cloud. As a result, some companies may view investments in additional cybersecurity measures as unnecessary expenses, and consequently end up with inadequate protection for their assets. In addition, as businesses become increasingly dependent on the cloud, services which are essential to operations are also deployed on the cloud. Threat actors may target these cloud services to maximise their profit as the cloud becomes an aggregation point which enables them to target various companies. detect threats and vulnerabilities more swiftly. of computations in parallel, which drastically WHY DOES IT MATTER? SINGAPORE CYBER LANDSCAPE 2019 reduces the time taken to complete any task. The transformative potential of 5G is made WHY DOES IT MATTER? There is a lurking danger that AI may become possible by its Software-Defined Networks weaponised by threat actors. Threat actors can (SDNs) and virtualisation technology. As such, Quantum computing has the potential to break possibly use AI to create malware that is capable the 5G telecommunication network can be modern cryptographic systems that currently of figuring out normal user behaviour patterns of subjected to cyber-attacks in traditional IT underpin cybersecurity. Hence, there are the targeted network, and mimic the behaviour networks. Vulnerabilities can exist in SDNs like increasing concerns that quantum computing they have learnt to evade detection. In addition, all software, and threat actors may leverage could pose a major security issue if leveraged by threat actors can also use AI to execute attacks these software weaknesses in the 5G network threat actors. A potential scenario would be threat that can self-propagate over a targeted network to carry out malicious activities, such as actors capturing and storing encrypted data that by leveraging adaptive attack techniques based surveillence and disruption of the network. is presently available, in the hope that quantum on network traits. Smart phishing is another Additionally, the versatility of 5G and its wide computers can decrypt the data in future. Reports AI-powered cyber threat which creates credible- range of applications is expected to bring have suggested that quantum computers that are looking lures specific to the victim, based on about a surge in IoT devices. This unfortunately capable of breaking conventional cryptographic information gathered earlier about the target. AI creates a much expanded attack surface that algorithms within hours will likely exist by 2030.46 will enhance the speed and success rate of cyber- threat actors can exploit to access targeted attacks by sophisticated threat actors. The key systems. There is a need to place greater focus to defending against AI-powered cyber-attacks on the security of mobile and IoT devices, as could lie in the effective use of AI for timely threat these are key to enhancing the cybersecurity detection and response. posture of the 5G ecosystem. 46 46 WHY DOES IT MATTER? Chen, Lily, Jordan, Stephen, Liu, Yi-Kai, Moody, Dustin, Peralta, Rene, Perlner, Ray, and Smith-Tone, Daniel. “NISTIR 8105, Report on Post-Quantum Cryptography,” National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Computer Security Resource Center (CSRC), April 2016, https://csrc.nist.gov/publications/detail/nistir/8105/final. 47