IBM Security recently announced that it would be extending its Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology, developed for security purposes, to other industries. The company would be extending its services to different clients using Identity-as-a-Service (IDaaS), and the first industry to be identified is the financial sector.

The solution offered by IBM provides varied security solutions. Based on the user category and behavior analytics, it escalates the suspicious user interaction for further authentication, while those identified as the low-risk users are fast-tracked, so that they can easily access the applications and services required. 

AI is developing security for various infrastructures into the complete domain of technology where traditional means of security have failed, such as passwords, to prevent unauthorized access. Even the attackers have become sophisticated now, wherein a malicious actor obtains a list of credentials and tests them using a bot at different sites. Additionally, over the years, password leakage and authentication have come under constant threat from attackers. According to a 2019 report, compromised and weak credentials have to lead to more than 80% of data breaches.   

Maintaining password security is a hurdle for IT teams because as the company grows, the number of applications and employees also add-up. According to a 2017 report, the research found that large businesses are managing hundreds of applications – up to 788 custom applications on average for companies with more than 50,000 employees.

Jason Keenaghan, Director, IBM Security, stated that businesses are continually trying to optimize both their security and user experience. Therefore, the trick for businesses is to have them planned so that security doesn’t disrupt the everyday user journey.

IBM Cloud Identity with adaptive access is using AI, providing organizations with a 360-degree view of the context for user access that is derived from different points such as malware, risk indicators, device insights, and user behavior. This assists the organizations to focus more on the security of high-risk logins while providing users with seamless access to various types of accounts and applications.