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Black Hat conferences 2023: Top 10 Cybersecurity Products and Takeaways

In 2023, the cybersecurity landscape has showcased its dynamic nature with shifting trends in cyber threats. While traditional ransomware attacks have waned in popularity, identity-based cyberattacks and data extortion have seen a significant increase, reflecting the evolving tactics of malicious actors. Businesses are investing in DDoS protection to prevent business disruption. Like previous Black Hat conferences, this year’s Black Hat USA conference took place in Las Vegas from August 5 to August 10 2023. It has brought together leading cybersecurity vendors to address these emerging challenges.

Renowned cybersecurity companies showed off new cybersecurity products and services designed to anticipate and counter evolving threats. The conference has highlighted the role of generative AI technologies, including large language models like ChatGPT, in various security offerings, emphasizing their significance in tackling modern cyber risks. The showcased security tools encompass a range of areas such as vulnerability management, application security, threat hunting, and Security Operations Center (SOC) automation, reflecting the industry’s commitment to innovation and adaptation in the face of ever-changing threats.

Black Hat 2023: Top 10 Cybersecurity Products and Takeaways

10 Key Takeaways From Black Hat 2023

Here are ten key takeaways from Black Hat 2023.

1. Artificial Intelligence Takes Center Stage

Artificial intelligence and machine learning are becoming increasingly integrated into cybersecurity practices. Experts at Black Hat 2023 discussed the potential benefits and risks associated with AI-driven security tools. From threat detection to vulnerability analysis, these technologies are being leveraged to enhance the efficiency of defensive strategies.

Black Hat USA 2023

2. Supply Chain Attacks Are Evolving:

Supply chain attacks have emerged as a major concern for organizations. The SolarWinds and Kaseya incidents underscored the importance of securing every link in the supply chain. Presenters discussed innovative approaches to minimize these risks and prevent third-party vulnerabilities from compromising overall security.

3. Ransomware Gets Smarter:

Ransomware attacks have taken a more sophisticated turn, with threat actors employing artificial intelligence to identify valuable targets and evade detection. Black Hat 2023 featured discussions on the evolving tactics of ransomware operators and highlighted the need for organizations to adopt multi-layered defense mechanisms.

4. Zero Trust Architecture:

The concept of Zero Trust Architecture gained significant attention at the conference. As traditional perimeter defenses become less effective, the approach of “never trust, always verify” is being widely advocated to prevent lateral movement of attackers within networks.

Let's Talk Zero Trust - Black Hat USA 2023

5. Quantum Computing’s Implications for Cybersecurity:

With the growing potential of quantum computing, concerns about its impact on cryptography and security were thoroughly examined. Experts shared insights on post-quantum cryptography and the urgency of transitioning to quantum-resistant encryption methods.

6. IoT Security Challenges Persist:

The security of Internet of Things (IoT) devices remains a pressing issue. Discussions at Black Hat 2023 emphasized the need for manufacturers to prioritize security in IoT devices, as their vulnerabilities can lead to significant breaches and disruptions.

BlackHat USA and Defcon 31

7. Biometric Authentication Under Scrutiny:

Biometric authentication methods, once hailed as highly secure, faced scrutiny at the conference. Researchers presented findings on vulnerabilities in biometric systems, stressing the importance of combining biometrics with other authentication factors for enhanced security.

8. Regulations and Compliance:

The evolving landscape of cybersecurity regulations and compliance requirements was a key focus. With stricter data protection laws coming into effect globally, organizations are compelled to enhance their security measures to avoid hefty fines and reputational damage.

9. Human-Centric Cybersecurity:

Black Hat 2023 highlighted the significance of human factors in cybersecurity. Social engineering and psychological tactics used by attackers were explored, and experts discussed the importance of cybersecurity awareness training for all employees.

Proofpoint at black hat usa 2023

10. Ethical Considerations in Offensive Security:

The ethical boundaries of offensive security practices were debated extensively. Presenters discussed responsible disclosure, the potential impact of offensive tools falling into the wrong hands, and the need for a collective commitment to ethical hacking practices.

Top 10 Cybersecurity Products At Black Hat 2023

Here are the top ten cybersecurity products released at Black Hat 2023.

1. SentinelOne’s Singularity Ranger

SentinelOne has introduced a new addition to its Singularity Ranger network discovery suite called Ranger Insights, aimed at simplifying the prioritization of critical software vulnerabilities for security analysts. By providing contextual information within the same console and software agent as other security tools like endpoint detection and response, the tool presents a consolidated view of vulnerabilities alongside endpoint-based threats.

This eliminates the need for scheduled network scans due to SentinelOne’s agent-based approach. While initially lacking direct patching capabilities, future plans include incorporating patching functionality. The expansion into vulnerability management aligns with customer demands for vendor consolidation and streamlining security processes.

SentinelOne

2. CrowdStrike’s Identity Threat Hunting

CrowdStrike has introduced a pioneering threat hunting service called Identity Threat Hunting, addressing the prevalent issue of identity-based attacks in the cybersecurity landscape. The move comes as a response to the increasing effectiveness of endpoint security measures. This service, the inaugural offering from CrowdStrike’s Counter Adversary Operations unit, extends the proactive threat hunting practices of the Falcon OverWatch team from endpoint layers to identity threats.

Accessible at no charge for users of CrowdStrike Falcon OverWatch Elite, the service focuses on leveraging established intelligence and expertise to detect and prevent identity-based threats, emphasizing the prevention of lateral movement and early identification of compromised credentials.

Crowdstrike BlackHat 2023

3. Cycode’s Expanded ASPM and IDE Plugin:

Cycode, a leader in application security posture management (ASPM), has extended its capabilities by adding support for detecting hard-coded secrets in Confluence, AWS S3 buckets, and Azure environments. Additionally, they’ve introduced an IDE plugin for integration with VS Code, aiding developers in identifying and addressing hard-coded secrets within a single system. A new collaboration with Azure allows Cycode’s CI monitoring solution to work with Azure DevOps pipelines for Supply Chain Levels for Software Artifacts (SLSA) attestation generation.

4. NetRise’s SBOM Features and KEV Support:

NetRise has enhanced its extended internet of things (XIoT) security platform by including support for two major software bill of materials (SBOM) formats, SPDX and CycloneDX. This addition enables users to export vulnerability-enriched SBOMs and overlay CISA’s key exploited vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog data to simplify identifying and addressing known exploits, with no extra charges in the pricing model, starting from August 9.

5. ThreatConnect’s Intelligence Requirement Capabilities:

ThreatConnect has improved its machine-learning powered TI Ops Platform for threat intelligence operations with intelligence requirement capabilities. This feature aids customers in defining, managing, and tracking their intelligence requirements, priority intelligence requirements, and requests for information, streamlining the process of producing relevant and stakeholder-informed threat intelligence. This enhancement is included in the current pricing and became available to existing and new customers from August 7.

6. Ironscales’ Phishing Simulation Testing and ADE:

Ironscales has introduced a beta launch of GPT-powered phishing simulation testing (PST) to help organizations combat advanced phishing attacks with highly personalized simulation campaigns. Simultaneously, Ironscales’ new capability, accidental data exposure (ADE), alerts employees when they send potentially sensitive information. These capabilities are in beta and available to limited users, with pricing determined based on beta feedback.

Phishing Simuation Testing

7. Bionic’s ServiceNow Integration and Bionic Events:

Bionic’s application security posture management (ASPM) platform now integrates with ServiceNow’s Service Graph, offering engineering teams real-time configuration management databases of their applications and dependencies. Additionally, Bionic Events correlates application changes to security risk, supplying users with specific events to investigate security changes. These features come at no extra cost and were showcased at Black Hat USA.

8. ProtectAI’s Huntr Platform:

ProtectAI has unveiled Huntr, an open-source bug bounty platform powered by machine learning and focused on safeguarding AI open-source software and foundational models. With artificial intelligence and machine learning based bug hunting, monthly contests, and collaboration tools, the platform offers security researchers an environment for finding vulnerabilities.

9. Cybersixgill’s Enhancements to Cybersixgill IQ:

Cybersixgill IQ, a generative-AI based threat intelligence platform, now includes an attack surface management (ASM) module for contextual business insights. Enhancements such as a custom report builder, improved threat entity navigator with cross-referencing, and a credential module have been introduced to consolidate stolen credentials. These enhancements were demonstrated at Black Hat USA.

Cubersixgrill IQ

10. Cado’s New Timeline View and VARC Tool Enhancements:

Cado’s Timeline, a unified view for cross-cloud evidence items during incident response, has been revamped for better navigation. The shift from card view to tabular view enhances usability, while faceted and saved search options are now available. Cado also updated its open-source volatile artifact collection (VARC) tool to streamline incident investigation. These features were showcased at Black Hat USA.

Which is the most exciting cybersecurity product from Black Hat 2023? Share your choices with us in the comments section below.

Sarmad Hasan

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