(TR06) (INCYBER) Cognitive Layer Cybersecurity: The New Frontier of Cyber Resilience

The human brain is the most extraordinary automated data processing system in existence, yet it is also the least protected. It possesses no firewall or antivirus, save for the power of discernment—the ability to distinguish truth from falsehood, to preserve freedom of thought and judgment, and to maintain a sphere of privacy.

Cognitive attacks are proliferating with the rise of social media and are being amplified by the use of Artificial Intelligence. These attacks are multifaceted: information manipulation, social engineering, online reputation damage, deepfakes, cyberbullying, identity theft, breaches of trust, and incitement to commit offenses. They may follow their own internal logic or serve as a precursor or accompaniment to a traditional cyberattack. Emotion, attention, stress, urgency, and the promise of gain are their primary engines and amplifiers.

Hacking the mind rather than the machine—this is the modus operandi that expands the scope of cybersecurity into the cognitive realm.

While these attacks may rely on technology, they primarily exploit psychology. Their consequences can be devastating, whether at the national level (undermining electoral integrity, targeting defenders and cyber-specialists) or at the individual level (addiction, suicide, etc.). Conversely, the cognitive element is essential in the fight against cyberattacks.

Training, education, and upskilling are the means by which we can protect our brains—or leverage them—to better defend ourselves. The human element must be placed back at the heart of any cyber resilience strategy. Furthermore, cognitive attacks are opening new industrial horizons for solutions capable of detecting, mapping, and identifying them.

PhilosoFIC: The workshop where brains are mobilized!