Strengthening cybersecurity capacities of European SMEs with cybersecure AI-powered solutions

Expected Outcome: Support the adoption of market-ready innovative AI-powered cybersecurity solutions, including solutions developed in the framework of EU-supported research and innovation projects. Provide and deploy up to date AI-powered tools and services to organisations (in particular SMEs) to prepare, protect and respond to cybersecurity threats. Integrate AI technologies into cybersecurity processes to improve the security of ICT solutions, including providing innovative approaches to training employees to use AI solutions for cybersecurity. Deployment of cybersecure tools and technologies relying on trustworthy AI; AI driven cybersecurity tools; Integration of tools to protect and secure AI solutions. Objective: To support the market uptake and dissemination of innovative AI-powered cybersecurity solutions (notably in SMEs, possibly using results stemming from Horizon Europe projects or similar) and improve knowledge and auditing of cybersecurity preparedness. SMEs often lack the resources to assess cyber risks, develop cybersecurity strategies and implement solutions, leaving them vulnerable to cyberattacks. The resilience of organisations that fall into this category is key to the prosperity of the EU single market. Cyber risk assessment and management can be significantly enhanced and simplified with the application of AI-based tools and solutions. However, this requires an understanding of the evolving technology landscape, of the benefits of technology integration and of deployment prioritisation. Faced with organisational and financial constraints, the SMEs may be missing the opportunity to fully harness AI-powered solutions to advance their cybersecurity and resilience. Cybersecurity is the precondition for reliable, secure and resilient AI models and algorithms. Cybersecurity of AI is not just about protecting AI systems against threats such as poisoning and evasion attacks, as it also involves ensuring they have trustworthiness features such as human oversight and robustness – the ability to resist cyberattacks, as required by the EU’s AI Act for high-risk AI systems. The need for human oversight of AI has also been emphasised by experts. Also, the use of AI at the SME level supporting the integration of predictive algorithms can greatly support to a bottom-up approach when dealing with vulnerability detections, threat mitigation and more efficient coordinated incident response. Scope: This action aims to increase the maturity of cyber risk management and improve the cyber resilience and ultimately foster a technologically advanced cultu…