The perceived impact of Artificial Intelligence on cyber security operations in the South African banking sector

Abstract

Cybersecurity threats are increasing exponentially, and South Africa is one of the top countries targeted by cyber criminals. Banks are adopting AI-powered cybersecurity solutions to fortify themselves against the ever-increasing cyber threat landscape, but this presents opportunities and challenges. To ascertain the efficacy and impact of AI in cybercrime eradication, the TOE framework and Perception Theory were adopted to cover the operating landscape of CS officers and guided the cognition and the rationalisation of AI adoption. The data from the literature review was posited against qualitative findings from semi-structured interviews of key CS personnel and was analysed using thematic analysis. The findings indicate a positive perception of AI as a cybersecurity force multiplier, particularly in enhancing real-time threat detection and automating response mechanisms. However, concerns were also raised about overreliance on AI, data privacy and the potential exploitation of vulnerabilities and algorithms within AI-powered cybersecurity solutions. The findings clearly demonstrated that AI is not a turnkey solution and does not possess the power and ability to eradicate cybercrime in totality but is the only solid viable defensive solution for cyber-attacks. AI cannot eradicate crime completely but is the most efficient tool and system in cybercrime detection and prevention. There was a marked disparity in perception of AI between direct AI users and literary conjecture on the impact of AI. Given the vastness of AI, a novel bespoke framework was created to guide new users on the necessity, risk, benefits and scale of AI implementation intra-organisationally.