Agentic AI: Defenders or Double Agents?

Agentic AI is poised to rewrite the rules of cybersecurity, making defenders both more powerful and, paradoxically, more vulnerable than ever before. Unlike traditional machine learning, agentic AI systems can act autonomously: they detect, interpret, and respond to threats in real time without waiting for human approval. This self-direction delivers unprecedented speed and operational scale, reducing attacker dwell time and alert fatigue while freeing security teams for strategic work.

Yet autonomy brings a cascade of complex risks. Data poisoning has emerged as a front-line threat—attackers subtly corrupt training data to mislead AI models, subvert detection algorithms, or trigger false positives. When agentic AI trusts compromised inputs, organizations lose visibility and face decision-making chaos at machine speed. Simultaneously, sophisticated adversaries are deploying their own AI agents for ultra-targeted, high-velocity attacks. The cybersecurity battlefield is evolving into a contest between competing intelligent systems.

Quote: The challenge for CISOs is clear—harness agentic AI’s remarkable strengths while controlling autonomy with rigorous oversight and a compliance-first mindset.

Navigating this landscape demands more than technical ingenuity—it requires regulatory foresight and ethical clarity. Emerging Indian and global compliance mandates around explainable AI, liability for autonomous actions, and routine audits of AI-driven decisions are already reshaping boardroom conversations. CISOs must implement transparent governance frameworks for AI autonomy, ensuring risk alignment, and maintain the ability to stop, question, or override agentic actions when logic falters or stakes escalate.

The challenge for CISOs is clear—harness agentic AI’s remarkable strengths while controlling autonomy with rigorous oversight and a compliance-first mindset. The organizations that will succeed in the volatile cyber security frontier will be those that embed trust, explainability, and human judgment at the core of their AI strategy.

R. Giridhar
Group Editor
B2B Tech

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