Víctor Mayoral Vilches

Cybersecurity is on the verge of a radical transformation, driven by the rise of Generative AI (GenAI). Within the next five years, human-led penetration testing will give way to AI-powered solutions, and offensive security actions will be teleoperated or fully automated. GenAI companies are already undermining the security capabilities in their models to avoid public backlash, leaving critical gaps in defense.* In this talk, Víctor Mayoral Vilches will present his groundbreaking work on the "Levels of Autonomy in Cybersecurity," a framework that maps the shift from human-led pentesting to fully autonomous Cybersecurity AIs. He begins with PentestGPT, an open-source AI tool launched in 2023 that assists with offensive security planning and sparked widespread controversy. From there, Víctor will explore semi-automated tools before introducing the Robot Immune System (RIS), a cutting-edge, AI-driven security solution. RIS employs Artificial Intelligence and Game Theory to autonomously understand, predict, and mitigate cyber threats in real time, evolving dynamically to meet the ever-changing cybersecurity landscape. Originally developed for robotics, RIS has expanded its reach to IT and OT environments, fueled by the latest advances in GenAI. Víctor will conclude with insights into his team’s current research, which is focused on advancing these Cybersecurity AIs to comply with the European Union's NIS2 and AI Act, paving the way for a future where AI not only defends but outsmarts cyber adversaries.