How AI and human oversight can strengthen nonprofit cybersecurity

Artificial intelligence has been a game changer across industries, including the nonprofit sector, but its impact on cybersecurity has been particularly transformative. As cyberthreats grow in sophistication, AI’s role in identifying and mitigating these risks becomes increasingly critical.

Although nonprofits often face limited resources and budgets, AI solutions are not out of their reach. In fact, nonprofits can be at the forefront of the AI revolution by integrating these solutions into their cybersecurity platforms. But organizations must also upskill their staff members and prioritize the role of human oversight to maximize AI’s impact on their cybersecurity.

AI as equalizer

Artificial intelligence has long been a component of cybersecurity systems, but recent developments in generative AI have made the technology foundational. These new tools can improve a nonprofit’s cybersecurity without exploding the organization’s budget. In this way, generative AI lowers the barrier to entry and makes it easier for nonprofits to access cybersecurity protections that would otherwise be cost prohibitive.

For example, AI can create security protocols, develop training materials and write code. AI can also create automated responses, which can be essential for nonprofits that do not have dedicated staff members who focus on cybersecurity.

In addition, AI can limit the spread of malicious activity by quarantining devices or blocking unauthorized access, often before human intervention is even required. This shift toward automation allows for faster, more efficient responses to threats, reducing the negative impact on nonprofits.

Organizations that implement AI as part of their cybersecurity platforms will have stronger defenses against bad actors. Nonprofits that fail to do this will be more vulnerable.

Human intervention

While AI can identify threats, humans still need to interpret the results, choose the course of action and make business-level decisions, such as enacting incident response plans. AI can handle the heavy lifting of threat detection, but people have to make the judgment calls.

Therefore, nonprofits must not rely too heavily on AI that lacks proper human oversight. Organizations will still have to rely on experienced staff members or third-party IT professionals to analyze AI-generated insights and respond to any issues.

Beginning the journey

Nonprofits that want to integrate AI into their cybersecurity systems must assess how their existing tools utilize AI. Organizations can then create pilot projects, which requires deploying AI tools on a small scale, evaluating their effectiveness and determining the return on investment before making larger commitments.

A critical challenge that organizations face is upskilling. People need training to interact with AI tools effectively. The success of AI adoption depends on how well staff members understand the data that AI provides. Without adequate training and the freedom to ask the right questions, staff members may unintentionally thwart even the most sophisticated AI tools.

AI has the power to democratize cybersecurity expertise. Similar to how calculators made advanced math accessible to more people, AI can allow individuals with limited cybersecurity training to perform complex security tasks. This can be enormously beneficial to nonprofits that assumed sophisticated cybersecurity protection was beyond their reach.

The road ahead

Artificial intelligence is not just a tool for enhancing cybersecurity; it is becoming an integral part of the way organizations approach digital defense. But while AI can identify threats and automate a response, human oversight remains crucial for interpreting results and making strategic decisions.

As AI evolves, it will enable nonspecialists to contribute to cybersecurity efforts, creating a more agile and responsive defense system. However, the key to success is upskilling employees and carefully piloting AI tools to ensure their value is fully realized.

For nonprofits, AI can level the playing field. An organization can have just as strong a cybersecurity platform as a for-profit enterprise. Nonprofits that embrace these new tools tap into the full potential of artificial intelligence.