Ahead of the Performanta x Microsoft Cyber AI Summit on 3rd December, the Cyber Safety Force sat down with keynote speaker James Key, Principal Product Manager, for Microsoft Security Copilot. In this Q&A, James shares unique insights into his career, the importance of pursuing cyber safety, the role of innovation and skilling, where the future of our industry is heading, and more…
Tell us about your career in cybersecurity to date?
I joined Microsoft in December 2014 as a SharePoint on-premises engineer.
Over the years, my focus shifted to security, especially after recognizing how crucial security was in customer conversations. My journey with Microsoft security began with learning about our identity stack with Microsoft Entra (at the time Azure AD); followed by our Microsoft security stacks that focused on endpoints, cloud apps and data.
Along the way, I complimented my security expertise specializing in Microsoft Intune (device management), and the Microsoft Purview stack (including information protection and data loss prevention). This helped me better understand the whole security and compliance ecosystem that Microsoft provides rather than only understanding individual products. My journey eventually led to my current role as a Principal Product Manager for Microsoft Security Copilot.
My world revolves around working with our brilliant service provider partners (MSSP/MSP/SI) to bring the best possible tools to market and ensure continued product improvement to stay ahead of the evolving cybersecurity threat landscape.
What does Cyber Safety mean to you?
Cyber Safety is ultimately the pursuit of constantly improving digital protections.
To me, Cyber Safety defines the ongoing process of improving security, collaboration, and skill-building. It is all about preparedness, leveraging powerful technology and human expertise to protect against threats. It is also crucial to have an end-to-end approach, not relying on a single solution but integrating multiple layers of defence.
Ultimately, threat actors are not encumbered by the red tape that cybersecurity organisations adhere to, so the challenge to predict, adapt, and protect against evolving attack methodologies is significant. Yet, it is being met by accelerated innovation, such as the work Microsoft and partners have done with Copilot and XDR. Equally, movements to achieve sector-wide collaboration, unity, and support for the ongoing training of cybersecurity professionals is foundational to Cyber Safety as, ultimately, they are the most important line of defence.
Why is Cyber Safety important to you and your organisation?
There is a huge responsibility from the world’s largest technology companies to pursue Cyber Safety. At Microsoft, we are constantly looking at ways to improve our sector-leading services - it is part of my key focus as Product Manager.
Cyber Safety is important for us because we strongly believe businesses should be able to operate in a safe digital world. Organisations have a right to focus their energy on producing the best products and services possible, unburdened by the near-constant threat of malicious cyber attackers. By working closely with our cybersecurity partners, vendors, and customers, we are a leading force in ensuring businesses can focus on improving their strengths rather than being paralysed and constrained by the threats they face.
It isn’t all about the product, either, although it is a key consideration; cybersecurity tools need to be powerful enough to defeat new and existing attack methodologies. Importantly, there is a level of augmentation that exists in our sector, particularly at Microsoft with our end-to-end suite of products, yet that augmentation must be matched by sector wisdom - being able to see what the landscape looks like and where improvements are required. That way, we can align with Cyber Safety strategies most effectively.
How do you view the dynamic between Microsoft and its vendor partners?
Very positively, and this is because it is a purposeful endeavour built into the way we support the cybersecurity industry at large. Microsoft has a rich history of collaborating with partners, who play a key role in scaling and extending Microsoft’s reach. The future of this partnership is about empowering our partners with the right resources, knowledge, and tools.
We need to work together to understand challenges, innovate, and address the evolving threats in the market. We recognise the fantastic work done day in and day out to produce a safer digital environment for all, and we are incredibly proud of our role in helping make that a reality. Partnering with innovative companies like Performanta, who have harnessed our Copilot with their XDR solution to achieve unparalleled visibility and response times against cyberattacks, exemplifies how collaboration can push the boundaries of cybersecurity innovation.
What Cyber Safety challenges are businesses facing today?
There are challenges and opportunities, and they are often one and the same. While it is widely accepted that AI is being used by cyber attackers to diversify methods and increase success rates, I think it can be leveraged by the cybersecurity industry to a greater effect. We are only at the tip of the iceberg for what the technology is capable of, so a key challenge is implementing AI in the most impactful way, ensuring it can support human expertise, not replace it.
The implementation of AI should never be about reducing cybersecurity staff, but rather empowering them with AI and automation to focus on more complex tasks and provide better security outcomes. We need to act quickly, utilising AI capabilities to level the playing field against increasingly sophisticated threats. What excites me about Copilot is its AI component, as we help organisations identify and respond to threats faster, enhancing the expertise across teams, not just security analysts but also system administrators and compliance officers.
Skills gaps are rife across the entire technology landscape, and cybersecurity is particularly affected. A lack of cybersecurity talent isn’t the only reason, though it’s true that public and private organisations need to do more to create initiatives that encourage greater accessibility for those interested in our industry. There’s also an increasing need for greater knowledge-sharing and collaboration.
To create a level of cybersecurity skill and knowledge standardisation, we need systems in place that foster a more synergised approach. Augmentation across cybersecurity products is one thing, but industry wisdom is the other half of that picture. Without it, we cannot effectively tackle the array of evolving threats, and businesses are left unsure of how they should prepare and protect themselves now and in the future.
What is your advice for tackling current cybersecurity challenges?
Practically speaking, it’s critical that our sector continues to focus on identity management and ensure proper multi-factor authentication. A zero-trust approach is lauded as a key practice in reducing identity and access issues, and for the most part, this approach can be successful.
However, the sheer array of attack methodologies has increased the need for total preparedness.
The landscape has changed; attackers are no longer trying to target the front or back door of a business, but windows, vents, and cracks in the roofing, too. To protect ourselves and our customers against this, we must continue to innovate cybersecurity tools, working closely with public and private experts to ensure we are investing in what matters most.
Additionally, investing in people and continuously enhancing their skills is crucial. A cybersecurity process is only as strong as its weakest - or least trained - link. This extends beyond the internal expertise of cybersecurity partners and vendors and into customer organisations. I urge businesses to consider whether their staff genuinely have the skills to spot a cyberattack, be it through phishing, malware, Denial of Service (DoS), or insider threats, as well as deliberating how training can improve, and where cybersecurity products and experts can assist.
Which technology with the potential to improve Cyber Safety are you most excited about?
Beyond AI, I’m excited about the potential for automation and how technologies like logic apps and APIs can help streamline security processes. Security needs to be integrated seamlessly into everyday workflows. Going forward, the focus should be on making security accessible and manageable for everyone, from junior analysts to seasoned experts, because, no matter the size of the business, the sector it operates in, or the seniority of its people, we are all equally exposed to modern threats.
Only through innovation and collaboration, merging product augmentation with wisdom, can we make significant progress toward Cyber Safety. At Microsoft, we are committed to this long-term vision.
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