Monday November 3, 2025 | VICTORIA, BC
by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends
Artificial intelligence (AI) is no longer a futuristic addition to cybersecurity.
AI is now the new backbone of predictive defense.
“The real opportunity (and risk) lies in how we govern AI itself,” says cybersecurity and AI executive Mark E.S. Bernard.
AI amplifies the need for governance:
After three decades of leading cybersecurity and privacy programs across commercial and government sectors, Bernard says he can confirm that AI doesn’t replace governance — it amplifies the need for it.
Without a disciplined structure for data governance, privacy assurance, and explainability, even the most advanced AI security stack can become your next risk vector.
Yet many organizations are focusing on celebrating the gains of automation without looking at how to manage the operation and broader impacts of AI.
Bernard has published a review that expands on “How AI is Changing Cybersecurity” which helps translate strategic insights into actionable steps that every enterprise can follow to adopt AI securely, ethically, and effectively.
Strategic strengths:
There are strategic strengths:
- Reframing the Cybersecurity Narrative: From Reaction to Prediction
- Automation vs. Evolution: A Strategic Clarification
- Human + AI Alliance: Building the Next-Gen SOC Analyst
Operational and Governance Gaps:
There are operational and governance gaps in the context of using AI:
- The Hidden Risk: AI Governance and Operational Control
- Adversarial AI: The Threat No One Mentioned
- Privacy and Data Governance: The Blind Spot
Policy, budget, playbooks:
Further, Bernard recommends formalizing an AI policy, developing a budget for Model Tuning and Data Engineering, add developing Adversarial AI Incident Playbooks.
About the consultant:
Bernard partners with corporate boards, CEOs, and executives to turn compliance headaches into permanent solutions—and unlock new revenue.
He authored the NIST Cyber Security Foundation Training Program and has provided ISO/IEC 27001 consulting services to several North American enterprise and cloud service providers.
Bernard has lived in the south Vancouver Island region and currently lives in Ontario.
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