Palo Alto Networks Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) CEO Nikesh Arora warned that companies must fix neglected legacy software and assume breaches, as AI-found PHP flaws prompted precautionary website shutdowns in several European countries.
On the All-In podcast episode that aired Friday, Arora said companies have a "technology debt" to pay "sooner than later." "People have not paid attention to the idea that they have to go fix their stuff," he said.
"So now they’re going to go take those websites down," he said.
The warning comes after AI tools helped uncover two critical vulnerabilities in PHP, an open-source programming language used by nearly 70% of websites whose server-side language is known. Emergency fixes were released on Oct. 21. As a precaution, government websites in the Netherlands, Finland, and France were taken offline.
How the PHP Flaw Was Cracked
Earlier this week, the FBI’s Cyber Division urged organizations to prioritize internet-facing systems and take vulnerable sites offline if they could not patch immediately.
"The PHP problem was solved by persistent compute," Arora said. Once cracked, "every hacker knows now how to go after it."
Mark Cuban made a related point about scale at a Reuters NEXT event on Friday. AI has not invented new attacks but can run them "in mass volume" through brute force, the billionaire investor said.
Assume You Will Be Breached
"Let’s assume that you will get breached," Arora said. The question, he said, is "how quickly can I find them."
During the company’s earnings call in September, Arora said that AI could speed up vulnerability discovery while many companies remain years from finishing cybersecurity upgrades, and that major breaches were likely in coming years.
On the podcast, Arora said nearly every large company is using Mythos, Anthropic’s AI model, or similar AI models to test its own security defenses. However, as newer models become more powerful, companies will have to keep fixing vulnerabilities and updating their defenses to stay ahead.
Cuban also said defenders can use the same approach. "You can spray your systems with just as much AI," he said.
Trading Metrics
Palo Alto has a market capitalization of about $311.29 billion. Over the past 52 weeks, its stock has traded as high as $432.33 and as low as $139.57. Over the past one year, the big-cap tech stock has gained 75.28%.
Price Action: PANW shares on Friday closed at $380.55, up 7.22%, according to Benzinga Pro data.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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