The partnership connects infrastructure protection with visibility into enterprise data access and the information moving into AI applications. 

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An AI system can be fully protected at the infrastructure level while the data flowing through it remains a blind spot. A user may access information they normally would not, an application may pull an unusual set of files, or malicious content may enter a knowledge base before a model ever interacts with it. Separating infrastructure and data monitoring can make those signals difficult to connect. 

VAST Data and CrowdStrike are addressing that gap with a set of integrations announced September 2 in Riyadh. Native CrowdStrike Falcon sensor support is coming to VAST's AI Operating System, while VAST audit telemetry will connect with Falcon Next-Gen SIEM. Falcon Guardian, CrowdStrike's AI Detection and Response technology, is also being integrated with VAST InsightEngine, which processes enterprise data for use in AI knowledge bases and workflows. 

The potential benefit for security operations teams is greater context around activity that might otherwise appear routine. Audit information showing how users and machines interact with enterprise data can be considered alongside other security events in Falcon Next-Gen SIEM. An unusual access event can then be assessed against a wider set of signals, helping investigators determine whether it represents a genuine threat and how far it may have spread. 

“The security boundary for AI can’t stop at the infrastructure. Enterprises need to understand who is accessing their data, how that data is moving through AI pipelines and what is happening when applications and models interact with it,” said Renen Hallak, Founder & CEO at VAST Data. “Together with CrowdStrike, we’re bringing security across each of those layers. By combining the VAST AI Operating System with the intelligence of the Falcon platform, customers can build AI environments where security is part of the architecture from the foundation through the AI pipeline.” 

InsightEngine brings another part of the security process closer to the information itself. It ingests, processes and enriches unstructured information before it is used by AI knowledge bases and workflows. Falcon Guardian will be integrated into that process to help identify sensitive information such as personally identifiable information and detect threats including prompt injection and jailbreak attempts. A suspicious document, an unexpected request for sensitive information and an attempt to manipulate an AI application can otherwise sit in separate monitoring systems, making it harder to establish whether they are connected. 

“AI is reshaping the enterprise, and security has to extend everywhere AI operates,” said Daniel Bernard, Chief Business Officer at CrowdStrike. “By bringing CrowdStrike into the VAST AI Operating System, we’re extending Falcon protection across the infrastructure, data and AI pipelines powering the next generation of enterprise AI. VAST Data is one of the most innovative AI infrastructure software companies on the market – secured by CrowdStrike.” 

VAST and CrowdStrike began working together earlier this year, when they announced a broader partnership on February 25 focused on protecting the AI lifecycle, including data ingestion, model training, runtime operations and inference. The September 2 announcement extends that work further into VAST's operating environment by connecting protection for the infrastructure with activity around the data moving through it. The companies describe the approach as "first-of-its-kind," although efforts to secure AI interactions and the data used by AI systems are already underway across the cybersecurity industry. 

Native Falcon sensor support for VAST is available now, while the Falcon Next-Gen SIEM and Falcon Guardian integrations remain in private preview. Their eventual value will depend on how effectively security teams can use the additional context in practice, particularly when activity crosses the boundaries between infrastructure, enterprise data and AI applications. For organizations putting sensitive information into AI systems, that ability to connect seemingly separate events could determine whether a suspicious action is investigated as an isolated anomaly or recognized as part of a broader security incident. 

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