Artificial intelligence (AI) bots are fueling an increase in hyper-personalized phishing scams targeting corporate executives, according to leading companies such as Beazley and eBay.
As AI technology advances rapidly, cybercrime is becoming easier for hackers to execute. This has led to a rise in targeted attacks that scrape vast amounts of information about individuals, enabling scammers to craft bespoke phishing scams.
AI bots can quickly analyze data on tone and style to replicate it in fake emails, making them appear authentic. They also scour online profiles and social media activity to determine what topics executives are most likely to respond to, allowing hackers to launch highly targeted attacks.
Beazley’s Chief Information Security Officer Kirsty Kelly stated that AI is behind many of the recent phishing scams, which have become increasingly personal and sophisticated. eBay’s cyber crime security researcher Nadezda Demidova added that the availability of generative AI tools has lowered the entry threshold for advanced cybercrime, leading to a growth in polished and targeted phishing scams.
The increased use of AI-powered phishing scams poses significant risks to corporate executives and organizations as they strive to protect themselves from these highly sophisticated threats.
Source: https://arstechnica.com/security/2025/01/ai-generated-phishing-emails-are-getting-very-good-at-targeting-executives