20 December 2024

The threat of AI-driven cyber warfare is real and it can disrupt the world- Opinion

Ersin Cahmutoglu

In the summer of 2017, the world witnessed what was later ascertained as the worst cyberattack ever in history, which crippled private companies and public institutions and caused a staggering financial loss of up to $10-$19 billion globally.

The NotPetya ransomware, as it was later named, was partly an AI-supported cyber operation because a bot network reportedly using AI technology was built to exploit security vulnerabilities in systems.

If such an attack were to happen today, when AI technology is more advanced and effective, it will likely cause much greater financial losses and even disrupt global trade.

No wonder, governments worldwide are taking note of the potential threat AI poses, especially in the hands of hackers and similar unethical groups.

Countries are also strengthening their military and security-oriented activities to protect them against such attacks.

Developments in AI have advanced even further, especially in the last few years. As artificial intelligence (AI) becomes widespread and systems such as large language models (LLM) are used in different domains, states have had to keep up with the fast-evolving sector.

No comments: