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AI May Be Lowering the Bar for Cybercriminals in Asia
Companies in South Korea and Japan are dealing with many cyberattacks.
Some attacks may have used artificial intelligence, but investigations are still underway.
Experts say AI can help people find weaknesses in computer systems and write convincing scam messages.
That can make attacks quicker and easier for people with fewer technical skills.
Japan had more reported cybersecurity incidents by September than in all of the previous year.
South Korea also reported increases in some kinds of attacks, including ransomware.
The incidents have not yet caused material financial losses, according to the report.
Officials in both countries are asking organizations to improve their defenses.
South Korean and Japanese businesses are strengthening cyber defences amid a surge of attacks.
Nine South Korean banks and two mega-churches are investigating attacks that may have involved AI.
Japan recorded more cybersecurity incidents by September than during all of the previous year, according to TrendAI.
Experts say AI can help attackers scan for vulnerabilities and create phishing campaigns more quickly and cheaply.
Authorities in both countries have begun responses, including South Korea’s financial-sector self-assessment and planned Japanese business warnings.
- Who
- Companies and banks in South Korea and Japan; cybersecurity experts and government authorities.
- What
- A surge in cyber incidents has prompted concern that AI may help less-skilled attackers carry out attacks.
- Where
- South Korea and Japan.
- When
- The incidents and data cited cover the first nine months of the year in Japan and the first half of the year in South Korea; the article does not specify the year.
- Why
- Experts say AI can automate tasks such as vulnerability scanning and phishing, making cybercrime faster, cheaper, and harder to detect.
Experts’ assessment
Investigative caution
AI's role in the attacks
Experts’ assessment
Cybersecurity specialists say AI can help attackers automate vulnerability searches and phishing, lowering the skills barrier and making attacks more efficient.
Investigative caution
Authorities are still investigating whether and how AI was used in many of the reported breaches.
Extent of the threat
Experts’ assessment
Some experts say AI has erased language and other barriers and that attackers' capabilities have crossed a threshold; CrowdStrike assessed that a suspected attacker likely could not have conducted the South Korean bank campaign without AI assistance.
Investigative caution
CrowdStrike also characterized the attacker's capabilities as not especially sophisticated, even though they were effective; the article says the breaches had not caused material financial losses.
Key facts
- Japan incident trend
- TrendAI recorded more cybersecurity incidents through September than during all of the previous year.
- Japan monthly count
- Japan recorded 86 incidents in September, about 18% more than August and 37% more than July.
- South Korea incidents
- The country reported 1,236 cyber incidents in the first half of the year, up 20% from a year earlier.
- South Korean organizations investigating
- Nine banks and two mega-churches are probing cyberattacks that may have involved AI.
- Attack types in South Korea
- Reports of distributed denial-of-service attacks rose 56.7%, and ransomware reports rose 76.8%.
- Financial impact
- The breaches had not yet resulted in material financial losses, according to the article.
- South Korean response
- The Financial Services Commission directed financial industry associations, regulators, and affected executives to complete a 12-point cybersecurity self-assessment.
- Japanese response
- Japan's National Cybersecurity Office plans to issue warnings to businesses after a meeting convened by digital transformation minister Toshiharu Furukawa.
Quotes
John Hultquist
Chief analyst at Google’s Threat Intelligence Group.
“At this point, we can assume that all threat actors are using AI in some capacity and their operations have benefited.”
livemint.com
“While capabilities were not terribly sophisticated they were effective.”
livemint.com
Nobuo Miwa
President of Tokyo-based cybersecurity firm S&J Corp.
“AI doesn't get tired... My view is that Japan is essentially being subjected to carpet bombing.”
livemint.com
Sources
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