How Hackers Use AI and Machine Learning to Target Enterprises

AI (Artificial Intelligence) and machine learning are often touted as things that will bring both small businesses and enterprises to new levels. But the bad frequently follows the good. Meaning that while AI and machine learning improve cybersecurity, they are also being used by cybercriminals.

Cybercriminals are using advanced technology to create and launch sophisticated malware and cyber attacks that easily bypass and fool cybersecurity systems.

More complex cyberattacks are our future, along with increased frequency. So in this article, we will cover in more detail what AI and machine learning do when in the wrong hands.

Importance of Cybersecurity in 2022

With the increasing number of cyberattacks, spotting vulnerable spots in your IT infrastructure is crucial to keep your business’ data, hardware, and other software safe.

In case your company does fall victim to a cyberattack (which isn’t the end of the world because you can never be 100% safe), there are steps to take afterward. After neutralizing the threat, the important thing is to revise the security protocols using the lessons learned from the recent attack.

Another vital step is to never stop learning – hackers use AI and machine learning more and more, and you should know about the latest hacker trends and what exactly they do to extract sensitive company data.

What are AI and Machine Learning in Cybersecurity?

Artificial intelligence (AI) is great in assisting security operations analysts to tackle the cyberattacks’ increase in scale and variety. Artificial intelligence (AI) tech such as machine learning and natural language processing enables analysts to link together various threats.

Machine learning, as a subset of AI, creates automated analytical models. What this translates to is that it lets IT systems gain more insight and thus update various processes according to what the program experienced through continuous use. That allows IT systems to learn from previous calculations and adapt on their own.

Ways Hackers Use AI and Machine Learning

Hackers use increasingly sophisticated methods to breach IT security, gather information, and launch attacks. The usefulness of machine learning and AI also benefits cybercriminals. The following evolving threats in the IT sector are ones that your company needs to be aware of.

More Sophisticated Phishing Emails

Attackers create phishing emails using machine learning. On dark web forums, they are promoting the sale of these services. There, they mention utilizing machine learning to produce more effective phishing emails. They operate by creating fake personalities for use in scam efforts.

Hackers can use machine learning to creatively alter phishing emails so that they don’t appear in bulk email lists and are optimized to encourage engagement and clicks. They go beyond the email’s text. Hackers use AI to produce realistic images, social media personas, and other content to give the interaction the best possible legitimacy.

Faster Password Guessing

Additionally, criminals use AI and machine learning to improve their password guessing skills. It is evident that password guessing engines now have more sophisticated techniques based on the frequency and success rates of criminal hacking attempts. The ability to hack stolen hashes is also improving as criminals are creating better dictionaries.

Additionally, they are utilizing machine learning to identify security measures so they can guess better passwords with fewer attempts, increasing their likelihood of success.

Using Deep Fakes

The deep fake tools that can produce video or audio difficult to distinguish from the real human speech are the most terrifying way hackers use AI and machine learning.

A few high-profile cases involving faked audio costing businesses hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars have come to light recently.

In order to make their messages seem more credible, scammers are increasingly using artificial intelligence and machine learning to create realistic-looking user-profiles and videos. It’s a huge industry. Since 2016, company email scams have caused over $43 billion in losses, according to the FBI.

Social Engineering

Cybercriminals use the tactic of social engineering to trick and convince victims to disclose confidential details or perform a specific action, like sending money abroad or opening an infected file.

By making it simpler and faster for them to gather data on businesses, employees, and partners, AI and machine learning make use of the actions of criminals. In other words, social engineering-based attacks are strengthened by artificial intelligence and machine learning.

Final Word

There are so many different aspects of cybersecurity to cover, and we covered just a tiny portion in this article. But it is enough to get you started and realize just how much hackers use AI and machine learning.

So if criminals are using the best technology out there to perform malicious activities, you should be breathing down their necks, too, by continuously updating your security systems.

Because remember – AI and machine learning can keep you safe from various cyber threats.