Microsoft has identified a significant increase in the use of artificial intelligence by Russia, China, Iran and North Korea in cyberattacks against the United States.
Russia, China, Iran and North Korea have drastically increased their use of (AI) to carry out online fraud and cyberattacks against the United States, according to a new Microsoft investigation.
A Information technology multinational identified in July more than 200 cases of foreign agents using AI to create false content online, more than double the number recorded in July 2024 and more than ten times the number recorded in 2023.
The findings, published today in Microsoft’s annual Digital Threat Report, show that foreign adversaries are adopting innovative tactics in their efforts to use the internet as a weapon for espionage and fraud.
America’s adversaries, as well as criminal gangs and hackers, have exploited the potential of AI, using it to automate and enhance cyberattacks, spread disinformation and penetrate sensitive systems. ‘
AI can, for example, translate poorly worded phishing emails into fluent English, as well as generate digital clones of senior government officials. Government cyber operations often aim to obtain sensitive information, undermine supply chains, disrupt essential public services, or spread disinformation.
Cybercriminals, on the other hand, work for profit, stealing company secrets or using ‘ransomware’ to extort payments from their victims. These gangs are responsible for the vast majority of cyber attacks in the world and, in some cases, have built partnerships with countries like Russia.
According to Amy Hogan-Burney, vice president of security and customer trust at Microsoft, who oversaw the report, increasingly, these attackers are using AI to target governments, companies and critical systems such as hospitals and transportation networks.
“We see this as a pivotal moment where innovation is moving very quickly,” said Hogan-Burney.
Ohe United States is a top target for international cyberattacks, with criminals and foreign adversaries targeting companies, governments and organizations in the world’s largest economy more than any other country.
Israel and Ukraine were the second and third main targets, demonstrating how the military conflicts involving these two nations have spread to the digital world.
Russia, China and Iran deny using cyber operations for espionage, disruption and disinformation. China, for example, says the United States is trying to “smear” Beijing while conducting its own cyberattacks.
In a statement emailed to The Associated Press on Thursday, Iran’s mission to the United Nations said the country rejects allegations of responsibility for cyberattacks against U.S. targets but reserves the right to defend itself.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran does not initiate any form of offensive cyber operation against any State. (…) However, as a victim of cyber operations, it will respond to any threat of this type in a manner proportional to its nature and scale”, the mission states.
North Korea has pioneered a scheme in which it uses AI to create North American identities, allowing them to apply for remote technology jobs. The North Korean authoritarian regime pockets the salaries, while ‘hackers’ use their access to steal secrets or install ‘malware’.
