AI Threats Challenge Cybersecurity Landscape
Artificial intelligence is accelerating cybersecurity threats against businesses and government agencies, enabling criminals to:
- Potentially impersonate employees
- Steal sensitive information
- Compromise corporate networks faster than organizations can respond, according to some cybersecurity experts.
Panel Discussion on Passwords, Passkeys, and Threats
The Passwords, Passkeys, and Threats, Oh My panel discussion, held October 22 at Eastern Washington University, was hosted by Stu Steiner, director of EWU's Cybersecurity Institute. Panelists included:
- Dan Brown, a cybersecurity adviser with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), an agency within the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
- Lewis Thomas, an information security associate at Itron Inc. based in Liberty Lake.
- Colin Turnbull, EWU's director of information security and chief information security officer (CISO).
- Eric Leachman, an EWU cybersecurity graduate student and instructor.
CrowdStrike's 2026 Global Threat Report Findings
According to the report:
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There was an 89% increase in attacks involving AI-enabled adversaries in 2025.
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CrowdStrike's cybersecurity services are used by both the Department of Homeland Security and Itron.
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Growing sophistication of cyberattacks is forcing organizations to:
- Reconsider information protection strategies.
- Manage emerging technologies.
- Train employees to combat threats.
Rapid Cyberattacks and AI-Generated Scams
- Criminals required an average of 29 minutes to move from one compromised system to another within an organization in 2025.
- The fastest recorded breach in 2025 occurred in 27 seconds.
- 82% of CrowdStrike's detections involved attacks that didn't rely on traditional malware. Instead, these attacks mimicked normal user behavior to access corporate systems.
Cloud-Focused Intrusions and Nation-State Actor Attacks
- There was a 37% increase in cloud-focused intrusions in 2025.
- Cloud-related attacks associated with nation-state actors increased 266%.
Financial Risks and AI-Generated Communications
- Businesses face added financial and operational risks as criminals use AI-generated communications to impersonate executives, manipulate employees, and obtain confidential information, Dan Brown notes.
- Fraudulent communications often incorporate convincing AI-generated voices, images, and messages, making traditional warning signs less reliable.
- Deepfake technology can reproduce an individual's appearance or voice, potentially allowing criminals to impersonate executives, employees, or family members.
Mitigating AI-Driven Threats
- Establish procedures to independently verify unusual requests, particularly involving wire transfers or confidential information.
- Report fraudulent financial transactions immediately, as funds can sometimes be recovered.
Autonomous AI Agents and Emerging Security Concerns
- Autonomous AI agents present emerging security concerns for companies using the technology.
- Lewis Thomas explained how agentic AI can perform multistep tasks, interact with connected software, and access corporate files or databases when granted permission.