AI in practice

ChatGPT heralds "new era of cybercrime" with staggering 1265% increase in phishing emails

Matthias Bastian
Widescreen illustration maintaining the overall motif of a massive wave of e-mails crashing towards a city skyline. The e-mails in the wave have phishing hooks and now also incorporate distinct AI symbols like neural network patterns, binary code, and glowing AI icons. The forefront silhouette of an AI chip powering the wave is even more pronounced, with electric blue circuits glowing brightly, emphasizing the AI's role in generating the phishing onslaught.

DALL-E 3 prompted by THE DECODER

The SlashNext State of Phishing Report 2023 has revealed a 1265% increase in malicious phishing emails since Q4 2022, "signaling a new era of cybercrime fueled by generative AI." The SlashNext Threat Labs report links this increase to the growing use of tools like ChatGPT in crafting sophisticated phishing messages. The study also found an average of 31,000 phishing attacks per day, with 68% identified as text-based Business Email Compromise (BEC). The analysis looked at threads delivered through email, mobile, and browser channels for the 12-month period from Q4 2022 to Q3 2023.

Sources:
Slashnext.com