Artificial intelligence technology is attracting more and more attention every day due to the advanced capabilities it provides. Criminals who use this power for their own purposes are developing new methods that are becoming increasingly difficult to understand. Criminals who create voices and videos imitating country or company executives, fake social media profiles and personalized messages are causing financial and moral damage to millions of institutions. According to Helmut Reisinger, CEO of Palo Alto Networks EMEA and LATAM, this “Big Bang” brought about by artificial intelligence (AI) could blind companies.

AI has been delivering significant productivity gains for over a decade now. However, in the last 18 months, we have witnessed hyper-acceleration of the technology due to the widespread adoption of generative AI. According to a McKinsey study, it is estimated that by the end of 2023, a quarter of C-Level executives worldwide will be using generative AI tools for work. Approximately 60 percent of IT workers worldwide are already using AI.

While AI provides significant benefits for all organizations, the rapid development of productive AI technologies is also creating a powerful and dynamic toolbox for cybercriminals to work with when launching attacks. This allows malicious actors to become more sophisticated, persistent, and faster. One global security company alone detects 2.3 million new and unique threats every day.

As AI continues to fuel the rapidly evolving threat landscape, protecting organizations will require robust, comprehensive, and targeted responses, Reisinger said, which will require the best cybersecurity platforms, strong industry partnerships, and close collaboration with lawmakers and governments.