Adversaries Leverage AI for Vulnerability Exploitation, Augmented Operations, and Initial Access


Since our February 2026 report on AI-related threat activity, Google Threat Intelligence Group (GTIG) has continued to track a maturing transition from nascent AI-enabled operations to the industrial-scale application of generative models within adversarial workflows. This report, based on insights derived from Mandiant incident response engagements, Gemini, and GTIG’s proactive research, highlights the dual nature of the current threat environment where AI serves as both a sophisticated engine for adversary operations and a high-value target for attacks. We explore the following developments: Vulnerability Discovery and Exploit Generation; AI-Augmented Development for Defense Evasion; Autonomous Malware Operations; AI-Augmented Research and IO: Obfuscated LLM Access; Supply Chain Attacks.

Read more…
Source: Google Threat Intelligence Group


Sign up for the Cyber Security Review Newsletter
The latest cyber security news and insights delivered right to your inbox


Related:

  • CISA Alert (AA21-055A): Exploitation of Accellion File Transfer Appliance

    February 24, 2021

    This joint advisory is the result of a collaborative effort by the cybersecurity authorities of Australia, This activity has impacted organizations globally, including those in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, the ...

  • APT32 state hackers target human rights defenders with spyware

    February 23, 2021

    Vietnam-backed hacking group APT32 has coordinated several spyware attacks targeting Vietnamese human rights defenders (HRDs) between February 2018 and November 2020. The state hackers also pointed their attacks at a nonprofit (NPO) human rights organization from Vietnam, as Amnesty International’s Security Lab revealed (full report here). The spyware used by the APT32 hackers allowed them to read ...

  • Airplane maker Bombardier data posted on ransomware leak site following FTA hack

    February 23, 2021

    Canadian airplane manufacturer Bombardier has disclosed today a security breach after some of its data was published on a dark web portal operated by the Clop ransomware gang. “An initial investigation revealed that an unauthorized party accessed and extracted data by exploiting a vulnerability affecting a third-party file-transfer application, which was running on purpose-built servers isolated ...

  • Finnish IT Giant Hit with Ransomware Cyberattack

    February 23, 2021

    Norwegian business journal E24 reported the attack on Espoo, Finland-based TietoEVRY on Tuesday, claiming to have spoken with Geir Remman, a communications director at the company. Remman acknowledged technical problems with several services that TietoEVRY provides to 25 customers, which are “due to a ransom attack,” according to the report. Remman told E24 that the company ...

  • Accellion FTA Zero-Day Attacks Show Ties to Clop Ransomware, FIN11

    February 22, 2021

    Researchers have identified a set of threat actors (dubbed UNC2546 and UNC2582) with connections to the FIN11 and the Clop ransomware gang as the cybercriminal group behind the global zero-day attacks on users of the Accellion legacy File Transfer Appliance product. Multiple Accellion FTA customers, including the Jones Day Law Firm, Kroger and Singtel, have all ...

  • TDoS Attacks Take Aim at Emergency First-Responder Services

    February 22, 2021

    Telephony denial-of-service (TDoS) attacks, which affect the availability and readiness of call centers, are hitting critical first-responder facilities, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). A TDoS attack is designed to prevent incoming and outgoing calls, by flooding a target with junk calls. “The objective is to keep the distraction calls active for as long as ...