Artificial intelligence is speeding up timelines for cyber attacks, a new report has found, creating what the authors call a widening “cybersecurity speed gap” between bad actors and defense efforts.
The report from Booz Allen Hamilton, published this month, shows that cyber criminals are now moving from initial access to broader system compromise in less than 30 minutes on average — and sometimes in seconds. And attackers are using AI as a collaborator in their speedier attacks. For example, AI is helping cyber criminals quickly create realistic phishing emails, research multiple targets in minutes and write malicious code even if they lack coding skills.
Read more…
Source: Government Technology News
Sign up for the Cyber Security Review Newsletter
The latest cyber security news and insights delivered right to your inbox
Related:
- Ransomware payments drop to record low, even as attacks surge
February 27, 2026
Ransomware groups have never been this active, but have also never extorted this little money, new research has claimed. Market analysts Chainalysis found the number of ransomware incidents in 2025 rose by 50% compared to the previous year, earning criminals $820 million – although this number may still rise as more incidents are attributed to ransomware ...
- New AirSnitch attack bypasses Wi-Fi encryption in homes, offices, and enterprises
February 26, 2026
It’s hard to overstate the role that Wi-Fi plays in virtually every facet of life. The organization that shepherds the wireless protocol says that more than 48 billion Wi-Fi-enabled devices have shipped since it debuted in the late 1990s. New research shows that behaviors that occur at the very lowest levels of the network stack make ...
- Conduent data breach gets bigger, more than 25 million people across the US are now affected
February 26, 2026
A ransomware attack that caused a massive data breach for one of the largest government contractors in the U.S. keeps expanding. In early February, it was reported that 10 million people were impacted by the Conduent breach a year after it was discovered. Now though, it’s been revealed that the breach may affect more than 25 ...
- North Korea’s Lazarus Group targets healthcare orgs with Medusa ransomware
February 24, 2026
North Korea’s Lazarus Group appears to have added another tool to its kit. It has begun using Medusa ransomware in extortion attacks targeting at least one US healthcare organization and an unnamed victim in the Middle East, according to Symantec and Carbon Black threat hunters. The US healthcare attempt failed, while the Middle East organization was ...
- Fake Zoom meeting “update” silently installs surveillance software
February 24, 2026
A fake Zoom meeting website is silently pushing surveillance software onto Windows machines. Visitors land on a convincing imitation of a Zoom video call. Moments later, an automatic “Update Available” countdown downloads a malicious installer—without asking for permission. The software being installed is a covert build of Teramind, a commercial monitoring tool companies use to record ...
- Australia: Cyber attack takes major chicken processor Hazeldenes offline leaving businesses without meat
February 23, 2026
A cyber attack at major chicken meat processor Hazeldenes in central Victoria has led it to shutdown its wi-fi system on site, and a shortage of chicken at pubs and butchers across the state. Retail and industry have told the ABC that the chicken meat processor has been unable to fill some orders because it cannot ...