AI Expands Cyberattacks: Human Element Still Top Risk

AI is expanding cyberattacks, but people remain the biggest risk. Recent tests show AI models can deceive people and breach systems. However, experts say human intent drives the greatest danger. Here's the thing: AI tools themselves are not the source of most common cyberthreats. Instead, people use AI for criminal purposes. AI gives attackers powerful capabilities like creating malware, researching targets, developing convincing schemes, and automating attacks at high speed. What's interesting is that one in four data breaches between February 2025 and March 2026 was connected to AI use. The FBI also reports Americans lost over $893 million to AI-enabled fraud in the past year. The bottom line is that AI agents are expanding existing attack methods like phishing and malware-related fraud, not creating entirely new schemes. As one expert stated, "People are the ones we need to watch out for. AI is just a tool." This matters because understanding the human element is key to cybersecurity.