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UAE Deploys AI to Counter Surge in AI-Powered Cyberattacks

The United Arab Emirates is developing its own artificial intelligence defenses to combat a significant increase in AI-assisted cyberattacks, which have quadrupled since February.

The UAE's Cyber Security Council reported three waves of AI-driven attacks this year, targeting sectors like aviation, energy, and education. Hackers are leveraging AI to rapidly generate phishing emails, identify software vulnerabilities, and create malicious programs, drastically reducing the time between a vulnerability's discovery and its exploitation from days to hours. These attacks, originating from approximately 20 countries and over 40 organizations, have escalated significantly since the onset of regional conflicts in February.

Iranian-linked groups are noted for using AI across various stages of cyberattacks, from target selection to code generation and deceptive messaging. The U.S. Justice Department has charged 17 Iranians for a campaign involving the theft of research and designs from American universities and companies. Cybersecurity firms operating in the Gulf have observed a rise in AI-assisted scams, password theft, and fake websites, with critical infrastructure like telecoms, energy, and government services being prime targets.

In response, the UAE launched the "Cyber Factory" initiative in May, a program aimed at designing and building indigenous AI security systems. This initiative, a collaboration between the Cyber Security Council and CPX Holding, seeks to enhance the speed and precision of threat detection and response, ensuring national cyber sovereignty. The goal is to match the speed and scale of automated attacks with equally advanced defensive technologies, moving towards a future of machine-to-machine cyber conflict.

AI-samenvatting op basis van de bron.