Security Magazine logo
search
cart
facebook twitter linkedin youtube
  • Sign In
  • Create Account
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
Security Magazine logo
  • NEWS
    • Security Newswire
    • Technologies & Solutions
  • MANAGEMENT
    • Leadership Management
    • Enterprise Services
    • Security Education & Training
    • Logical Security
    • Security & Business Resilience
    • Profiles in Excellence
  • PHYSICAL
    • Access Management
    • Fire & Life Safety
    • Identity Management
    • Physical Security
    • Video Surveillance
    • Case Studies (Physical)
  • CYBER
    • Cybersecurity News
    • More
  • BLOG
  • COLUMNS
    • Career Intelligence
    • Cyber Tactics
    • Cybersecurity Education & Training
    • Leadership & Management
    • Security Talk
  • EXCLUSIVES
    • Annual Guarding Report
    • Most Influential People in Security
    • The Security Benchmark Report
    • Top Guard and Security Officer Companies
    • Top Cybersecurity Leaders
    • Women in Security
  • SECTORS
    • Arenas / Stadiums / Leagues / Entertainment
    • Banking/Finance/Insurance
    • Construction, Real Estate, Property Management
    • Education: K-12
    • Education: University
    • Government: Federal, State and Local
    • Hospitality & Casinos
    • Hospitals & Medical Centers
    • Infrastructure:Electric,Gas & Water
    • Ports: Sea, Land, & Air
    • Retail/Restaurants/Convenience
    • Transportation/Logistics/Supply Chain/Distribution/ Warehousing
  • EVENTS
    • Industry Events
    • Webinars
    • Solutions by Sector
    • Security 500 Conference
  • MEDIA
    • Interactive Spotlight
    • Photo Galleries
    • Podcasts
    • Polls
    • Videos
      • Cybersecurity & Geopolitical Discussion
      • Ask Me Anything (AMA) Series
  • MORE
    • Call for Entries
    • Classifieds & Job Listings
    • Newsletter
    • Sponsor Insights
    • Store
    • White Papers
  • EMAG
    • eMagazine
    • This Month's Content
    • Advertise
  • SIGN UP!
CybersecuritySecurity NewswireCybersecurity News

AI-powered, automated attacks have reached record numbers

By Jordyn Alger, Managing Editor
Purple laptop

Mithun V via Unsplash

April 29, 2025

Research from Fortinet FortiGuard Labs reveals a record rise in AI-powered, automated attacks, with 36,000 scans per second to pick out targets early. This represents a 16.7% year-over-year (YoY) increase. This is facilitated by the darknet’s cybercrime-as-a-service ecosystem, allowing initial access, exploit kits, and large credential dumps. 

According to the research, exploit kits saw more than 40,000 new CVEs in 2024, representing a 39% increase. Furthermore, the analyzed credential dumps included more 100 billion records. There was also a 500% YoY rise in logs provided by infostealing malware, amounting to 1.7 billion credential records shared. Underground forums saw a 42% YoY increase in compromised records shared. 

The report asserts that AI tools such as FraudGPT and BlackmailerV3 make cyberattacks (such as phishing) more effective and challenging to detect. Ms. Kris Bondi, CEO and Co-Founder of Mimoto, comments, “The rise of AI, combined with automation and cybercrime-as-a-service (CaaS), is increasing the sophistication, speed, and ultimately, the success of attacks. The biggest risk AI brings to businesses is the ability for cybercrime to scale quickly. Just like any other business, AI enables the ability to automate and perform more functions faster. For cyber attackers, this means the ability to launch more attacks with the same resources. Brute force attacks are faster as is the ability to experiment with different AI generated attacks simultaneously. Other AI risks to business include the relatively new phenomenon of sophisticated attack tools now being available to unsophisticated bad actors and, of course, the use of deepfakes, which continue to improve.

“Cybersecurity strategists with hacking expertise are skilled at staying in step with the most innovative attack methods. Having said all of this, organizations do need to be concerned. If they focus solely on keeping attackers out, they will fail. To feel comfortable, they need to have a security posture that also addresses bad actors that have already gotten into their systems.”

KEYWORDS: artificial intelligence (AI) Artificial Intelligence (AI) Security cyberattack threat landscape

Share This Story

Looking for a reprint of this article?
From high-res PDFs to custom plaques, order your copy today!

Jordynalger

Jordyn Alger is the managing editor for Security magazine. Alger writes for topics such as physical security and cyber security and publishes online news stories about leaders in the security industry. She is also responsible for multimedia content and social media posts. Alger graduated in 2021 with a BA in English – Specialization in Writing from the University of Michigan. Image courtesy of Alger

Recommended Content

JOIN TODAY
To unlock your recommendations.

Already have an account? Sign In

  • Cyber tech background

    Security’s Top Cybersecurity Leaders 2026

    Security magazine’s Top Cybersecurity Leaders 2026 award...
    Security Leadership and Management
  • Iintegration and use of emerging tools

    Future Proof Your Security Career with AI Skills

    AI’s evolution demands security leaders master...
    Columns
    By: Jerry J. Brennan and Joanne R. Pollock
  • The 2025 Security Benchmark Report

    The 2025 Security Benchmark Report

    The 2025 Security Benchmark Report surveys enterprise...
    The Security Benchmark Report
    By: Rachelle Blair-Frasier
Manage My Account
  • Security Newsletter
  • eMagazine Subscriptions
  • Manage My Preferences
  • Online Registration
  • Mobile App
  • Subscription Customer Service

More Videos

Sponsored Content

Sponsored Content is a special paid section where industry companies provide high quality, objective, non-commercial content around topics of interest to the Security audience. All Sponsored Content is supplied by the advertising company and any opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and not necessarily reflect the views of Security or its parent company, BNP Media. Interested in participating in our Sponsored Content section? Contact your local rep!

close
  • Northland Controls sponsored content
    Sponsored byNorthland Controls

    The Execution Gap: Why Great Security Design Doesn't Always Deliver Great Security

Popular Stories

security

6 Crisis Response Best Practices (That Actually Hold Up When Things go Sideways)

Photograph of apartment complex patios

Enhancing Residential Building Security

Blurry photo of people moving through the mall

Violence Remains Top Concern for Retailers

5 Minutes with Johnson

Can Organizations Trust Their Own AI?

Handcuffs and cash

Mass Kidnapping Increased 154% from 2020 to 2025

Kaseware sponsored webinar
Schneider Electric sponsored webinar

Events

August 25, 2026

Critical Infrastructure Security Is National Security: Protecting Essential Operations in an Era of Escalating Risk

LIVE: August 25, 2026 at 2 PM EDT Learn why critical infrastructure security has become a national security imperative, and the strategies organizations can adopt to improve visibility, collaboration, and response across their security operations.

August 27, 2026

Leveraging AI & Mobility to Advance Your Security Domain

LIVE: August 27, 2026 at 2 PM EDT Explore how AI-driven cloud security solutions can elevate your security domain enhancing threat detection, streamlining operations, and delivering the resilience modern organizations demand.

View All Submit An Event

Products

Security Culture: A How-to Guide for Improving Security Culture and Dealing with People Risk in Your Organisation

Security Culture: A How-to Guide for Improving Security Culture and Dealing with People Risk in Your Organisation

See More Products


Alertmedia sponsored webinar

Related Articles

  • smartphone2-900px.jpg

    Record Numbers of Americans Own Smartphones

    See More
  • Computer

    Ransomware incidents reached record levels in 2024

    See More
  • Identity Fraud in the UK Reached Record Levels in 2017

    See More

Related Products

See More Products
  • The Database Hacker's Handboo

See More Products
×

Sign-up to receive top management & result-driven techniques in the industry.

Join over 20,000+ industry leaders who receive our premium content.

SIGN UP TODAY!
  • RESOURCES
    • Advertise
    • Contact Us
    • Store
    • Want More
  • SIGN UP TODAY
    • Create Account
    • eMagazine
    • Newsletter
    • Customer Service
    • Manage Preferences
  • SERVICES
    • Marketing Services
    • Reprints
    • Market Research
    • List Rental
    • Survey/Respondent Access
  • STAY CONNECTED
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • YouTube
    • X (Twitter)
  • PRIVACY
    • PRIVACY POLICY
    • TERMS & CONDITIONS
    • DO NOT SELL MY PERSONAL INFORMATION
    • PRIVACY REQUEST
    • ACCESSIBILITY

Copyright ©2026. All Rights Reserved BNP Media, Inc. and BNP Media II, LLC.

Design, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing