4 ways to outsmart cybercriminals

"Cybercrime is a serious threat to the global economy, destroying livelihoods, sowing distrust, and undermining growth. One forecast has it costing more than $15 trillion annually by the end of the decade. If so, only the GDPs of the U.S. and China are bigger. There's cause for hope, though. As cyberthreats evolve, innovation is meeting the challenge. New solutions are leveraging AI, real-time threat intelligence, collaborative networks, and advanced authentication technologies."

"Consider the figures. Malicious bots may now account for a third of internet traffic. AI-generated phishing attacks have multiplied tenfold in just a year, and a quarter of cryptocurrency transactions are due to criminal activity. In some parts of the world entire cities have been drawn into the scamming industry, while a black market in stolen data and hacking tools is tightening its hold on the dark web."

"1. Hyperconnectivity: More ways in More connected devices, interdependent systems, and endpoints mean a more exposed digital ecosystem. In the U.S., the number of cyber-vulnerabilities catalogued in the National Institute of Standards and Technology database increases yearly, currently standing at over 315,000. Due to a backlog, over 25,000 of those vulnerabilities currently await processing. 2. Hostile agents: Autonomous threats AI is rapidly scaling cybercrime by enhancing attacks with increasing sophistication."

Cybercrime imposes massive economic damage, with projections exceeding $15 trillion annually by decade's end. Malicious bots may account for a third of internet traffic, AI-generated phishing has increased tenfold, and a quarter of cryptocurrency transactions are criminal. A black market in stolen data and hacking tools expands on the dark web. Four drivers fuel the surge: hyperconnectivity and growing device endpoints; AI-enabled autonomous threats including deepfakes; the democratization of cybercrime through readily available tools and services; and a backlog of thousands of catalogued vulnerabilities awaiting remediation. Emerging defenses leverage AI, real-time intelligence, collaboration, and stronger authentication.

Read at Fast Company