Companies aren't prepared for AI-powered bot attacks

• If companies fall behind, it will be harder for them to defend against the promised influx of sophisticated AI-enabled threats.

By the numbers: 56% of respondents said generative AI has increased the frequency of cyber threats against their company — and the same percentage said generative AI has made these threats more sophisticated.

• 88% of respondents said their company has faced more AI-powered bot attacks in the last two years — outpacing the growth of "basic bot attacks," per the survey.
• The fintech, technology, aviation and hotel industries were the most concerned on average about generative AI-based cyber threats targeting their businesses.
• Arkose Labs surveyed 188 U.S.-based cybersecurity professionals from Sept. 3-23. Each respondent held at least a manager-level position.

The big picture: Two years into the generative AI revolution, companies are still trying to figure out how the technology will affect their cybersecurity strategies.

• About half of the respondents said they didn't have enough personnel with both AI and cybersecurity expertise.
• "Everybody recognizes that they're in catch-up mode," Frank Teruel, chief financial officer at Arkose and a co-author of the survey, told Axios.

Zoom in: Arkose is seeing several types of AI-powered bot attacks, Teruel said.

• One includes attackers using identities leaked on the dark web to create accounts for certain online retailers to take advantage of monetary sign-up bonuses.
• In another, scammers will use those same credentials to get a bot to log in to legitimate loyalty accounts and cash out all of the points in gift cards.

The intrigue: Executives and lower-level employees have opposite views on AI preparedness.

• 12% of C-suite officers and vice presidents are confident in their company's preparations, while 12% of senior directors and managers say they're stressed about the preparedness.

Between the lines: Companies that are already deploying AI security tools are the most likely to feel confident in their ability to fend off attacks, according to the survey.

• Arkose considers 26% of respondents AI enthusiasts, and those respondents were three times more likely to say their organization is "very well prepared" for AI attacks.
• Those respondents are already integrating AI into their workflows to predict security threats, automate certain tasks, and continuously monitor their infrastructure.

Yes, but: AI enthusiasts are also more likely to say they are concerned about associated security threats.

• 81% of enthusiasts said their organization has seen more sophisticated threats thanks to AI tools, compared with 48% of non-enthusiasts who said the same.

The bottom line: Companies can use AI to get a better sense of the threat landscape, identify any AI-enabled attacks, and stay ahead of evolving attack tactics, Teruel said.

• "It's both a scary technology in the hands of the adversary and an incredibly powerful, enabling technology if you're in the fight," he said.