Axios Event: Policymakers explain the need for strong cyber defense in the age of AI

WASHINGTON – Cyberattacks are evolving and government and private sector resources need to keep up, speakers said at an Axios event.

Why it matters: AI is rapidly changing the cybersecurity landscape, allowing for more advanced attacks.

Axios' Sam Sabin spoke with Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) and CHAOS chief strategy officer and former U.S. Rep. Will Hurd (R-Texas) at the June 26 event, sponsored by Visa.

Driving the news: The U.S. attack on Iran is "probably the most consequential offensive military attack" the U.S. has conducted since American soldiers killed al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in 2011, Swalwell said. He added a warning that the recent Iranian bombing could potentially spur future cyberattacks.

What they're saying: "It certainly should be a shields-up moment for CISA to project out to the cyber community; we haven't seen that," Swalwell said, noting that CISA led a shields-up effort following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

• "We're not seeing that right now. I don't know if that is an intentional decision, or if it's because there's just a lack of resources and a lack of Senate-confirmed individuals across our cybersecurity resources."
• "After China and Russia, [Iran is] the next most capable and willing nation-state actor, so that worries me very much."

State of play: Job cuts and upheaval at CISA have raised concerns in the cybersecurity community about the agency's path forward in fending off more advanced cyber threats.

• When it comes to funding cuts, the lack of a Senate-confirmed director and winding down the CISA advisory council, "I don't think that makes us more safe as AI allows and enables more and more attacks at less and less of a cost," Swalwell said.

The bottom line: The threat landscape is growing in tandem with AI.

• "You've seen a 4,000% increase in phishing attacks since ChatGPT came in," Hurd said.
• "So are you using AI in your defense because the attackers are getting even better? And that would be one of the things that I would be asking if I was still on Oversight and Appropriations [committees] and things like that."

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In a View From the Top conversation, Michael Jabbara, Visa senior vice president of payment ecosystem risk and control, explained how escalating cybercrime is imposing costs on consumers and businesses.

• "If we think about fraud and cybercrime and the total amount of expense it has imposed on the regular economy, it's estimated by the end of this year, that number is going to be 11 and a half trillion dollars," Jabbara said.