Survey: UK Workers Unprepared for AI-Powered Cyberthreats

    A survey of 1,000 people in the UK has shown that employees are unprepared for cyberthreats that use artificial intelligence (AI). Over the past 12 months, 61% of employees have received no training. According to the study, companies lack sufficient knowledge to identify phishing emails, fake audio recordings and deepfake videos.    Twenty-two percent of participants said the organizations where they work had no rules for dealing with phishing emails, fake voice requests and AI-generated fake invoices. Artificial intelligence can write convincing emails with few language errors. Deepfake images and voices can be used to impersonate another person in video calls and voice messages.    Employees aged 18-24 were the least confident. Of these, 39% are worried about falling for AI-generated scams. Young people who grew up in a digital environment previously thought they could identify cyberthreats more easily. However, this advantage has diminished as it has become harder to distinguish AI-generated content from authentic content.    Employees’ confidence in their own knowledge also varies significantly by position. Only 9% of nonmanagerial employees are fully confident that they could identify an AI-generated phishing email. The figure is 48% among company owners and partners and 33% among board members. The results show that rank-and-file employees are less prepared for the risks.    Only 25% of employees who received training said the program specifically addressed AI-powered threats. Thirty percent of participants said the topic was only briefly covered in general cybersecurity training. Overall, 70% of employees either received no training or learned about AI risks only as part of another training course. Experts consider it more appropriate both to provide basic knowledge about AI and to offer separate training tailored to an employee’s role.    The case of former “Fideuram” chairman Paolo Molesini is cited as an example of how much financial loss such attacks can cause. He fell for a convincing phishing attack and transferred more than $100 million (more than 170 million manats) abroad. According to the study’s findings, organizations are not only facing a cybersecurity problem. Employees’ failure to understand the risks created by new technologies is also a serious threat.