North Korea has got its hands on AI - and is testing its ability to commit cyberwarfare

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Dangerous new precedents are being set as North Korea combines AI and hacking

North Korean flag made of binary code
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North Korea has somehow managed to not only get its hands on AI, but also be the first nation to be publicly confirmed by the US to be using AI in cyber warfare, new reports have claimed.

North Korea is well known for its cyber attacks, but this latest innovation in its methods of conducting warfare over the internet is a new level of concern for both nations and businesses across the globe.

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A dangerous development

This latest development was confirmed in a statement given by Anne Neuberger, Deputy National Security advisor, in a press briefing on Wednesday. “We have observed North Korean and other nation-state and criminal actors try to use AI models to accelerate the creation of malicious software and identify systems to exploit.”

As many of us have seen, AI such as ChatGPT or other AI Writer software can be used to drastically increase the speed of mundane processes, but this combination of AI and cyber attacks could be used to create new exploit code at an alarming rate.

There are also fears that North Korea could employ machine learning to train and develop its cyber intelligence, allowing the regime to increase not only the volume of its attack but also the quality. 

With sanctions from around the world, North Korea has had to turn to other methods of generating much needed income, and cyber attacks have become a highly lucrative means of generating cash.

Luckily for the rest of the world, AI is also being used as a defensive tool to protect against cyber attacks. Nueberger stated that competitions such as the DARPA AI Cyber Challenge are being used “to incentivize and jumpstart defensive hackers using AI to build cybersecurity defenses.”

Via VentureBeat

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Benedict Collins
Benedict Collins
Senior Writer, Security

Benedict is a Senior Security Writer at TechRadar Pro, where he has specialized in covering the intersection of geopolitics, cyber-warfare, and business security.

Benedict provides detailed analysis on state-sponsored threat actors, APT groups, and the protection of critical national infrastructure, with his reporting bridging the gap between technical threat intelligence and B2B security strategy.

Benedict holds an MA (Distinction) in Security, Intelligence, and Diplomacy from the University of Buckingham Centre for Security and Intelligence Studies (BUCSIS), with his specialization providing him with a robust academic framework for deconstructing complex international conflicts and intelligence operations, and the ability to translate intricate security data into actionable insights.