AI Is Supercharging Phishing: Here’s How to Fight Back

AI has given cybercriminals the ability to operate like Fortune‑500‑scale marketing departments—except their product is account takeover, data theft, and identity fraud.

Phishing continues to be one of the most widespread and effective tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) in today’s cyber threat landscape. It often serves as a gateway to data breaches that can have devastating consequences for organizations and individuals alike. For example, General Dynamics, a leading aerospace and defense contractor, reported in late 2024 that a phishing attack targeting its personnel resulted in threat actors compromising dozens of employee benefits accounts.

By exploiting human psychology and trust, phishing attacks often circumvent technical defenses and pave the way for large-scale cyber incidents. The 2025 Verizon Business Data Breach Investigations Report (PDF) shows that phishing accounted for 16 percent of cybersecurity incidents. Only credential abuse at 22 percent and the exploitation of vulnerabilities at 20 percent ...