The UK’s National Cyber Security Centre warned that critical infrastructure should prepare for a ransomware attack involving AI-powered malware by 2028. It said hostile actors’ use of AI is “highly likely” to increase the scale and efficiency of attacks over the next two years; it did not say such an attack had occurred.
NCSC chief Richard Horne said the risk comes from long-tolerated vulnerabilities becoming easier to find and exploit, rather than AI creating new attack methods. The warning follows a government announcement of £60 million for the first phase of a national Cyber Shield and £70 million for a centre to identify weaknesses in critical infrastructure.
