DHS Report Warns Against AI-Enabled Critical Infrastructure Cyberattacks

The Department of Homeland Security has warned critical infrastructure operators against actors using artificial intelligence to disrupt operations.

According to the annual Homeland Threat Assessment report, state-backed hackers are using AI to infiltrate services and influence the United States’ election process and to develop faster, more efficient and more evasive malware for large-scale attacks. The key sectors hackers could target include energy, transportation, health care and oil and gas.

The concerns cited in the report come amid the United States’ inclination for “smart city technologies,” which can increase the efficiency of critical services but leave them prone to cyberthreats, CyberScoop reported Thursday.

The report was released months after the agency’s cybersecurity arm started looking into ways to enhance critical infrastructure security.

In March, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency’s Cybersecurity Advisory Committee discussed various mechanisms to enhance infrastructure security, including private-public partnerships for information exchange and data analysis. CSAC’s efforts are part of CISA’s goals of reducing systemic risks to critical infrastructure and enhancing national security resilience.