Hacked AI email accounts can help attackers steal $250,000 through CEO fraud: Report

Hacked artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled email accounts can accelerate cyberattacks. A new report from Barracuda’s Red Team says attackers who gain access to AI-enabled business email accounts can use built-in AI assistants to identify sensitive information, impersonate executives and redirect payments. In a controlled proof-of-concept, researchers demonstrated how a compromised employee account could escalate into CEO fraud and lead to the theft of $247,500 (nearly $250,000) through a fraudulent wire transfer.
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The report says the risk does not stem from AI creating new privileges, but from helping attackers use the permissions they already have more quickly.