Frontier AI is ending 'security by apathy' as automated hacking scales, researcher warns

davidmanheim · x · 2026-08-20

Risk researcher David Manheim argues the digital world is deeply insecure across most dimensions — email servers, connected devices, even bank accounts — but stayed safe only because attacking was costly and most people weren't targets. FBI data shows cybercrime losses growing 40% yearly, approaching $20B. Low-cost LLMs are upending that balance: hacking and scams are being automated, and Q3 2025 saw the first AI-powered ransomware and agentic AI attacks. He expects strong offense-dominance in the short term.

Related event: Researcher Warns Frontier AI Is Lowering the Bar for Hackers(2 posts)→

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