Businesses Advised to Strengthen Defence against AI-enabled Fraud

Digital fraud analyst, Oluwole Asalu, has warned that Artificial Intelligence, AI-driven autonomous agents are creating a new generation of cyberattacks proven to be more sophisticated than traditional threats.

Asalu said commercial organisations must take proactive actions to bolster their defences against this emerging threat.

He highlighted the potential for AI agents to plan, reason, and execute complex multi-step tasks. This, he said, included hijacking systems, stealing data, and evading detection with unprecedented speed and precision. 

Asalu who is also the Chief Executive Officer of Quomodo Systems Africa pointed to research from organisations like Anthropic and Palisade Research, which demonstrated that the foundational capabilities for these attacks already exist.

“Unlike traditional cyber threats which rely on human hackers, AI agents can act independently. They can identify targets, adapt their methods based on defenses encountered, and replicate successful attacks at scale, all without fatigue, emotion, or delay.

“This makes them a cheaper, faster, and more efficient tool for malicious actors, leading to a potential surge in ransomware attacks, phishing campaigns, and data breaches,” he said

He recommended a dual-pronged approach to defend against threat, and advised organisations to strengthen their conventional cybersecurity protocols, at the same time build a new layer of defense to anticipate and combat AI-led intrusions.

He revealed that Quomodo Systems Africa has been at the forefront of developing solutions to detect, defend, and outsmart future threats.

“Many still view AI as a business efficiency tool, and not a security risk. But the threats posed by agentic AI demand boardroom attention. It is time to move cybersecurity from the basement to the boardroom,” he said.

On the regulatory front, Asalu called for a comprehensive overhaul of the national cybersecurity framework, emphasising the need for a revamped doctrine that integrates agentic AI considerations, boosts domestic AI research funding and fosters global partnerships.