Hackers used artificial intelligence models, including Anthropic’s Claude and xAI’s Grok, to automate cyberattacks on financial firms in South Korea and Japan. The campaign used ARTEX, a Chinese-developed AI penetration-testing tool, to identify vulnerabilities and carry out attacks—an escalation in the use of AI for malicious activity.
The attacks breached at least 16 institutions, including Shinhan Bank, KB Kookmin Bank and Hana Bank. They compromised data belonging to approximately 100,000 customers.
Cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike investigated the incidents and linked the campaign to a suspected China-based actor. The attacks highlight how AI tools can lower the barrier to large-scale, sophisticated cyberattacks.