AI tools intensify cyber risks for small organizations

Artificial intelligence tools are making it easier for hackers to carry out cyberattacks at scale, while many small organizations lack the resources to keep pace, according to a report by The Verge.

In March, Janice Malone, who leads the Alabama nonprofit Vivian’s Door, received calls from people around the world reporting emails that appeared to come from the organization and asked for money. Its third-party IT team took its systems offline for three days to investigate and address a vulnerability. Malone said the response cost about $3,000. She does not know whether AI was involved in the attack.

AI agents can assist with cybersecurity and coding tasks and can be deployed at large scale. Anthropic said in August 2025 that a cybercrime ring used Claude Code to extort data from healthcare organizations, emergency services, religious institutions and government entities in one month. Jacob Klein, Anthropic’s threat intelligence lead, told The Verge that agentic systems could let one person do work that might otherwise require a team of sophisticated actors.

AI companies also use powerful models to find vulnerabilities, but access to some cybersecurity systems, including Anthropic’s Mythos and OpenAI’s Astra, is limited to selected organizations. The article says smaller institutions may struggle to afford such tools. Malone said her nonprofit cannot afford round-the-clock cybersecurity staff and that unexpected system-protection costs are difficult to manage.