Nothing on the Internet Is Secure Anymore

AI is fundamentally changing the economics and speed of cyberattacks. What was once a slow, resource-intensive cat-and-mouse game between attackers and defenders has become an asymmetric race that defenders are rapidly losing.

Generative AI tools now allow even low-skill actors to write adaptive malware, automate sophisticated phishing and espionage campaigns, and exploit known vulnerabilities in record time. The window between a vulnerability being disclosed and actively exploited has collapsed from hundreds of days to as little as 44 days in some cases. Meanwhile, the foundational insecurity of the internet — built on rushed code, reactive patching, and legacy systems — remains largely unchanged.

The result is a widening gap: powerful defensive AI capabilities exist but are often restricted to governments and select partners, while offensive tools spread rapidly through open-source models. Critical sectors like banking, healthcare, and infrastructure are especially exposed.

This Ledger Entry expands how readers think about AI and digital infrastructure by showing that generative AI tools are not only accelerating cyberattacks but fundamentally changing the economics and speed of hacking — making traditional perimeter defenses, patching cycles, and legacy systems dangerously inadequate in an era where even low-skill actors can deploy sophisticated, adaptive threats at scale.