Generative AI fraud and impersonation attacks 2026:
Ransomware attacks are no longer the top concern for CEOs; instead, AI-related risks and fraud have taken the lead, according to a World Economic Forum (WEF) report. Meanwhile, consumers are increasingly worried about identity theft, with 68% citing it as their primary concern, a report by Experian reveals.
The growing use of generative AI tools is paving the way for cybercriminals to accelerate their malicious activities against both businesses and individuals, a recent WEF report shows. Cybersecurity experts predict that this year, the number of scams and impersonation attacks will grow significantly, and urge users to remain vigilant.
The WEF report reveals that 73% of surveyed CEOs, or someone in their professional or home network, had been affected by cyber-enabled fraud in 2025. 62% of respondents reported witnessing phishing, vishing (voice phishing), or smishing (SMS phishing) attacks, while 37% encountered invoice or payment fraud, and 32% reported identity theft.
The survey shows that AI vulnerabilities and cyber-enabled fraud are the top concerns of CEOs, shifting focus from ransomware, which had been their primary concern just a year ago.
According to Konstantin Levinzon, co-founder of Planet VPN, a free virtual private network (VPN) provider, AI-related risks and fraud are becoming a major threat to consumers as well.
Recent data from the US Federal Trade Commission reveals that in 2024, consumers reported $12.5 billion in losses due to fraud, a 25% year over year increase.
Konstantin Levinzon predicts that this number could grow even more in 2026 due to the usage of AI.
“As businesses face challenges in protecting their networks, individual consumers are also seeing an increase in personal cybersecurity risks. Recent developments in generative AI are lowering the barriers to executing all kinds of attacks, while at the same time increasing their sophistication and making them appear more credible,” he says.
Similarly, a recent report from Experian, a consumer credit reporting company, highlights that consumers are increasingly concerned about identity theft, with 68% identifying it as their top worry, followed by stolen credit card data at 61%. This growing unease underscores the increasing vulnerability that many feel in the face of evolving threats, as the rise of AI in cybercrime continues to expand the scope and scale of these risks.
According to the WEF, the rise of generative AI especially amplifies digital safety risks for certain groups like children and women, who are increasingly targeted by impersonation and synthetic image abuse.
Levinzon points out that with the help of AI, scammers can translate and localize their social engineering scams and make impersonations much more authentic and convincing, and even launch hyper-realistic deepfake attacks.
“Criminal networks that previously focused on a limited range of languages can now target populations all over the world with local languages. This expansion also speeds up the spread of AI-driven disinformation and makes it harder for platforms and regulators to protect users from coordinated manipulation,” he says.
The WEF report highlights that one of the biggest issues for businesses remains cybersecurity shortages. 33% of firms in Europe and Central Asia, along with 35% in North America, say they need better experts and advanced skills. In Latin America and African countries, as many as up to 70% of companies face cybersecurity skill shortages.
Levinzon highlights that the latest AI tools can significantly help to overcome shortages by replacing some of the work done by humans. However, if implemented poorly, AI can introduce new risks of misconfiguration, biased decision‑making, over‑reliance on automation, and susceptibility to adversarial manipulation.
“The most effective remedy for both direct customers and businesses is education. Well-informed employees and users are less likely to fall for scams, more likely to use unique passwords, and enable multi-factor authentication. Additionally, using a VPN should be a part of daily internet hygiene,” Levinzon concludes.
