From identity theft to sophisticated malware attacks, cyber criminals keep coming up with new scam methods.

Widely-available generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools have now added a new layer of complexity to the cybersecurity landscape. Staying on top of your online security is more important than ever.

The rise of dark LLMs

One of the most sinister adaptations of current AI is the creation of "dark LLMs" (large language models).

These uncensored versions of everyday AI systems like ChatGPT are re-engineered for criminal activities. They operate without ethical constraints, and with alarming precision and speed.

Cyber criminals deploy dark LLMs to automate and enhance phishing campaigns, create sophisticated malware, and generate scam content.

To achieve this, they engage in LLM "jailbreaking" - using prompts to get the model to bypass its built-in safeguards and filters.

For instance, FraudGPT writes malicious code, creates phishing pages, and generates undetectable malware. It offers tools for orchestrating diverse cybercrimes, from credit card fraud to digital impersonation.

FraudGPT is advertised on the dark web and the encrypted messaging app Telegram. Its creator openly markets its capabilities, emphasising the model's criminal focus.

Another version, WormGPT, produces persuasive phishing emails that can trick even vigilant users. Based on the GPT-J model, WormGPT is also used for creating malware and launching "business email compromise" attacks - targeted phishing of specific organisations.

What can we do to protect ourselves?

Despite the looming threats, there's a silver lining. As the challenges have advanced, so have the ways we can defend against them.

AI-based threat detection tools can monitor malware and respond to cyber attacks more effectively. However, humans need to stay in the mix to keep an eye on how these tools respond, what actions they take, and whether there are vulnerabilities to fix.

You may have heard keeping your software up to date is crucial for security. It might feel like a chore, but it really is a critical defence strategy. Updates patch up the vulnerabilities that cyber criminals try to exploit.

Are your files and data regularly backed up? It's not just about preserving files in case of a system failure. Regular backups are a fundamental protection strategy. You can reclaim your digital life without caving to extortion if you're targeted by a ransomware attack - when criminals lock up your data and demand a ransom payment before they release it.

Cyber criminals who send phishing messages can leave clues such as poor grammar, generic greetings, suspicious email addresses, overly urgent requests, or suspicious links. Developing an eye for these signs is as essential as locking your door at night.

If you don't already use strong, unique passwords and multi-factor authentication, it's time to do so. This combination multiplies your security, making it dramatically more difficult for criminals to access your accounts.

What can we expect in the future?

Our online existence will continue to intertwine with emerging technologies like AI. We can expect more sophisticated cyber crime tools to emerge, too.

Malicious AI will enhance phishing, create sophisticated malware and improve data mining for targeted attacks. AI-driven hacking tools will become widely available and customisable.

In response, cybersecurity will have to adapt, too. We can expect automated threat hunting, quantum-resistant encryption, AI tools that help to preserve privacy, stricter regulations and international cooperation.

The role of government regulations

Stricter government regulations on AI are one way to counter these advanced threats. This would involve mandating the ethical development and deployment of AI technologies, ensuring they're equipped with robust security features, and adhere to stringent standards.

In addition to tighter regulations, we also need to improve how organisations respond to cyber incidents, and what mechanisms there are for mandatory reporting and public disclosure.

By requiring companies to promptly report cyber incidents, authorities can act swiftly. They can mobilise resources to address breaches before they escalate into major crises.

This proactive approach can significantly mitigate the impact of cyber attacks, preserving both public trust and corporate integrity.

Further, cyber crime knows no borders. In the era of AI-powered cyber crime, international collaboration is essential. Effective global cooperation can streamline how authorities track and prosecute cyber criminals, creating a unified front against cyber threats.

As AI-powered malware proliferates, we're at a critical junction in the global tech journey - we need to balance innovation (new AI tools, new features, more data) with security and privacy.

Overall, it's best to be proactive about your own online security. That way you can stay one step ahead in the ever-evolving cyber battleground.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

• Bayu Anggorojati is Assistant Professor, Cyber Security Indonesia

McCoy, an editorial consultant at The Tablet, says the depth of the priestly role is beyond mere preaching.

"To say that AI will replace priests suggests a very truncated, post-reformation and secularist view of what priests are and what they're for, implying that their fundamental role is preaching.

"The suggestion that AI could replace priests overlooks their sacramental role, not just in administering sacraments but being themselves a sacrament" McCoy stated.

UK Government report

It was a recent UK Government report that suggested this about AI. It sparked debates within the clergy community.

The UK's Department for Education's report "The Impact of AI on UK Jobs and Training" analysed the potential impact of AI systems on various job sectors.

On a list of 365 professions most susceptible to being replaced by AI algorithms, it positioned clergy at number 13.

The report assessed telephone salespeople as the most at risk, followed by solicitors and psychologists.

Clergy already using ChatGPT

However, there are already some real-world examples of AI clergy in action.

In June, 300 people attended an AI-powered church ceremony in Germany, with the sermon written by AI and delivered by computer-generated avatars on a screen.

Jonas Simmerlein, a theologian and philosopher at the University of Vienna, said about 98 percent of the sermon came from the chatbot's own writing.

Vicars and rabbis have readily admitted to using ChatGPT to help them write sermons.

Conversely, John McManus, head of media communications at Jesuits in Britain (a website), emphasised the irreplaceable human aspect of the priesthood.

"What strikes me is that there is no comparison between the spiritual services provided by a priest and what AI can replicate.

"Priests offer a face-to-face interaction that AI can't do. It's programmed.

"Human beings are not programmable creatures. They have souls.

"An AI programme can never hope to replace the spiritual services and empathy given by priests. Priesthood has a sacramental side."

Sources

The Tablet

The Telegraph

CathNews New Zealand

Recently, 31-year-old Bloomberg data management professional Tori McCun used ChatGPT to write a eulogy for her father, who passed away, as reported by ABC News.

Although McCun's sisters received a good reaction, they voiced discomfort with using a non-human creature during such a private time, pointing to a larger societal issue.

With over 100 million weekly users as of right now, ChatGPT has seen a rise in popularity, according to OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.

But worries about the generative AI tool's unrestricted internet access continue, prompting fears about identity theft and possible exposure to misleading material.

Efficiency vs. Authenticity

People who use ChatGPT for emotive messaging claim that it relieves some of the burden of coming up with eloquent remarks in critical circumstances.

Even personalized AI solutions have surfaced to help with writing personal letters, such as vows at marriage.

According to research from Israel's Bar-Ilan University, receivers may be less likely to accept AI-generated apologies since they don't think they are as genuine.

This belief about AI's inability to handle sensitive tasks may also apply to other types of messaging, such as funeral eulogies and wedding vows.

According to research co-author Omri Asscher, AI's work is "perceived to be faulty in terms of its moral authenticity."

Some people, like Melissa Buckley from Reading, Pennsylvania, support the usage of ChatGPT despite the criticism by highlighting how the tool's results rely on the user's involvement and effort.

Expert in ethics Andrea Lynch advises customers to customize AI-written drafts with their speech patterns.

She offers eulogy-writing kits along with guidance on using generative AI.

York University Philosophy Professor Alice MacLachlan acknowledges that generative AI like ChatGPT can be helpful for less-fluent writers to better express emotions, but it could be a source of tension between relatives.

Human Traits, Skills Cannot Be Replaced by AI

Renowned leadership speaker Francis J. Kong encourages executives to utilize ChatGPT strategically, highlighting how technology may take the place of tedious activities and free up time for innovative projects.

From his vantage point, AI improves productivity. He argues in his article in the Philippine Star that successful people possess certain traits that AI cannot replicate. Read more

• Quincy Jon is a writer for Tech Tmes

"And a woman, whose heart was divided between spirit and body, came before him," the fake passage reads. "In quiet despair, she asked, 'Lord, I come to you estranged, for my spirit and body are not one. How shall I hope to enter the kingdom of God?'"

"Jesus looked upon her with kindness, replying, 'my child, blessed are those who strive for unity within themselves, for they shall know the deepest truths of my Father's creation,'" the passage continued. "Be not afraid, for in the kingdom of God, there is no man nor woman, as all are one in spirit. The gates of my Father's kingdom will open for those who love and are loved, for God looks not upon the body, but the heart."

Read More

The Australian Medical Association said in its submission to the federal government's discussion paper on safe and responsible AI, seen by the Guardian that Australia lags behind other comparable countries in regulating AI and noted that stronger rules are needed to protect patients and healthcare professionals and to engender trust.

Five hospitals in Perth's South Metropolitan Health Service were advised in May to stop using ChatGPT to write medical records for patients after it was discovered that some staff had been using the large language model for the practice.

Read More

In the few months since then, we have seen Italy ban ChatGTP over privacy concerns, leading technology luminaries calling for a pause on AI systems development, and even prominent researchers saying we should be prepared to launch airstrikes on data centres associated with rogue AI.

The rapid deployment of AI and its potential impacts on human society and economies is now clearly in the spotlight.

What will AI mean for productivity and economic growth? Will it usher in an age of automated luxury for all, or simply intensify existing inequalities? And what does it mean for the role of humans?

Economists have been studying these questions for many years. My colleague Yixiao Zhou and I surveyed their results in 2021, and found we are still a long way from definitive answers.

The big economic picture

Over the past half-century or so, workers around the world have been getting a smaller fraction of their country's total income.

At the same time, growth in productivity - how much output can be produced with a given amount of inputs such as labour and materials - has slowed down. T

his period has also seen huge developments in the creation and implementation of information technologies and automation.

Better technology is supposed to increase productivity.

The apparent failure of the computer revolution to deliver these gains is a puzzle economists call the Solow paradox.

Will AI rescue global productivity from its long slump? And if so, who will reap the gains? Many people are curious about these questions.

While consulting firms have often painted AI as an economic panacea, policymakers are more concerned about potential job losses. Economists, perhaps unsurprisingly, take a more cautious view.

Radical change at a rapid pace

Perhaps the single greatest source of caution is the huge uncertainty around the future trajectory of AI technology.

Compared to previous technological leaps - such as railways, motorised transport and, more recently, the gradual integration of computers into all aspects of our lives - AI can spread much faster.

And it can do this with much lower capital investment.

This is because the application of AI is largely a revolution in software.

Much of the infrastructure it requires, such as computing devices, networks and cloud services, is already in place.

There is no need for the slow process of building out a physical railway or broadband network - you can use ChatGPT and the rapidly proliferating horde of similar software right now from your phone.

It is also relatively cheap to make use of AI, which greatly decreases the barriers to entry.

This links to another major uncertainty around AI: the scope and domain of the impacts.

AI seems likely to radically change the way we do things in many areas, from education and privacy to the structure of global trade.

AI may not just change discrete elements of the economy but rather its broader structure.

Adequate modelling of such complex and radical change would be challenging in the extreme, and nobody has yet done it. Yet without such modelling, economists cannot provide clear statements about likely impacts on the economy overall.

More inequality, weaker institutions

Although economists have different opinions on the impact of AI, there is general agreement among economic studies that AI will increase inequality.

One possible example of this could be a further shift in the advantage from labour to capital, weakening labour institutions along the way. At the same time, it may also reduce tax bases, weakening the government's capacity for redistribution.

Most empirical studies find that AI technology will not reduce overall employment.

However, it is likely to reduce the relative amount of income going to low-skilled labour, which will increase inequality across society.

Moreover, AI-induced productivity growth would cause employment redistribution and trade restructuring, which would tend to further increase inequality both within countries and between them.

As a consequence, controlling the rate at which AI technology is adopted is likely to slow down the pace of societal and economic restructuring.

This will provide a longer window for adjustment between relative losers and beneficiaries.

In the face of the rise of robotics and AI, there is possibility for governments to alleviate income inequality and its negative impacts with policies that aim to reduce inequality of opportunity.

What's left for humans?

The famous economist Jeffrey Sachs once said

What humans can do in the AI era is just to be human beings, because this is what robots or AI cannot do.

But what does that mean, exactly? At least in economic terms?

In traditional economic modelling, humans are often synonymous with "labour", and also being an optimising agent at the same time. If machines can not only perform labour, but also make decisions and even create ideas, what's left for humans?

The rise of AI challenges economists to develop more complex representations of humans and the "economic agents" which inhabit their models.

As American economists David Parkes and Michael Wellman have noted, a world of AI agents may actually behave more like economic theory than the human world does. Compared to humans, AIs "better respect idealised assumptions of rationality than people, interacting through novel rules and incentive systems quite distinct from those tailored for people".

Importantly, having a better concept of what is "human" in economics should also help us think through what new characteristics AI will bring into an economy.

Will AI bring us some kind of fundamentally new production technology, or will it tinker with existing production technologies?

Is AI simply a substitute for labour or human capital, or is it an independent economic agent in the economic system?

Answering these questions is vital for economists - and for understanding how the world will change in the coming years.

• Yingying Lu Research Associate, Centre for Applied Macroeconomic Analysis, Crawford School of Public Policy, and Economic Modeller, CSIRO
• First published in The Conversation. Republished with permission.

While some clergy may believe ChatGPT and other AI tools can write passably competent sermons, there is an evolving consensus that they lack the soul that comes from preaching words written by a human.

According to Hershael York, a pastor in Kentucky, dean of the school of theology and professor of Christian preaching at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, "It lacks a soul - I don't know how else to say it".

For many faith leaders, sermons are meant to be the core of a worship service, and often are their best weekly opportunity to impart theological and moral guidance to their congregation.

Lazy pastors may be tempted to use AI for sermon writing, but as York says, "not the great shepherds, the ones who love preaching, who love their people".

Joshua Franklin, a rabbi in New York, recently delivered a sermon written by ChatGPT to his congregation at the Jewish Center of the Hamptons.

While the congregation applauded the sermon, Franklin stated that AI has yet to develop compassion and love, which are necessary for building community and relationships.

Franklin believes that, while ChatGPT is an excellent tool for drafting various documents and writing assignments, it still has limitations.

He pointed out that the AI system is incapable of understanding spirituality, an essential part of religious teachings, and that this is where rabbis and other spiritual leaders come in.

AI-generated sermons lack connection

Similar experiments were conducted by Rachael Keefe, a pastor of Living Table United Church of Christ in Minneapolis, and Todd Brewer, a New Testament scholar and managing editor of the Christian website Mockingbird.

Both shared AI-generated sermons with their congregation and community, but the response was lukewarm. While the facts were correct, the sermons lacked the deeper connection that comes from a human writer.

Mike Glenn, senior pastor at Brentwood Baptist Church, wrote a blog post in January in response to a joke made by his computer-savvy assistant. Glenn argued that AI could never preach a decent sermon because the gospel is more than just words. It's the evidence of a changed life.

As the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission notes, wise and virtuous pastors will not let new technology deter them from personal immersion in sermon-writing. However, there is a concern that young pastors may become overly reliant on these machines and not see their imperfections.

Sources

AP News

Business Insider