Cybersecurity firm Seqrite has issued a stark warning: 2026 will usher in an era of “cognitive threats”—sophisticated cyberattacks that use artificial intelligence to mimic human behavior with alarming accuracy.
According to Seqrite’s India Cyber Threat Report 2026, prepared by researchers at India’s largest malware analysis facility, these AI-augmented attacks represent a fundamental shift from traditional malware-based threats. The new generation of cyberattacks will combine intelligence with automation, creating threats that can think, adapt, and deceive in ways never seen before.
Hyper-Personalized Phishing Takes Center Stage
The most concerning development involves AI-generated “digital twins” that can replicate contacts’ writing styles, speech patterns, and even video appearances. These sophisticated impersonations will bypass both human intuition and automated security systems, rendering traditional phishing-detection methods obsolete.
The threat extends to mobile banking, where AI-enhanced malware will autonomously fill credentials, circumvent biometric authentication, and execute fraudulent transactions without human involvement.
AI Becomes Both Weapon and Target
State-backed groups and cybercriminal organizations will deploy AI across their attack operations—from discovering vulnerabilities to evolving malware in real time. These adaptive threats can modify their signatures to evade detection and even mimic other hacking groups to mislead investigators.
Perhaps most troubling, AI systems themselves become targets. Attackers will poison training data in critical sectors like healthcare, finance, and industrial control, causing AI models to make dangerous misclassifications. Enterprise AI platforms could be transformed into unwitting tools for data theft.
Defense Requires New Thinking
Seqrite emphasizes that organizations must shift from reactive security to “cognitive resilience.” Key recommendations include implementing AI-driven predictive intelligence, accelerating patch deployment, adopting Zero Trust architecture, validating AI model integrity, and building frameworks that assume systems are already compromised.
As cyber adversaries gain cognitive capabilities, traditional detection-focused security strategies will no longer suffice. Organizations must adopt intelligence-led approaches that can anticipate and outmaneuver these evolving threats.
