The immediate risk of AI

I want to take some time out of my disaster database build-out to discuss something that's been weighing on me for a while. As someone whos spent a significant amount of professional time in both the tech and finance worlds I feel I have a unique stance on AI. So here goes.

It's groundbreaking.

Really. I use ChatGPT every day for various functions and burn through my paid credits. Its ability to quickly get someone up to speed on a new topic, correct errors, give interesting and reasonable insight is astounding. And... it's getting better every month. New breakthroughs are happening constantly. I can't code (backend) well, and yet I've built feature filled apps that would make experienced developers weak, just by being able to ask the right questions and piece insights together.

The truth is that AI is a boon for productivity. Fearmongers are concerned about skynet type terminators, but its more likely (in the short term) to cut down on business overhead and assist in making world changing breakthroughs in technology, material sciences, medicine, and more.

For those things, I'm honestly excited! Silicon valley heads of industry have been spouting this idea of E/ACC or effective accelerationism. This essentially means that life gets better the more technology improves. They believe that taking the government and societal training wheels off technical improvement will allow technology (and along side it, life itself!) to improve at a much more rapid pace. In many ways, historically that's correct, and it feels like it is now too.

Look what's happened in just the last 30 years! Even more so if you go back further to the start of the industrial revolution.

So yes, I believe that AI has the power and the PROMISE to do something good. Quality of life DOES go up as technology improves, and AI improves technology.

But... Big but...

What inspires and enables good actors can also be used and abused by bad actors. The rules that govern good actors in some countries, are completely ignored and even abused in others. Like piracy and home invaders, the people minding their own business are the ones that get taken advantage of. In the world of anon social networks and cross border finance, the bad actors have nothing to lose.

Cross border finance. We've finally made it to the point of my post. With everything accessible online, bank accounts, credit cards, stocks, bonds, foreign exchange, crypto... The risk/reward of hacking has increased exponentially. Lots and lots of money, with very little downside for the complicit party.

We've SEEN an extremely large increase in both failed and successful hacking attempts over the last two years. AI is just increasing the success rate.

Look at this list of major hacks in the last year. Even the ones that don't have dollar signs next to them affect millions of people with forgone passwords, usernames, email addresses, social security numbers, family names, addresses, credit cards, bank account information, etc. Once those are taken, then a more direct spearfishing attack or brute force attack on financial institutions is usually next in line.

Think your online security is top notch? You rotate passwords or use a password manager? Well those can be hacked too. Some of those major hacks in the link above were middleware between software that could expose a user across multiple platforms 🤷‍♂️. Or how about this exploit that was found last year called my name is keyboard, which can pretend its a bluetooth keyboard and connect to your phone or device in seconds without approval. It then takes full control of your screen and allows the hacker to access your apps, email, pictures, etc. (its since been patched by most major phone makers, but if your running an older android device you may still be at risk).

Crypto hasn't been much better, and although consisting of very promising inflation hedges and finance products, there have already been a few large hacks just in the first month of 2024. That's not even including the personal wallet hacks (or the billions stolen last year)!

The point is that hackers are getting smarter, and AI is helping. The other point is that the good actors are, so far, too slow to respond.

The risks:

• hardware
• software
• proximity
• password security
• home security
• Internet Service Providers

At this point it feels like everything technology is a risk to my money unless I buy a bunch of gold bars and bury them in the back yard. Lets be real, local banks are not developers and software security is not their expertise. It takes every company across the spectrum of hardware, software, financial providers, and ISPs to ensure that my connection to my money is secure. I'm just not feeling like that's the case right now.

So what can we do right now?

Typical internet security stuff is required:

• Use different passwords for different sites
• Use 2 factor authentication (2FA) just not the cell phone text message kind.
• Write your passwords in a notepad and then lock it in a safe.
• Use financial institutions that allow use of something like YubiKey.
• Divide your assets across various financial institutions in case one does get breached.
• Don't download weird shit.
• If possible, use a separate computer for any financial stuff.

Beyond that. I don't know. Take to the comments and let us know what we are missing.