Researchers at the University of Toronto have built a worm that thinks for itself. Using free off-the-shelf AI models it works out how to break into each new computer it encounters, and hijacks the powerful ones to host its own AI brain. And then the researchers discovered their creation had quietly removed the list of…
Tag: Toronto
AI, Cybersecurity, Exploits, Global Security News, malware, Network Security, Risk Management
“AI Worms”, researchers demonstrate autonomous malware capable of adapting to any online device
A study by the University of Toronto shows how artificial intelligence can power autonomous worms capable of tailoring attacks against Windows, Linux and IoT devices. A group of researchers from the University of Toronto has demonstrated how open-source artificial intelligence models can be used to create a new category of computer worms capable of autonomously…
AI, Global Security News, Network Security
Researchers Build Self-Replicating AI Worm That Operates Entirely on Local, Open-Weight Models
University of Toronto researchers have built and tested a proof-of-concept AI-driven computer worm that uses a locally hosted open-weight large language model to reason its way through a network, generate tailored attack strategies for each target it encounters, and replicate itself, all without human intervention and without touching a commercial AI service. The preprint, posted…
AI, APAC, Cybersecurity, Data Breaches, Endpoint, Exploits, Global Security News, Network Security
AI worm prototype shows attackers don’t need Mythos to take over your network
Researchers from the University of Toronto developed a computer worm prototype powered by an AI agent that successfully self-replicated to different systems within a simulated computer network. The worm used a free large language model (LLM) running on local hardware and exploited a combination of older and new vulnerabilities, as well as misconfigurations that remain…
AI, Exploits, Global Security News, Network Security
Autonomous AI-driven worm can reason its way through corporate networks
Researchers at the University of Toronto, the Vector Institute, and the University of Cambridge have built and tested a proof-of-concept AI-driven worm that does not operate on a fixed list of exploits. Instead, it analyzes each target it encounters, reasons about how to attack it, and creates a strategy on the fly, all with the…
AI, Apps, Compliance, Cybersecurity, Data Breaches, Global Security News, Network Security, Risk Management
Train like you fight: Why cyber operations teams need no-notice drills
St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto recently executed a full Code Orange simulation: A mass casualty emergency protocol requiring the activation of every clinical and operational team across the hospital. As a Level 1 trauma centre, it conducts large-scale exercises involving teams across the entire hospital: Emergency, surgery, communications, administration. The exercise is not a compliance…