Are AI apps supporting or exposing you?

Nowadays, I see beautifully crafted communications (email, letter, correspondence) from people who hardly know how to write. I also see translated messages sent in different languages from people who speak merely one language. I see fantastic presentation slides created with creative and amazing images, videos and also sounds from people that used to create plain vanilla slides (in a white background and black fonts). I also find many people now speaking and sharing wonderful ideas where they used to be quite shy and also quite conservative during social and professional set meetings. These and more have all become possible, thanks to artificial intelligence-powered and driven applications, which continue to grow in types and strength. Moreover, they are available free for use easily by almost anyone — be it young kids or retired adults as well.

Working professionals and entrepreneurs, on the other hand, use various dedicated AI-powered applications, be it via their smartphones, tablets and/or even desktop computers, to do things that include but are not limited to preparing for and scheduling meetings, managing their emails, reviewing and managing their financial information, attaining tips and performing health and fitness activities and many more. This is all good and is done today; YET, are you aware of the risks that these nifty AI-powered applications bring to the table irrespective of the apparent value they have become lately? Let me share with you a story based on a real-world experience.

Adil (omitted real name) downloads and uses most of the AI-powered applications that are being advertised and promoted for their effective personal and professional use; applications of the sort I had shared at the beginning of my article today. Adil, however, noticed that his devices, applications he uses, and/or the websites he visits have lots of information about him that he has not stored/saved with. Information includes what he likes/dislikes, has or doesn't have, visits and has been to and regular communications, be it for personal or professional reasons. Think about this. What if a hacker gets access to these details? It will make life much easier to take you for a wild ride. Trust me, whatever happened to Adil is also happening to many other people and YES, it can mostly happen to you too, if it hasn’t already.

Let’s look over stats. Over 92 per cent of organisations worldwide have experienced some security breaches due to using generative AI in the past year. Furthermore, approximately 72 per cent of businesses have also faced AI security breaches, which clearly indicates a growing concern about using AI in organisations. While AI offers benefits, it is yet a double-edged sword. There are many AI-generated phishing scams in the making, utilising deep fakes (for videos) and voice cloning (for audio) to deceive, trick, scam and ultimately get your data hacked. How many videos and audios have you received lately that were fake? That’s proof in the pudding.

As amazing as these AI-powered and generative tools are, the amount of data and information you share as an input to these apps can be used maliciously. You don’t pay anything to many of these apps and as the saying goes, “there is no such thing as a free lunch.” What do you expect your information is going to? My advice: always ask yourself why you should download and use a specific AI app and what kind of assistance you are looking for. The goal, of course, is for it to support you, not expose you.

To conclude my article this week, please note that I by no means discourage you from using AI-powered apps. They are useful and can truly support you with many tasks, from personal to professional endeavors. Nevertheless, one needs to be very careful upon using these AI apps, for cybercriminals and hackers continue to learn and find ways to utilise these AI apps in order to get to you. Until we catch up again next week, stay informed, be cautious and continue to remain safe.