How AI is Advancing Phishing Attacks – And How Your Business Can Stay Ahead

Phishing attacks have always been a major threat to businesses, but the game has changed. With the rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI), these scams are becoming more sophisticated and harder to detect, putting businesses and their employees at increased risk. In this blog, we’ll explore how AI is powering more effective phishing attempts, the risks involved, and actionable steps your business can take to combat these evolving threats.

What is Phishing, and Why is it Evolving?

Phishing is a type of cyberattack where criminals try to trick individuals into providing sensitive information, such as passwords or financial details, often by pretending to be someone they trust. These attacks typically come through email, messages, or even phone calls.

Traditionally, phishing relied on generic messages that were often easy to spot. But with AI, cybercriminals are creating highly personalized and convincing phishing campaigns. AI tools can analyse public information, such as social media profiles, to craft tailored emails that feel legitimate, making it more likely for victims to click links or share sensitive data.

How AI is Making Phishing Attacks More Dangerous

AI is being used by cybercriminals in several ways to enhance phishing attacks:

1. Hyper-Personalisation
AI analyzes publicly available data to create emails or messages that mimic legitimate communications. For example, an attacker might reference a recent project or meeting to make the email seem credible.

2. Deepfake Technology
AI-generated voice or video deepfakes can impersonate company leaders or colleagues, convincing employees to transfer money or share confidential information.

3. Enhanced Language and Tone
AI-powered tools can eliminate the poor grammar and awkward phrasing that once gave phishing attempts away. These emails now sound professional and authentic.

4. Redirection Through Legitimate Sites
Cybercriminals use AI to design sophisticated multi-step attacks. For example, an email might link to a legitimate service like Dropbox or Microsoft 365, only to redirect the victim to a malicious site. Even just clicking the link could allow attackers to steal credentials stored in your browser.

5. Weaponized QR Codes
Attackers embed QR codes in documents that lead to phishing sites. AI can help disguise these as legitimate, tricking victims into scanning them.

What’s at Risk for Your Business?

Phishing attacks can lead to a range of consequences, including:

Credential Theft
Once attackers steal login details, they can access sensitive company systems, emails, or even cloud services like Microsoft 365.

Financial Loss
Phishing attacks often target financial transactions, leading to fraudulent payments or compromised accounts.

Reputation Damage
A data breach caused by phishing can erode customer trust and harm your business’s reputation.

Operational Disruption
Attackers could install malware or ransomware, halting business operations and causing costly downtime.

Combat Advanced Phishing Attacks with Defense in Depth

Defense in depth is a cybersecurity strategy that employs multiple layers of security to protect your business against threats. Rather than relying on a single tool or solution, this approach assumes that no single defense is foolproof. By combining various security measures, businesses can ensure that even if one layer is bypassed, others are in place to prevent or mitigate the attack.

Here’s how defense in depth can be implemented in your business:

Build a Security-Conscious Culture

Phishing attacks are evolving, but your business can stay ahead by fostering a security-first mindset. Regular training, coupled with strong technical defenses, will significantly reduce your risk.

Remember: It only takes one click for an attack to succeed, but with the right precautions, you can make that click much less likely.

Encourage a culture of verification. If employees receive requests for passwords, financial transfers, or sensitive data, they should confirm the request through a different communication channel.

Training is your first line of defense. Teach employees to:

  • Be skeptical of unexpected emails, especially those urging quick action.
  • Check sender addresses carefully; slight misspellings can be a red flag.
  • Avoid clicking on links or attachments unless they’re sure of the source.
  • Report suspicious emails immediately.

Did you know that here at FortiTech we offer Security Awareness Training as both a standalone service, and as part of our Maintenance and Security Plans for our clients?

Use an Anti-Spam Service

Investing in a robust email anti-spam solution such as our Antispam service for Microsoft 365 can help reduce the number of phishing emails that reach your inbox. Our services use AI to detect and block potential threats before they can reach your employees.

Implement Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)

MFA adds an extra layer of security by requiring a second form of verification, such as a code sent to a phone, before granting access to systems or accounts. Even if attackers steal credentials, they’ll have a harder time getting in.

Limit Browser Credential Storage

Advise employees against saving login credentials in browsers, especially for critical services like Microsoft 365 or financial accounts. Instead, use a secure password manager, check out our guide on what to look out for in a good password management tool.


The Role of AI in Defense

While AI is being used by cybercriminals, it’s also a powerful tool for defense. Businesses can leverage AI-based security solutions to:

  • Detect and block phishing emails before they reach inboxes.
  • Identify unusual behavior in accounts, such as unexpected login locations.
  • Monitor for compromised credentials on the dark web.

Stay One Step Ahead of Phishing Threats

Phishing attacks are growing more advanced, with AI enabling cybercriminals to create sophisticated, hard-to-detect scams. From hyper-personalized emails to malicious links disguised as legitimate, the risks to businesses have never been greater. However, by adopting a proactive, layered approach to security—such as defense in depth—and leveraging powerful tools like Microsoft Defender for Microsoft 365, you can significantly reduce your exposure to these threats.

Educating your employees, implementing modern security solutions, and fostering a culture of vigilance are all critical components in staying ahead of cybercriminals. Remember, it only takes one click on a malicious link to compromise your business, but with the right defenses in place, you can make that scenario much less likely.

If you’re concerned about your business’s ability to detect and prevent phishing attacks—or if you’re interested in learning more about how solutions our Security Awareness Training, Maintenance and Security plans or Antispam service can protect your data and your people—we’re here to help.

Get in touch with us today to discuss how we can secure your business and provide peace of mind in an increasingly complex threat landscape. 

OTHER BLOGS



This weeks blog is a report written in response to a cyber incident involving a Brisbane Law firm who found themselves caught up in a scam centered around unauthorised access to the Microsoft 365 account of the firms Office Manager, Susie and the subsequent activity undertaken under the account by the unauthorised party.

Our blog provides a summary of the incident, remediation steps undertaken, an outline of the firms existing technology landscape and post-incident recommendations. It also highlights the importance of Security Awareness Training and strong cyber security practices are for your business. …


For small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), safeguarding sensitive information and ensuring uninterrupted operations requires a proactive, layered approach to security. One highly effective strategy is Defense in Depth.

This blog will unpack the concept of Defense in Depth in simple terms, explain its benefits, and offer practical examples of how your business can adopt this powerful cybersecurity framework. …


The increasing rise in digital threats has prompted Microsoft 365 and Google to introduce stricter authentication protocols. These protocols are not just about enhancing security—they're about protecting your business from the loss of customer trust and potential revenue.  Find out how you can ensure your business emails meet these new requirements in our blog. …


If you are one of our clients on our Maintenance and Security plans we provide you with 1 free cyber security awareness training session a year. This is exactly what happened for one of our longest held clients towards the end of 2023 when they arranged their annual session. Find out how it went in our latest blog. …


For businesses, the risk of a cyber attack is ever present, given the vast amount of sensitive data they handle daily and that is exactly why one of our new clients went searching on Google for "Cyber Training Ipswich QLD" and ended up giving us a call. …


The ACSC Annual Cyber Threat Report contains an overview of cyber threats impacting Australia. It highlights how the ACSC is responding to those threats and provides vital advice on how all Australian individuals and organisations can protect themselves online. The report covers the financial year reporting from 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022. Join us for a deep dive of the latest findings …


This week David worked with a legal client to secure their Microsoft 365 tenancy after an access breach. After reaching out to FortiTech the company sat with David to discuss their recent breach and work through a plan to secure their Microsoft 365 tenanc, find out what we did in our latest blog. …


Using one of the best password managers is the single best way to boost your online security. There will be no more need to remember dozens of long, complicated passwords. Instead, you'll have just one long, complicated password or even your fingerprint that can unlock all the rest. Find out about the top 5 must haves for personal password manager tools in our blog. …


We are helping you tackle a technology to-do list that will help you be more productive, organised and secure in 2022.

This time we cover off cleaning your computer and answer just how often you should do it.    …


At the end of every financial year, the Australian Cyber Security Centre (or ACSC) releases its annual cyber threat report, and it was no different this year… and that’s what we’re talking about in today's blog. …


Looking for a great template to get your business thinking about its technology infrastructure, where it is and how it is protected and prompt you to regularly review these processes? Then look no further, explore our blog and grab yourself a copy of our free IT User and Cyber Security Policy template. …


You hear about it every day, scammers attempting to fleece innocent Australians out of their hard earned money. Unfortunately, this blog tells the tale of a couple close to retirement age needing to recover over $230,000 of stolen funds.  …


David recently participated as part of the panel in an interactive workshop held by The College of Law. The interactive workshop focused on setting up a legal practice and dealing with a cyber-attack.  Cyber-crime is still a very real concern for the profession as now, more than ever, practitioners are relying on technology to assist them in the day-to-day operation of their practices – whether in the office or working remotely.  You can read more about the tips and highlights for the workshop in this blog. …


It is estimated that spam emails cost businesses up to $30b a year in lost productivity, not to mention that 33% of cyber-attacks originate from phishing emails. Find out more about how to spot a phishing email and the benefits of a spam filter, including Zero Day virus protection and quarantine in our latest blog.
…


Passwords are often easy to crack, reused and, in today’s era of biometrics and cryptography, are an outdated way of protecting an account. In this weeks blog find out some of the most common, and most effective, methods for stealing passwords that lead to data breaches. …

Show More