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Hackers Used to Be Humans. Soon, AIs Will Hack Humanity


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Bruce Schneier is a security technologist and author who teaches at the Harvard Kennedy School.

Hacking is as old as humanity. We are creative problem solvers. We exploit loopholes, manipulate systems, and strive for more influence, power, and wealth. To date, hacking has exclusively been a human activity. Not for long.

Artificial intelligence will eventually find vulnerabilities in all sorts of social, economic, and political systems, and then exploit them at unprecedented speed, scale, and scope. After hacking humanity, AI systems will then hack other AI systems, and humans will be little more than collateral damage.

Most of these hacks don't even require major research breakthroughs. They're already happening. As AI gets more sophisticated, though, we often won't even know it's happening.

From Wired
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