Warning: Malicious AI Tools Are Spreading in the Criminal Underground
KnowBe4, Thursday, August 27th, 2026
KnowBe4 relays Trellix findings that criminals are selling turnkey AI attack tools such as APEX AI on dark web forums.
Criminals are now selling malicious AI tools for use in cyberattacks, according to researchers at Trellix.
These tools dramatically lower the barrier for unskilled attackers to launch sophisticated operations, since capability that previously required expertise is packaged and sold.
Turnkey offerings such as APEX AI are being traded on dark web forums, enabling faster and more sophisticated ransomware attacks by operators who could not have built the tooling themselves.
The development shifts the population of viable attackers rather than only the capability of existing ones.