Suspected Chinese cyber operatives used AI agents built on open-source tools to launch a "near-autonomous" attack on Taiwanese government systems in early July, compromising 85 user accounts and extracting over 2,500 personnel records across 12 attack waves in just four days. The AI framework autonomously mapped government infrastructure, bypassed authentication, solved CAPTCHAs, and then pivoted to target supply-chain vendors, a nuclear safety agency, and at least seven energy companies. The attack highlights the growing real-world threat of fully automated, AI-driven cyberattacks, with the agents capable of self-correcting errors and independently researching new vulnerabilities to exploit.
