Social Engineering Attacks Surge, Becoming Primary Cyber Threat in 2026
Social engineering attacks have become the leading method for cyber intrusions, accounting for over one-third of all cyber incidents. A report by Akamai indicates that online scams nearly doubled in 2026, surpassing traditional phishing attacks for the first time, growing from approximately 3.2 million to 6.4 million year-over-year. This shift signifies a move towards higher-return fraud tactics focused on direct financial and consumer deception. While traditional phishing still increased by 61% by Q2 2026, threat actors are aggressively expanding into social engineering to manipulate individuals into direct financial losses. AI is increasingly being utilized to streamline these attacks, enabling attackers to launch higher volumes of more convincing scams with less effort. This includes creating varied phishing templates, multilingual content, and adaptive evasion techniques. Attackers are also leveraging AI as a phishing lure, impersonating popular AI services like OpenAI's ChatGPT to steal employee crede...
