New research from Brigham Young University finds that people are significantly more likely to fall for AI-generated phishing scams compared to human-written ones, as artificial intelligence enables more convincing and personalized fraudulent messages. The study, reported by KSL, measured victim response rates to spear phishing attempts — targeted scams that use personal information to appear legitimate.

The findings add to growing concerns about AI's role in cybercrime. Spear phishing attacks have historically required time-intensive research and customization by human scammers, but AI tools can now generate highly plausible messages at scale, lowering the barrier for sophisticated fraud.

BYU researchers have increasingly focused on cybersecurity and AI ethics as these technologies become more accessible. The study's results suggest that traditional awareness training may be insufficient as AI-generated scams become harder to distinguish from legitimate communication.