Bot her emails: most modern phishing campaigns are AI-enabled
A recent report by KnowBe4 reveals that 86% of phishing campaigns in the past six months have leveraged AI in some capacity, reflecting a steady increase from previous years. The use of AI is not only improving the quality and personalization of phishing messages but also automating reconnaissance to accelerate attacks across multiple vectors. While email remains a primary entry point, attackers are increasingly exploiting calendar invites and collaboration platforms like Microsoft Teams.
- ▪KnowBe4's Phishing Threat Trends report found that 86% of phishing campaigns in the past six months involved AI.
- ▪AI is being used to automate reconnaissance, personalize messages, and speed up multi-vector phishing attacks.
- ▪There has been a 49% increase in phishing attacks involving calendar invites and a 41% rise in Microsoft Teams impersonation scams.
- ▪AI-generated phishing emails are more sophisticated, often avoiding traditional red flags like poor grammar and spelling errors.
- ▪The adoption of AI in phishing has steadily increased from 80% in 2024 to 84% in 2025 and now 86% in 2026.
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Security Bot her emails: most modern phishing campaigns are AI-enabled KnowBe4 says 86% of phishing it tracked used AI, and inboxes are only the start Brandon Vigliarolo Thu 30 Apr 2026 // 20:26 UTC Give a man a phishing kit and he might get lucky a couple of times; teach an AI to phish and it'll change the landscape, if KnowBe4's latest phishing trends report is accurate. The cybersecurity and phishing awareness outfit released the seventh edition of its Phishing Threat Trends report on Thursday, and it appears that the internet's legions of phishermen are turning to AI in more ways, and more often, than ever thanks to their widespread adoption of AI.
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