Exploring Topics from Abu Dhabi Finance Week

Cybersecurity remains one of the most pressing challenges for organizations worldwide. Despite unprecedented investment and a constant influx of advanced technologies, security incidents continue to rise. The reality is clear: technology alone cannot eliminate risk. At the heart of every successful attack, and every successful defense, are people.

This critical theme was highlighted at Abu Dhabi Finance Week (ADFW), where Abacus Group Director of Cybersecurity, Travis DeForge, spoke on the panel “The Human Element: Managing Risk Beyond Technology.” The session discussed why human error remains the top driver of breaches across the financial industry and how firms are rethinking risk strategies to account for behavior, training, and culture. The topic was further explored during DeForge’s interview with Georgia Tolley on The Agenda, hosted on 103.8 Dubai Eye.

The Impact of Humans & AI on the Threat Landscape

Five years ago, being a hacker required deep technical expertise. Today, that barrier to entry has all but disappeared, and would-be threat actors can use easily available, free resources to learn how to successfully execute initial attacks and even deploy ransomware.

In his interview with the Dubai Eye, DeForge stated, “it is a shift from a few years ago, when only the biggest, most profitable companies that had the most to lose were being targeted. Now, firms of all sizes are being targeted. At Abacus, we work with clients that are 2–3-person fund spin outs all the way up to funds with over one hundred billion of dollars in assets under management. They’re all being targeted by the same kind of high quality, targeted phishing attacks.”

It is easier than ever to breach companies at mass. There are several reasons for this change, with AI and automation making a significant impact on the landscape.

Cybercrime Has Never Been Easier
Gone are the days when hacking required deep technical expertise. Today, anyone with access to tools like ChatGPT and YouTube can launch an attack. AI has democratized cybercrime, making it an accessible “career path” for those with malicious intent.

Humans: The Perennial Weak Spot
The human element remains the easiest way in for attackers. Through social engineering tactics like phishing emails or deepfake phone calls, attackers may aim for a 0.5% success rate, but when targeting hundreds of thousands of people, that’s more than enough. AI and automation have reduced the time it takes to craft and send phishing emails, while also generating higher quality messages that don’t include the tell-tale signs of a phish, like typos and misspellings, making them harder to catch. Threat actors can create quality, believable phishing emails and phone calls that target thousands of firms at the same time.

The Evolution of Ransomware
Ransomware is constantly shifting. Through the rise of ransomware kits on the dark web, known as Ransomware-as-a-Service, attackers can deploy sophisticated malware without writing a single line of code. In 2025 we also saw the first instance of agentic ransomware, where cybercriminals use autonomous AI agents to execute and adapt entire ransomware operations with little or no human intervention.

Why Fundamentals Matter

There is no silver bullet in cybersecurity. The evolution of threat actor tactics reinforces the need for the fundamentals and defense in depth, including fundamental security tools and tactics like:

• User awareness training
• MFA
• Email controls and AI-enabled email security
• Endpoint controls and managed detection and response

In addition to the fundamentals, a successful security strategy requires a methodical approach to looking at how an organization operates, what their specific risks are, and how they can be mitigated.

For financial firms, the stakes are even higher. Wire fraud is a growing threat alongside ransomware. As highlighted by DeForge, “targeting firms that are making substantial wire transfers regularly is an opportune way of driving profit for a cybercriminal.”

Strengthen Your Cybersecurity Posture with Abacus Group

Cybercrime has become a business like any other, and attackers are playing the numbers. The financial sector is heavily targeted, and healthcare even more so, due to legacy infrastructure vulnerabilities. Spear-phishing still exists, but AI has reduced the time and effort needed to launch mass campaigns, making broad attacks more common and more effective.

At Abacus, we deliver secure, enterprise-grade IT and cybersecurity solutions for highly regulated industries, like financial and healthcare. From proactive monitoring to advanced threat detection and compliance support, we help you stay ahead of evolving risks.

Contact us today to learn how we can help protect your firm from the next wave of cyber threats.