How AI could make it harder for governments to use hacking tools
AI is proving effective at finding and exploiting vulnerabilities. Some say this will make it harder for governments to use hacking tools and spyware and could reignite calls to backdoor devices.
In a recent thread and blog post on X, cryptography professor Matthew Green has sparked controversy regarding the impact of artificial intelligence on government hacking tools. Green, a long-time observer of the debate surrounding government hacking and the importance of encryption for protecting innocent individuals' privacy, expressed concern that AI could render software so secure that law enforcement and intelligence agencies may lose the ability to hack criminals.
He warned that the U.S. government might eventually need to rely on backdoors again to access the data they need for surveillance, which would ultimately lead to less secure devices by design.
The concept of "going dark" was popularized in 2014 when then-FBI director James Comey warned that encryption could hinder authorities from being able to intercept communications or access data on devices. At that time, applications like Signal, WhatsApp, and Apple's iMessage introduced end-to-end encryption, making traditional wiretapping of phone calls and text messages virtually impossible.
Tech giants such as Apple also began default encryption on their devices, making it increasingly difficult to infiltrate iPhones protected by strong PIN codes or passphrases.
Since then, law enforcement agencies have continued to apprehend criminals through hacking, while individuals have enjoyed a reasonable level of privacy due to encryption. Green argues that this uneasy truce between governments investing in hacking tools and spyware and the need for strong encryption to protect privacy is about to change.
He predicts that advancements in AI will lead to a significant reduction in software bugs, making it increasingly challenging for law enforcement and intelligence agencies to exploit security flaws for surveillance purposes.
Experts have expressed varying opinions on Green's argument. While some agree with the potential threat AI poses to government hacking capabilities, others remain skeptical. Luna Tong, a researcher who previously worked at bug-searching companies, agrees that the current abundance of bugs is temporary and believes that scarcity will return.
Another researcher, with over a decade of experience in offensive security, expresses concern that AI could make human security researchers obsolete, giving defenders an advantage over offensive researchers.
Paolo Stagno, the chief technology officer at Crowdfense, a company that develops, acquires, and sells vulnerabilities to governments, acknowledges that the current process of requiring backdoors is the most democratic system in place. However, he warns that the status quo may not last if bugs become too scarce to exploit. Other experts in offensive cybersecurity agree with Green, emphasizing that while AI can help researchers find bugs, it may not necessarily result in their patching promptly, thus keeping the door open for the potential reintroduction of backdoors.
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