AI adoption and integration have continued their rapid momentum within the hacking community. Nevertheless, it continues to pose both benefits and unfortunate cyber risks. According to the report released by Bugcrowd, 82 per cent of hackers believe that the AI threat landscape is evolving too fast to adequately secure.

The report revealed a significant shift in the perceived value of AI in hacking compared to the previous year. While only 21 per cent of hackers believed that AI technologies enhance the value of hacking in 2023, 71 per cent reported it to have value in 2024. Additionally, hackers are increasingly using generative AI solutions, with 77 per cent now reporting the adoption of such tools—a 13 per cent increase from 2023.

While the use and value of AI solutions among hackers have increased, the 2024 report reaffirms that hackers believe AI has limitations. This year's survey revealed that only 22 per cent of hackers believe that AI technologies outperform human hackers, and only 30 per cent believe that AI can replicate human creativity. These results are consistent with those of the 2023 survey.

“There is no denying that AI remains a strong force within the hacking community, changing the very strategies hackers are using to find and report vulnerabilities,” says Dave Gerry, CEO at Bugcrowd.

Other key findings from the survey include that 93 per cent of hackers agree that companies using AI tools have created a new attack vector. 82 per cent believe that the AI threat landscape is evolving too rapidly to be effectively secured from cyberattacks. 86 per cent believe that AI has fundamentally changed their approach to hacking. 74 per cent agree that AI has made hacking more accessible, opening the door for newcomers to join the fold.

Despite these threats, 73 per cent of hackers reported being confident in their ability to uncover vulnerabilities in AI-powered apps.

These findings point towards the need for hackers in an organization’s defence against modern cyberattacks. Although AI is introducing a new attack vector, the majority of hackers still report confidence in their ability to uncover these vulnerabilities, emphasizing the need for organizations to lean on human ingenuity alongside security tooling.

The report illuminated the rise of a surprising trend of the increasing prominence of hardware hacking. In the past 12 months, 81 per cent of hardware hackers encountered a new vulnerability they had never seen before, and 64 per cent believe that there are more vulnerabilities now than a year ago. Additionally, in response to the rise of AI, 83 per cent of hardware hackers are now confident in their ability to hack AI-powered hardware and software, indicating a new potential avenue for exploitation. While those familiar with the field may recognize this growing threat, only 33 per cent of hackers generally identified hardware hacking as one of the most valuable specialities. However, there is a low barrier to entry, with 80 per cent of hardware hackers being self-taught.

“Hardware hacking, or the exploitation of vulnerabilities in the physical components of electronic devices, was once considered a specialized field,” says Michael Skelton, VP of Security Operations at Bugcrowd. “However, the proliferation of inexpensive, vulnerable smart devices has increased interest in hardware hacking among both ethical hackers and cybercriminals.”

This year’s survey results also emphasized hacking as a viable and strong career path, particularly for younger generations. Of the respondents, 88 per cent were between the ages of 18 and 34. Additionally, 67 per cent indicated that they are either hacking full-time or actively trying to pursue a full-time hacking career.

Additionally, hacking offers a career path for self-motivated individuals who are eager to learn new skills. While 73 per cent of respondents reported having a college degree or higher, only 29 per cent learned their hacking skills through academic or professional coursework. Instead, 87 per cent reported learning through online resources, 78 per cent through self-study, and 43 per cent through trial and error. Hacking offers younger generations an incredibly desirable career with flexible hours, a remote work environment, and without the requirement of a college degree to achieve success.

Bugcrowd released its annual Inside the Mind of a Hacker 2024 report, which analyzed responses from 1,300 hackers, also known as ethical hackers and security researchers on the Bugcrowd Platform. This report provides a comprehensive overview of the hacking community and their perspectives on topics at the forefront of cybersecurity.