As major airports across Europe have been targeted in a cyber-attack that began on Saturday, an expert is warning that artificial intelligence may have played a key role in the breach.
The incident, which disrupted check-in and baggage systems at hubs including Dublin, London, Brussels and Berlin, left thousands of passengers stranded with canceled or delayed flights.
Christian Perry, CEO of Undetectable AI, AI detection experts, explained how AI is reshaping the way cyber-attacks unfold:
“Hackers aren’t just sitting in dark rooms typing away anymore. With AI, they can launch faster, smarter attacks that slip past traditional security systems. AI can be trained to find weaknesses in seconds, or even disguise itself to look like a human user, making it very hard to spot.
More on the story
“In this sort of attack, AI can do the heavy lifting that used to take hackers weeks. It can scan for weaknesses across huge systems in minutes, and once it finds a way in, it can copy normal user behavior so it doesn’t raise any alarms. That makes it far easier for criminals to slip through the cracks without being noticed.
“That’s why this airport attack is so concerning. It shows how quickly the rules of cybersecurity are changing. If hackers are using AI to get in, we need AI detectors on the other side to keep them out.”
For travelers, the impact is immediate — queues, cancelations, and missed connections — but Perry stresses that the bigger story is about what comes next:
“Unfortunately, this probably won’t be the last time we see something like this. As attackers get more advanced, organizations need to wake up to the fact that traditional security isn’t enough anymore. Just like we scan luggage for hidden threats, we now need systems that scan for hidden AI activity. Without that, we’re always going to be one step behind.”
And it isn’t just airports at risk. Perry warns that the same methods could be used against other parts of daily life:
“Transport networks, hospitals, banks – even emergency services – could all be vulnerable to AI-driven attacks. Imagine an AI system flooding 911 with fake calls, or breaking into a financial network to manipulate transactions at scale. These aren’t sci-fi scenarios – the tools already exist.”
Despite the risks, Perry says AI can also be a force for good in defending against the very attacks it enables:
“It’s not all doom and gloom. AI can be trained to work on our side too – spotting unusual patterns, picking up threats faster than any human team, and shutting down attacks before they spiral.
"In simple terms, AI can keep watch 24/7, scanning for anything unusual in the background – like a digital security guard that never gets tired. It can flag suspicious logins, notice when systems are behaving in ways they shouldn’t, and even help predict where the next attack might come from.
“The important thing is making sure we’re using AI to protect us just as quickly as criminals are using it to cause harm. The same technology that makes hackers smarter can also make us safer – if we put it to work in the right way."
Undetectable AI was created by Christian Perry and Bars Juhasz to help people use AI in their everyday work and school tasks.