Hacktivism, geopolitics and AI - The evolution of the forgotten threat

Hacktivism, a long-standing but often disregarded element of the threat landscape, has undergone a significant transformation since 2022, becoming predominantly driven by geopolitical motivations. This presentation aims to expose the contemporary hacktivist landscape, introduce novel tracking and monitoring approaches and highlight the continued evolution of the landscape into trending tooling such as AI and ransomware.

The discussion of this talk will cover:

Geopolitical events that catalyzed the hacktivist landscape shift and how geopolitical triggers continue to facilitate hacktivist attacks. Real-world examples will illustrate how geopolitical events now serve as direct triggers for hacktivist actions.

The evolution of hacktivism, prevalent attack types and involved groups, and the overarching intentions and motivations of these groups.

This talk will challenge conventional cyber security perspectives about hacktivism by emphasizing intent, rather than technical indicators and capabilities, as the primary driver for analysis.

Furthermore, the presentation will explore the increasingly blurred boundaries between hacktivism, state-sponsored activities, and cyber crime, including the trend of hacktivist groups adopting ransomware, targeting operational technology, and investigating the potential of AI to enhance their capabilities.

Many organizations struggle to effectively contextualize hacktivism within the broader threat landscape. This talk seeks to dispel misconceptions and provide a clearer understanding of the evolving hacktivist threat landscape.