AI-Powered Cybercrime Tools Surge Across Ransomware Marketplaces

New research from Halcyon shows a sharp rise in AI-related tools being sold on ransomware forums and underground marketplaces, with AI utility advertisements increasing from 38 in December 2025 to 1,486 by February 2026. Criminal offerings now include weaponized large language models, AI-generated deepfake tools for identity fraud, AI-enhanced malware infrastructure, and compromised AI service accounts, lowering the technical barriers for cybercriminals. Researchers also observed ransomware groups adopting business practices similar to legitimate software vendors, including subscription models, tiered pricing, automated sales channels, and customer support services. The trend highlights the growing professionalization of the ransomware ecosystem, which continues to expand in scale and profitability while leveraging AI to improve attack efficiency and social engineering capabilities.

Reference: csoonline.com