SOTI Fraud & Abuse Report: Charting a Course Through AI’s Murky Waters

In this episode of And Security For All, guest host Steve Winterfeld, Advisory CISO at Akamai Technologies, teams up with Tricia Howard, Security Evangelist and “Scrybe of Cybersecurity Magicks,” to unpack Akamai’s State of the Internet: Fraud & Abuse Report 2025.

They explore how AI-driven bots are reshaping the landscape of digital fraud—surging over 300% in the past year—and what that means for businesses, defenders, and everyday users. From ad fraud and data scraping to compliance challenges and the ethics of AI, this conversation dives deep into the tension between innovation and exploitation in cybersecurity.

Listen as Steve and Tricia discuss:

• The explosive growth of AI bots and their impact on digital operations
• Ad fraud, zero-click searches, and the dark economy of stolen data
• Why healthcare and commerce are prime targets for automated attacks
• The evolving balance between compliance, risk, and real security
• How organizations can defend against this new wave of AI-powered fraud

With insights from Akamai’s global research team, this episode offers a grounded look at how to navigate the rise of generative AI, protect brand integrity, and build trust in a rapidly changing threat environment.