Proofpoint, a leader in cybersecurity, has unveiled its 2026 AI-Era Ransomware Report, highlighting that artificial intelligence is significantly enhancing the effectiveness of ransomware attacks. The study, which surveyed cybersecurity professionals across 12 countries, including Singapore, found that 68% of affected organisations in Singapore reported AI increased the effectiveness of these attacks.
The report reveals that AI is transforming ransomware from a simple encryption event into a complex, human-centric extortion campaign. In Singapore, 45% of respondents noted that employees did not suspect the attack due to its authenticity, whilst 48% attributed the incident to user interaction with malicious content. Email-based social engineering remains the primary entry point, with phishing emails accounting for 28% of initial attacks, followed by malicious links (53%) and attachments (38%).
A concerning trend is that 75% of Singaporean victims had sensitive data stolen, and half of the affected organisations paid a ransom. Alarmingly, 45% of those who paid faced a second extortion demand. “AI hasn’t fundamentally changed ransomware, but it has materially improved the attacks that lead to ransomware,” said Ryan Kalember, Chief Strategy Officer at Proofpoint.
The findings underscore the need for organisations to shift from treating ransomware as a mere malware problem to focusing on protecting people, identities, and trusted communications. As AI continues to make phishing and impersonation more convincing, proactive defence against these human-centric threats is crucial.
