The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is warning that AI could become a growing threat to global financial stability by making cyberattacks faster and more sophisticated. In a new analysis, the organization describes how new AI tools can help attackers identify and exploit security vulnerabilities in banks, payment systems, and cloud services in record time.

According to the IMF, the financial sector relies heavily on shared digital infrastructure, which means a single vulnerability could have consequences for multiple institutions simultaneously. AI-driven attacks might, for instance, lead to disruptions in payment systems, liquidity problems, and reduced confidence in the financial market.

The IMF points, among other things, to Anthropic’s experimental AI model Claude Mythos Preview to illustrate how quickly AI technology is progressing. The model is reported to be highly skilled at finding and exploiting security vulnerabilities in major operating systems and web browsers.

At the same time, the agency argued that AI tools could also become an important part of security solutions. To mitigate risks, the IMF said banks, government agencies, and tech companies now need to strengthen their collaboration on cybersecurity.