Top House Republican asks GAO for formal review of ways bad actors exploit AI to support terrorism

House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Counterterrorism and Intelligence Chairman August Pfluger, R-Texas, sent a letter to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) asking for a thorough assessment of how bad actors exploit Artificial Intelligence (AI) and related "emerging technologies to support a wide range of terrorist tactics and other criminal activities."

"As artificial intelligence (AI) increasingly becomes a part of the everyday lives of Americans, so too do malicious actors seek to exploit emerging AI technologies and applications to pursue harmful, even deadly, agendas…Violent extremists and other illicit actors—including but not limited to insiders who pose threats and malicious cyber actors—will inevitably seek inventive ways to exploit these emerging technologies to support a wide range of terrorist tactics and other criminal activities," Pfluger wrote in the letter dated March 17.

"The use of GenAI and AAI by violent extremists and other illicit actors poses a broad and evolving national security threat. The speed, scale, and adaptability these technologies enable will challenge the federal government’s ability to detect, respond to, and deter terrorist activities; however, the nature and scope of the challenges associated with countering these AI-enabled threats are not well understood," he added.