The current semi-annual report by the Bundesamt für Cybersicherheit (BACS) has shown that cyber threat levels remain high, and attacks are becoming increasingly personalised. The one thing particularly relevant for banks is the combination of Artificial Intelligence (AI), Social Engineering and compromised credentials.
In the first six months of 2026, the BACS once again recorded a large number of cyber incidents. In total, 27.128 voluntary reports plus 200 notifiable cyber incidents by operators of critical infrastructure were received. The one thing particular noticeable is the increasing personalisation of scam attempts. In the process, cyber-criminals more and more rely on AI to tailor their attacks to each person individually.
Fraud remains the one cyber phenomenon most frequently reported. Using personal and emotional content and messages which look increasingly professional, cyber-criminals attempt to build up trust. AI enables such attackers to quickly and individually tailor such content to each of their victims and to appear particularly credible this way.
It is also job seekers who are increasingly being targeted. Fraudsters use platforms such as LinkedIn to contact their victims and offer attractive vacancies or investment opportunities. Using bogus recruitment processes, they have not just been employing social engineering, but also technically sophisticated methods of attack. Amongst others, they were trying to steal credentials, compromise devices or capture cryptocurrency this way.
There is one positive development to note as far as developments in fraudulent scams in the name of the authorities are concerned. After the mandatory caller ID requirement for all calls from abroad using fake Swiss telephone numbers has been extended to mobile numbers with effect from 1st July 2026, the number of reports has fallen by 75% in July. These measures are therefore clearly effective.
The current semi-annual report shows that cyber-criminals don’t necessarily have to develop new methods of attack for success. By combining current scams with AI, they can design their attacks in a considerably more personal and convincing way though. For this reason, you will have to remain vigilant even with apparently individually appropriate job offers or calls, and to never disclose any confidential information or credentials.
You can find the BACS semi-annual report here.
