David Higgins, CTO, Eftsure 
Much of that change is being driven by frontier AI: the newest generation of highly capable AI models developed by companies such as Anthropic, OpenAI and Google. These systems can reason, write, analyse information and automate increasingly complex tasks. They also give cybercriminals more sophisticated tools to create convincing fraud at a scale that wasn't previously possible.
Australia's inclusion in Anthropic's Project Glasswing, a program designed to evaluate the security implications of these advanced AI models, highlights how quickly these capabilities are evolving. While they present significant opportunities for business, they also place finance teams on the frontline of a rapidly changing fraud landscape.
The New Era of Fraud Is Already Here
Historically, fraudsters relied on volume for results, sending thousands of poorly written phishing emails and hoping a small percentage succeeded.
More modern AI tools, however, allow attackers to generate highly-personalised communications at scale, replicate writing styles, analyse publicly-available information, and create messages that appear authentic enough to bypass traditional warning signs. The awkward spelling mistakes and obvious red flags that once made scams easier to identify are disappearing.
As AI capabilities improve, the room for error in identifying legitimate and fraudulent communications continues to narrow, with finance teams already feeling the pressure. Eftsure research found that 82 per cent of Australian finance professionals are concerned about AI-assisted scams in the future, while 72 per cent believe they are more at risk of fraud today than they were a year ago.
The stats clearly reflect a growing recognition that the threat landscape is evolving faster than many organisations' controls and defences. Every advancement in AI that helps businesses operate more efficiently also provides criminals with new tools to refine their tactics.
AI Should Strengthen Defences, Not Just Threats
It would be a mistake, however, to view AI solely through the lens of risk. For years, fraud prevention has often relied on periodic checks, manual processes, and human judgement. While these controls remain important, they were designed for a business environment that was less complex and fragmented than the one organisations operate in today.
AI offers the ability to continuously monitor transactions, identify anomalies, validate payment information, and surface risks that would otherwise be difficult to detect manually.
The organisations that gain the most from AI will be those using it to bring greater certainty to high-risk financial decisions, particularly before money leaves the business.
Governance Is Becoming a Competitive Advantage
As AI capabilities continue to evolve, governance will become increasingly important. One of the most concerning findings from Eftsure's research is that 91 per cent of finance professionals believe senior leaders don’t adequately understand how payment fraud occurs. At the same time, 61 per cent do not feel fully prepared to identify modern scams.
This disconnect creates risk that technology alone cannot solve, particularly if leadership teams continue to underestimate the pace of change or fail to understand how fraud tactics are evolving.
In practice, that means moving beyond one-off verification processes and adopting layered controls that continuously validate payment information and supplier details and recognising that trust can no longer be assumed simply because a request appears legitimate. Human judgement must be embedded into critical decision-making, even as AI powered tools become more capable.
The arrival of frontier AI represents a pivotal moment for Australian businesses. For finance leaders, the question is no longer whether AI will reshape the fraud landscape, as it already has. The real question is whether organisations will use these same technologies to strengthen their own defences, or allow attackers to gain the advantage first.
Frontier AI marks an inflection point for fraud risk: finance leaders can no longer assume existing controls will keep pace as AI makes attacks easier to scale and harder to spot. The organisations that succeed will combine AI with stronger governance, continuous verification and informed human judgement. Those that don't will risk finding their controls were built for a threat landscape that no longer exists.
David Higgins is the Chief Technology Officer for Eftsure
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