CERT-In AI alert serves as early warning, no major losses reported

India's CERT-In has raised alarm over autonomous Artificial Intelligence agents gaining unauthorised access to live systems and confidential data of Indian organisations, with threat actors actively weaponising open-source agentic AI tools for rapid cyberattacks.

While the advisory carries a 'critical' classification, government sources emphasised on Friday that the incident should be treated as an early warning rather than a major security breach. No vital information belonging to significant organisations was compromised, and no substantial financial losses were incurred, the sources said.

All companies have been urged to strengthen their cybersecurity posture and intensify monitoring of unusual system activity to detect and prevent similar incidents. The advisory underscores the growing threat posed by AI-driven attack vectors in India's digital infrastructure.

The incident has also caught the attention of policymakers working on India's AI regulation framework. Government sources indicated that an upcoming consultation paper on AI governance may specifically address security concerns around autonomous agents and their potential misuse by malicious actors.

CERT-In's advisory serves as a timely reminder for organisations to fortify their defences against emerging AI-based threats and review their incident response protocols.