Disruptive innovation: A Systematic Review of the Impact of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) on Cybersecurity

Systematic Literature Reviews (SLRs) play a crucial role in consolidating research findings across various domains. This study conducts an SLR to analyze the implications of Generative AI (GenAI) in cybersecurity, identifying key challenges, risks, and opportunities. The increasing adoption of GenAI has transformed cybersecurity by enhancing threat detection, simulating cyber-attacks, and automating security protocols. However, it also introduces significant risks, including ethical concerns, misuse by cybercriminals, and challenges in regulatory compliance. Our review addresses several research questions: the ethical and legal implications of AI-driven cyberattacks, the capabilities that cybercriminals can exploit, corporate strategies to counter AI-generated malware, and the scope of current research. The findings reveal a growing interest in GenAI’s role in cybersecurity, particularly in cyber defense automation and malware detection. However, gaps remain in research related to specific GenAI tools such as ChatGPT. This review highlights the dual-use nature of GenAI, emphasizing both its potential to strengthen cybersecurity and its risks as a tool for sophisticated cyber threats. Future research should focus on regulatory frameworks, ethical considerations, and AI-driven countermeasures to mitigate evolving cyber threats.