Securing digital assets against future threats
📰 MIT Technology Review
AI-enabled fraud and quantum computing are redefining digital-asset security, requiring owners and service providers to adapt now
Action Steps
- Stay informed about the latest AI-powered scams and social engineering tactics
- Implement post-quantum cryptography to secure digital assets
- Use secure signer platforms and hardware wallets to protect against unauthorized access
- Develop strategies to detect and prevent synthetic identity creation and fake information dissemination
Who Needs to Know This
Security teams and developers responsible for protecting digital assets need to understand the emerging threats and implement measures to safeguard against AI-powered scams and quantum computing-based attacks
Key Insight
💡 The increasing use of AI and advances in quantum computing are transforming the security landscape, requiring companies and users to adapt and implement new measures to safeguard their digital assets
Share This
🚨 AI-powered scams and quantum computing pose significant threats to digital assets! 🚨
Key Takeaways
AI-enabled fraud and quantum computing are redefining digital-asset security, requiring owners and service providers to adapt now
Full Article
Published Time: 2026-03-16T07:00:00-04:00
# Securing digital assets against future threats | MIT Technology Review
[Skip to Content](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/03/16/1134287/securing-digital-assets-against-future-threats/#content)
In partnership with[Ledger](http://www.ledger.com/)
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In partnership with:[](https://www.ledger.com/)
Content from MIT Technology Review Insights
This content was produced by Insights, the custom content arm of MIT Technology Review. It was not written by MIT Technology Review's editorial staff.
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In partnership with:
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# Securing digital assets against future threats
AI-enabled fraud and the coming impact of quantum computing are redefining digital-asset security, putting pressure on owners and service providers to act now.
Cryptocurrency thieves are getting creative. Taking advantage of the desire to learn more about crypto and banking on the digital assets’ reputation as a way to get rich quick, AI-generated video tutorials are touting ways of make money from crypto-trading arbitrage — purportedly teaching viewers how to create maximal extractable value from trades using smart contracts.
Yet, they are often scams, a subtle social engineering approach known as mentorship pretexting. In one case, [a fraudster shifted more than $900,000 from victims’ accounts](https://www.darkreading.com/cyber-risk/attackers-target-crypto-smart-contracts) to their own wallets. AI chatbots and large language models have allowed the scammers to be more convincing as well: In 2025, about 60% of all inflows into scammers’ crypto wallets came from AI-powered scams, [according to cryptocurrency intelligence firm Chainalysis](https://www.chainalysis.com/blog/ai-artificial-intelligence-powered-crypto-scams/).
In 2025, about 0% of all inflows into scammers' crypto wallets came from AI-powered scams
Source: Compiled by MIT Technology Review Insights, based on data from [Chainalysis](https://www.chainalysis.com/blog/ai-artificial-intelligence-powered-crypto-scams/), 2026
Two major technological advances—AI and quantum computing—are the impetus for significant innovation across industries. Unfortunately, the cybercriminal ecosystem is no different.
Cybercriminals' experimentation with AI, the threat quantum computing poses to encrypted data, and the rapid adoption of digitized value are resulting in massive changes, says Ian Rogers, chief experience officer at Ledger, a provider of secure signer platforms.
“We have lived through the ‘once in humanity’ digitization of all information, and now we are living through the ‘once in humanity’ digitization of all value,” he says. “And I would say, we may all have a bit of whiplash from the internet, but you ain’t seen nothing yet.”
The ubiquity of AI and continuing advances in quantum computing will transform the security landscape and change what companies and users need to safeguard their digital assets. Quantum computing poses challenges for the cryptocurrency ecosystem, especially for those areas not updated to use post-quantum cryptography, while AI lowers the barriers to creating synthetic identities and convincing fake information.
“We have lived through the ‘once in humanity’ digitization of all information, and now we are living through the ‘once in humanity’ digitization of all value,” he says. “And I would say, we may all have a bit of whip
# Securing digital assets against future threats | MIT Technology Review
[Skip to Content](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/03/16/1134287/securing-digital-assets-against-future-threats/#content)
In partnership with[Ledger](http://www.ledger.com/)
[](http://www.ledger.com/)
In partnership with:[](https://www.ledger.com/)
Content from MIT Technology Review Insights
This content was produced by Insights, the custom content arm of MIT Technology Review. It was not written by MIT Technology Review's editorial staff.
[](https://www.technologyreview.com/)
In partnership with:
[](https://www.ledger.com/)
# Securing digital assets against future threats
AI-enabled fraud and the coming impact of quantum computing are redefining digital-asset security, putting pressure on owners and service providers to act now.
Cryptocurrency thieves are getting creative. Taking advantage of the desire to learn more about crypto and banking on the digital assets’ reputation as a way to get rich quick, AI-generated video tutorials are touting ways of make money from crypto-trading arbitrage — purportedly teaching viewers how to create maximal extractable value from trades using smart contracts.
Yet, they are often scams, a subtle social engineering approach known as mentorship pretexting. In one case, [a fraudster shifted more than $900,000 from victims’ accounts](https://www.darkreading.com/cyber-risk/attackers-target-crypto-smart-contracts) to their own wallets. AI chatbots and large language models have allowed the scammers to be more convincing as well: In 2025, about 60% of all inflows into scammers’ crypto wallets came from AI-powered scams, [according to cryptocurrency intelligence firm Chainalysis](https://www.chainalysis.com/blog/ai-artificial-intelligence-powered-crypto-scams/).
In 2025, about 0% of all inflows into scammers' crypto wallets came from AI-powered scams
Source: Compiled by MIT Technology Review Insights, based on data from [Chainalysis](https://www.chainalysis.com/blog/ai-artificial-intelligence-powered-crypto-scams/), 2026
Two major technological advances—AI and quantum computing—are the impetus for significant innovation across industries. Unfortunately, the cybercriminal ecosystem is no different.
Cybercriminals' experimentation with AI, the threat quantum computing poses to encrypted data, and the rapid adoption of digitized value are resulting in massive changes, says Ian Rogers, chief experience officer at Ledger, a provider of secure signer platforms.
“We have lived through the ‘once in humanity’ digitization of all information, and now we are living through the ‘once in humanity’ digitization of all value,” he says. “And I would say, we may all have a bit of whiplash from the internet, but you ain’t seen nothing yet.”
The ubiquity of AI and continuing advances in quantum computing will transform the security landscape and change what companies and users need to safeguard their digital assets. Quantum computing poses challenges for the cryptocurrency ecosystem, especially for those areas not updated to use post-quantum cryptography, while AI lowers the barriers to creating synthetic identities and convincing fake information.
“We have lived through the ‘once in humanity’ digitization of all information, and now we are living through the ‘once in humanity’ digitization of all value,” he says. “And I would say, we may all have a bit of whip
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