# Cybersecurity and the Gap Between Skill and Ability

> Source: <https://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2026/07/cybersecurity-and-the-gap-between-skill-and-ability.html>
> Published: 2026-07-08 11:03:04+00:00

Last week, national security agencies from the Five Eyes—that’s the rich, English-language-speaking countries club—jointly released a [statement](https://www.nsa.gov/Press-Room/News-Highlights/Article/Article/4523810/five-eyes-cyber-security-agencies-statement/) warning of the increasing cyber risks of AI models: in particular, their ability to autonomously hack into systems and networks. The statement was more measured than some of the [breathless headlines](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/jun/22/anthropic-claude-fable-ai-model-artificial-intelligence-national-security) about it, and the advice they gave is pretty much the standard advice everyone gives—albeit with newfound urgency.

Internet risks are nothing new, and cyberattacks—both large and small—have been a significant issue since long before the current crop of generative AI models...