What happened
Lithuania has launched a government-funded national initiative aimed at strengthening cyber resilience and protecting citizens and institutions from AI-driven cyber fraud. The program, coordinated by the Innovation Agency Lithuania and led by Kaunas University of Technology (KTU), focuses on developing advanced cybersecurity solutions to address emerging threats enabled by generative artificial intelligence and large language models.Â
The initiative brings together universities including Vilnius Tech and Mykolas Romeris University, alongside cybersecurity firms such as NRD Cyber Security, Elsis PRO, and Transcendent Group Baltics, to build AI-driven defense systems capable of detecting fraud, analyzing threats in real time, and protecting critical infrastructure. Researchers involved in the mission highlighted that generative AI allows attackers to produce highly personalized phishing messages, deepfake content, and automated social engineering attacks that are difficult to detect using traditional pattern-based defenses. The program’s total value exceeds €24.1 million and includes pilot deployments across public institutions and infrastructure environments.Â
Who is affected
Citizens, government agencies, financial institutions, and organizations relying on Lithuania’s digital services are affected, as the initiative is designed to protect users and infrastructure from increasingly sophisticated AI-driven fraud and cyberattacks.Â
Why CISOs should care
The initiative highlights how governments and industry are responding to generative AI-enabled threats, including personalized phishing, automated fraud, and deepfake-based attacks, which can undermine traditional security controls and increase exposure to cybercrime.Â
3 practical actions
- Adopt AI-driven threat detection systems. Implement technologies capable of identifying adaptive and personalized fraud attempts enabled by generative AI.Â
- Enhance fraud monitoring capabilities. Deploy real-time threat intelligence and anomaly detection to identify emerging attack patterns.Â
- Strengthen cross-sector collaboration. Coordinate with government, academic, and private cybersecurity partners to improve threat response and resilience.