Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming the cybercrime ecosystem, lowering barriers to entry and amplifying the reach of crime-as-a-service models. From automated phishing and social engineering to AI-assisted malware, deepfake fraud, and large-scale scam operations, generative tools are enabling more sophisticated and scalable criminal services.

This session examines how AI is reshaping the structure, speed, and economics of cybercrime, and what this means for investigations, attribution, and international cooperation. Focusing on practical responses, participants will discuss how existing legal frameworks and investigative tools can be applied to AI-driven crime-as-a-service, where new gaps are emerging, and which operational and capacity-building measures can help disrupt these evolving business models.

Large-scale online scams are increasingly linked to organised networks that exploit trafficked persons in dedicated “scam compounds,” generating vast criminal profits and significant social harm. This session examines whether and how such operations are evolving from a cybercrime and trafficking problem into a broader security risk, including potential links to corruption, regional instability, and other forms of serious crime. Building on the outcomes of the 2025 Octopus Conference, the session will actively work with the Guide on Investigating and Prosecuting Scams, being developed by the CoE, using scenario-based discussions to explore practical responses. Participants will consider how multi-agency task forces, financial investigations, cooperation with banks and VASPs, and victim-centred approaches can be strengthened to disrupt these networks and reduce their wider security impact.