[Speaking Report] CTO from Israeli Military Unit 8200 Appears at Japanese Event After Approximately One Year: "Cyberattacks in the AI Era Target 'People'" Over 100 Attendees at Security Days Spring 2026 Tokyo

AironWorks Inc. (Headquarters: Toranomon, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Representative Director: Katsuhi Terada, hereinafter AironWorks) gave a presentation at the night session of "Security Days Spring 2026 Tokyo," held on Tuesday, March 25, 2026, at Tokyo Marunouchi JP Tower Hall & Conference (KITTE 4F).

The session, titled "Considering Cybersecurity Measures for Japanese Companies in the AI Era with an Expert from Israel's Unit 8200," attracted over 100 attendees, with standing room only. Gonen Krak, CTO overseeing technical strategy and product development at the Tel Aviv, Israel development base, made his first appearance at a public event in Japan in approximately one year, providing a valuable opportunity to share frontline insights directly.

■ Background of the Presentation

With the rapid evolution of generative AI, cyberattack methods have changed significantly. According to FBI statistics, the total amount of cyber damage has surged since 2021, coinciding with the proliferation of AI technology. Attackers are now leveraging AI to easily overcome the language barrier, automatically gather target information, and launch highly personalized phishing attacks.

Against this backdrop, CTO Gonen Krak presented at a public event in Japan for the first time in about a year. This rare opportunity brought together an engineer from Unit 8200, who deeply understands the attacker's perspective, to speak directly to Japanese corporate security personnel about the threats and countermeasures in the AI era.

■ Session Overview

Event Name: Security Days Spring 2026 Tokyo Night Session

Date & Time: Tuesday, March 25, 2026, 18:30〜20:30

Venue: JP Tower Hall & Conference (KITTE 4F), Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo

Attendance: Over 100 people (including standing room)

■ Session Highlights

1. Shift in Attacker Mindset – Considering Attacker Cost-Effectiveness: Instead of directly breaching robust systems, attackers are targeting the "people" who operate them. The advent of AI has dramatically increased the efficiency of this attack method. Ito sounded the alarm, stating, "While there are no cases yet where companies have quintupled their profits with AI, attackers are quintupling their attack efficiency with AI. This is supported by official reports from international police organizations (Interpol and Europol)."

2. The Japanese Language Barrier No Longer Protects: The "barrier of the Japanese language," which once protected Japanese companies, has disappeared with the advent of generative AI. Ito pointed out, "We have entered an era where even a North Korean high school student can deceive Japanese people with natural Japanese using AI." Gonen CTO also explained the reality of "Phishing-as-a-Service (PhaaS)," where phishing tools are sold as SaaS on the dark web.

3. Shift Training KPIs from "Click Rate" to "Reporting Rate": Most companies use "how many people clicked" as the KPI for traditional targeted email training. However, AironWorks recommends using "how many people reported suspicious emails" as the KPI. Ito stated, "The moment employees become a defense force is when they report suspicious emails," emphasizing that fostering a "culture of reporting" is more important than technical countermeasures.

4. AI Agents Themselves Become a "Third Vulnerability": With the increasing adoption of AI, the risk of AI agents themselves becoming new attack targets was also discussed. Management from three perspectives – system vulnerabilities, human judgment errors, and AI agent security – was presented as a future challenge.

■ Presentation Report Publication Page

https://jp.aironworks.com/news/2003/

■ Speaker Comments

Akihiro Ito (Executive Officer, Head of Japan): "Attackers are already attacking through 'people.' Therefore, defense must also start with people. Even if you score 100% on template-based training, you cannot respond to real hacker-level attacks. It is important to measure and visualize actual abilities with 'university entrance exam level problems,' not 'Kumon-style drills.'"

Gonen Krak (Director, Co-founder, CTO): "Speaking at a Japanese event for the first time in about a year, I felt that Japanese companies' security awareness has definitely increased. On the other hand, AI-powered attacks are evolving at a speed exceeding our expectations. Our mission is to enhance human resilience against AI-enhanced attacks, and I believe this is something all companies should be working on. It was a very valuable experience for me to speak directly with Japanese security professionals this time."

■ Speaker Profiles

Akihiro Ito | AironWorks Executive Officer, Head of Japan: Responsible for new business launch and organizational building as Executive Officer at GLOZUS, a JV between Innovation Network Corporation of Japan and NIFTY. Led business growth and integration into GMO Internet Group as COO at GMO Cyber Security by iyer. Achieved domestic market share No. 1 as Business Unit Manager at Luup. Joined AironWorks as Head of Japan Executive Officer to lead market expansion.

Taiga Inagaki | AironWorks Sales Manager: After graduating from Ritsumeikan University's College of Business Administration, gained sales experience in management support services utilizing professional human resources at Circulation. At AironWorks, as Sales Manager, he manages the sales team and handles proposals for enterprise clients, expanding the number of adopting companies while addressing customer challenges.

Gonen Krak | AironWorks Director, Co-founder, CTO: Obtained a bachelor's degree from Tel Aviv University while in high school. Engaged in practical work in cybersecurity in the Israel Defense Forces Unit 8200, and was also involved in training junior personnel. After his military service, he completed a Master's degree in Computer Science at Tel Aviv University. As Co-founder and CTO of AironWorks, he drives technical strategy and product development.

■ About AironWorks

AironWorks is a startup providing an AI-powered cybersecurity training platform. Developed by engineers from the Israel Defense Forces Unit 8200, it strengthens companies' "human defense capabilities" through targeted email training and SMS/SNS training that replicates actual cyber attacker methods. With over 1,250 companies adopting the service, it is also deployed through major partners such as Dentsu Soken, Marubeni Information Systems, and SB C&S.

AironWorks Company Overview

AironWorks is "Enhancing Teams with AI" as its Mission, contributing to the realization of a better society by empowering working people and teams through its AI Agent platform for cybersecurity and corporate risk management, developed at its global R&D base.

・Company Name: AironWorks Inc.

・Representative: Katsuhi Terada

・Location: 1-10-5 Toranomon, Minato-ku, Tokyo

・Founded: August 2021

・Business: Planning, design, development, construction, management, maintenance, operation, sales, education, and consulting for cybersecurity services.