Bjorn R. Watne, the global chief information security officer for INTERPOL, states that effective defense against artificial intelligence (AI) threats begins with identifying a company’s "crown jewels"—its most sensitive and valuable data or assets. Speaking at Tech Week Singapore in early 2026, Watne explained that AI is primarily being used by criminals to accelerate familiar fraudulent tactics, such as business email compromise and phishing, rather than inventing entirely new categories of crime. For the crypto industry, this means that the speed at which attackers can target exchange wallets or user credentials has reached unprecedented levels.
The rise of generative AI in 2026 has allowed malicious actors to conduct sophisticated social engineering at a scale that was previously impossible. In the cryptocurrency sector, this manifests as highly personalized deepfake scams and automated bots that can interact with thousands of potential victims simultaneously to steal private keys or manipulate market sentiment. Watne’s "crown jewels" strategy suggests that instead of trying to defend every perimeter equally, firms must isolate and apply multi-layered security—such as multi-party computation (MPC) and strict hardware-based access controls—to their most vital liquidity pools and data silos.
From a regulatory and geopolitical perspective, INTERPOL’s focus on AI defense reflects a broader 2026 trend where international law enforcement is urging the private sector to take a more proactive role in cybersecurity. US agencies, including the FBI and the Secret Service, have echoed these concerns as AI-assisted "pig butchering" scams continue to drain billions from American retail investors. The emphasis is shifting toward building resilient infrastructure that assumes a breach is possible, focusing instead on ensuring that the most critical assets remain inaccessible to automated exploits.
Moving forward through 2026, market participants should watch for new INTERPOL-led security frameworks specifically designed for digital asset service providers. As AI tools become even more accessible to low-level cybercriminals, the ability of a crypto project to demonstrate robust protection of its "crown jewels" will likely become a key metric for investor trust and institutional adoption. Companies that fail to adapt their defensive posture to account for machine-learning-based threats risk significant financial losses and regulatory scrutiny in an increasingly volatile security landscape.