Performance Transfer and Behavioral Reliance in AI-Assisted Cybersecurity Training
In Plain Terms
People do better at spotting cyber threats when an AI assistant helps them — but do they actually learn anything they keep once the assistant is taken away? In this six-week pilot with graduate students, AI support boosted performance during training, yet participants’ unaided skills afterward were no better than before. The study finds that heavy reliance on the AI predicted less learning, and argues that training programs should measure what trainees can do without the tool, not just with it.
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APA Clark, K., Ampel, B. M., & Ramesh, B. (2026). Performance Transfer and Behavioral Reliance in AI-Assisted Cybersecurity Training. In Proceedings of the 2026 IEEE Cyber Awareness and Research Symposium (CARS).
BibTeX
@inproceedings{clark2026performance,
title={Performance Transfer and Behavioral Reliance in AI-Assisted Cybersecurity Training},
author={Kameron Clark and Benjamin M. Ampel and Balasubramaniam Ramesh},
booktitle={Proceedings of the 2026 IEEE Cyber Awareness and Research Symposium (CARS)},
year={2026}
}
Benjamin M. Ampel
Assistant Professor in Computer Information Systems and Director, Center for CyberAI Research (CCAIR)
My research focuses on AI-enabled Cybersecurity, including Cyber Threat Intelligence, Large Language Models, and Phishing Detection.