Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming industries, promising to deliver work faster and cheaper than ever before. Organisations are understandably eager to leverage this power. However, a worrying trend is emerging: a flood of low-quality, inaccurate, and sometimes nonsensical content often referred to as “AI slop”.
In the rush for efficiency, it is crucial to remember a fundamental principle: the “Fast, Cheap, Quality” triangle. The rule states that you can pick any two options, but you cannot have all three.
- If you want something fast and cheap, it will not be high-quality.
- If you want something fast and high-quality, it will not be cheap.
- If you want something cheap and high-quality, it will not be fast.
Much of the current AI boom is built on the promise of “fast and cheap”. By this logic, the one element being sacrificed is quality. In professional fields like cybersecurity, law, or finance, compromising on quality is not just a minor issue—it can be a critical, high-stakes risk.
A Familiar Pattern: From Calculators to AI
This pattern of technology acting as a “fast and cheap” tool is not new. Consider the invention of the calculator and, later, spreadsheet software. These tools automated the most time-consuming parts of accounting: calculation and ledger management.
Did this eliminate accountants? No. It transformed the industry.
It made basic bookkeeping accessible to everyone, but it also made the role of the expert financial auditor more critical than ever. Today, even the largest banks—organisations with thousands of internal accountants—are required to use external audit firms. This is to provide an independent, high-quality validation that the internal work is correct, compliant, and free from the very errors the tools can introduce at scale.
Real-World Risk: “AI Slop” in the Courts
AI is proving to be no different. The consequences of relying on it without proper oversight are already clear. A recent report from The Indian Express highlighted a growing problem in the legal profession where lawyers have used AI to write court filings.
In several instances, the AI “hallucinated”—or simply invented—fake legal cases and precedents. These fabricated citations were then presented in official court documents. This “AI slop” was quickly identified by opposing counsel and judges, leading to professional sanctions and significant reputational damage. This is the modern cost of a “fast and cheap” solution, costing more than the time and money saved using AI slop.
The New Default: The Rise of the External Expert
AI is following the exact same path as the calculator, but for more complex fields like cybersecurity, law, and finance. It will become a default tool used internally by all companies to draft policies, review code, or create initial legal contracts.
However, just as with accounting, this internal efficiency creates an essential, non-negotiable need for external, independent validation.
Relying only on internal teams using AI is like a company auditing its own finances—it is fraught with the potential for missed errors, hidden bias, and costly “AI slop”. The future of these professions is a new industry standard where all companies, regardless of size, must use external specialists for validation.
For a quality outcome, this will require all companies to use an external law firm to review AI-drafted contracts and, critically, an external cybersecurity firm for penetration tests and audits. This is the only way to prove that the systems, policies, and code produced with AI’s help are genuinely secure.
Quality and Expertise Must Come First
In cybersecurity, “good enough” is never sufficient. A “fast and cheap” security policy or a purely automated scan provides a dangerous illusion of security. The most robust security posture comes from using the best tools in the hands of the best experts, with independent validation.
Navigating the complexities of new technology and cybersecurity can be challenging. If your organisation is looking to enhance its security posture with proven, high-quality strategies and expert guidance, contact the team at Vertex Cyber Security.