Search: “data theft”

13 stories in the last 3d

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DomainAll Cyber AIWindow24h 3d 7d 30d AllIn the wild Important only Show duplicates

CategoryAll Threat actor 16 Malware 12 Data breach 7 Advisory 6 Phishing & fraud 5 Exploit / PoC 5 Vulnerability 4 Policy & legal 3 Research 3 AI safety & security 2 Industry 1 Tools 1

SeverityAll critical 4 high 23 medium 26 low 1 info 11

BlackHatSect0r Uses DeepSeek-Powered AI Agent to Automate Attacks and Harvest 16,834 Credentials

SOCRadar linked the BlackHatSect0r crew to a DeepSeek-powered AI agent that automated scanning and harvested 16,834 credentials from exposed systems.

SOCRadar researchers found an exposed operation server with 4.9 GB across 9,299 files, including the DXSCAN scanning platform, phishing tools, extortion material and a vault holding 16,834 credentials such as AWS keys, GitHub tokens and Stripe keys. The French-speaking crew ran a Nous Research Hermes agent against a DeepSeek model with safety features removed, queuing 2,759,860 domains and reaching 726,989 hosts. Access came from misconfigurations like public cloud buckets and exposed .env files, not new vulnerabilities.

Cyber Security News09:59 UTC · 2h agoThreat actor in the wild 4 sources1

Threat actors are coming for your AI assets to operationalize their use of AI

Google GTIG reports espionage and crime groups stealing AI models, prompts, and API credentials, plus distillation campaigns and agentic AI attack automation.

Google Threat Intelligence Group's quarterly AI Threat Tracker reports adversaries stealing proprietary models, source code, prompts, and API credentials from government, healthcare, and media targets, including China-based UNC6508 compromising clouds to run unauthorized LLM workloads. Distillation campaigns against Google's models exceeded 100 million prompts launched via thousands of stolen account credentials through proxy networks. Mandiant also observed a financially motivated actor deploy an autonomous multi-agent framework that harvested thousands of third-party credentials in under 6 hours, and a 'Recon' framework on a live C2 server managing over 23,000 stolen credentials including cloud and AI API keys.

CSO OnlineSep 15, 08:25 UTC · 2d agoThreat actor in the wild

Iranian cyber targeting of dissidents, activists and journalists

UK NCSC, FBI, and Dutch AIVD expose CHOSEN BRICK spyware used by Iranian state actors against dissidents, activists, and journalists worldwide.

A joint advisory from the UK NCSC, FBI, and Dutch AIVD details CHOSEN BRICK, a Windows spyware family used by Iranian state cyber actors since at least 2025 against dissidents, activists, and journalists in the UK, US, and Netherlands. Actors build rapport on WhatsApp and Telegram impersonating known contacts or platform support, then deliver disguised payloads resembling apps such as Telegram, Norton, RunwayML, or fake MRI results. The malware persists via HKCU Run registry keys, adds Microsoft Defender exclusions, and uses a unique Telegram bot C2 per victim. Capabilities include screen capture, microphone recording, process enumeration, email and messaging data theft, file deletion, and system wiping; victim data has appeared on pro-Iranian leak sites.

NCSC UKSep 15, 12:00 UTC · 2d agoThreat actor in the wild2

APT36 Uses USB-Spreading Malware to Reach Air-Gapped Government Networks

Zscaler attributes the RapidRust campaign by Pakistan-linked APT36 to USB-propagating Rust malware targeting air-gapped government networks in India and Afghanistan.

Zscaler identified in August 2026 a campaign tracked as RapidRust in which APT36 uses infected removable drives to reach air-gapped government environments in India and Afghanistan. RUSTYMOVE, a Rust USB-spreading utility, copies a fake-PDF shortcut and the RUSTYSHADE backdoor to removable media; RUSTYSHADE uses attacker-controlled private GitHub repositories for C2, running shell commands, capturing screenshots and webcam images, while PSNATCH and BASHNATCH steal files. Operators enumerated users, shares, and remote administrative shares to expand beyond initial victims, with payloads staged on lookalike domains mimicking Indian media outlets and Backblaze B2 storage.

Cyber Security News10:17 UTC · 2h agoThreat actor in the wild 3 sources

Iranian hackers use CHOSEN BRICK Windows malware to spy on targets

Iranian state-linked hackers use CHOSEN BRICK Windows malware, spread via Telegram and WhatsApp social engineering, to spy on dissidents and journalists worldwide.

US, UK, and Dutch cyber agencies with the FBI issued a joint advisory on Iranian state-linked hackers deploying a Windows malware strain called CHOSEN BRICK against dissidents, activists, and journalists, primarily in the US, UK, and Netherlands. Attacks begin with messages on WhatsApp or Telegram impersonating trusted contacts or technical support, tricking victims into running malicious files disguised as apps such as Pictory, RunwayML, Norton Antivirus, Telegram, and KeePass. The malware persists via Registry Run keys, adds Microsoft Defender exclusions, and uses a per-victim Telegram bot for command-and-control while stealing email, Telegram and WhatsApp data, screenshots, and audio. Stolen data is exfiltrated via Telegram or cloud services like VultrObjects and StorjShare, and sometimes appears on pro-Iranian leak sites, increasing physical risk for dissidents abroad.

BleepingComputerupdated 07:25 UTC · 5h agofirst Sep 16, 20:24 UTC · 16h agoThreat actor in the wild 7 sources

North Korean IT Workers Use AI and Remote Desktop Tools to Fake Technical Interviews

Silent Push links a Discord recruitment scheme to North Korean IT workers using AI, remote desktop tools and on-camera proxies to pass technical interviews.

Silent Push assessed with moderate-to-high confidence that a representative known as Tec Guru, recruiting on-camera proxies via a Mouse Review Discord advertisement, is a North Korean IT worker. The scheme proposed a 65/35 revenue split with the hidden worker, live coaching through Google Meet, AI tools including ChatGPT to fill knowledge gaps, and remote access tools such as AnyDesk, TeamViewer, and Chrome Remote Desktop during coding exercises. Fraudulent hires can gain insider access enabling data theft, extortion, payroll fraud, and sanctions exposure; a July 31, 2026 multinational warning urged stronger identity checks and payment scrutiny.

Cyber Security News11:56 UTC · 1h agoThreat actor

FamousSparrow Exploits Public-Facing Exchange Servers to Deploy SparroWocky Backdoor

ESET attributes a new SparroWocky backdoor to espionage group FamousSparrow, deployed via exploited internet-facing Exchange servers across Latin American governments.

ESET's Welivesecurity team reports FamousSparrow gained initial access by exploiting publicly reachable Microsoft Exchange servers, with roughly 90 percent of targets since mid-2025 in Latin America, including governments in Argentina, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico, and Venezuela. The group's new modular C-language backdoor SparroWocky replaces SparrowDoor and uses a three-part loader: a legitimate executable, a malicious DLL side-loaded in memory, and an encrypted payload. It persists via Windows services or Registry Run keys, supports screenshots, file operations, TCP proxying, Beacon Object Files, TLS/RC4-encrypted C2, and anti-forensics such as call-stack spoofing. IOCs including loader SHA-1 hashes and C2 IP addresses were published.

Cyber Security News11:20 UTC · 1h agoThreat actor in the wild 3 sources

China-Linked Hackers Exploit Chrome-Windows Zero-Day Chain to Deploy GRIMWEDGE

Volexity attributes spear-phishing campaign exploiting Chrome-Windows zero-day chain to Chinese actors UTA0560 and APT31 deploying GRIMWEDGE and LONGTALE.

Volexity attributes a September 1, 2026 spear-phishing campaign targeting NGOs to China-linked UTA0560, which abused a reflected XSS flaw on a US university website to trigger a three-part exploit chain (CVE-2026-85046, CVE-2026-87491, CVE-2026-85880) escaping the Chrome V8 and browser sandboxes to deploy the GRIMWEDGE JavaScript backdoor with reconnaissance, file management, and command execution capabilities. The same chain was used near-simultaneously by JungleBamboo (APT31) to deploy SUPERSTOMP, installing the LONGTALE/GemStone credential-stealing Chrome extension masquerading as Google Gemini. The Chrome flaws were patched in Chromium but not yet in stable Chrome, creating an unusual patch-gap zero-day window attackers raced to exploit.

The Hacker Newsupdated Sep 15, 10:17 UTC · 2d agofirst Sep 15, 05:31 UTC · 2d agoThreat actor in the wild 8 sources CVE-2026-85046 CVE-2026-87491 CVE-2026-858801· 1 read

Red Heron Exploits Gitea RCE to Compromise 13 Organizations Across Six Countries

China-linked Red Heron exploited Gitea RCE CVE-2026-60004 to compromise 13 organizations across six countries, stealing source code.

Acronis Threat Research Unit attributes a China-nexus actor tracked as Red Heron to rapid exploitation of Gitea RCE CVE-2026-60004, scanning 1,386 instances across seven countries plus 477 Taiwan-based systems, with confirmed compromises of 13 organizations in Canada, Argentina, Taiwan, the U.S., Qatar, and Sri Lanka. Within days of the July 2026 disclosure, the actor weaponized a public PoC into an automated Python framework registering accounts, exploiting servers, stealing repositories, and removing traces, then deployed the JITTERLY C++ Linux implant (30+ post-exploitation commands) and the undocumented SIXZUT LD_PRELOAD rootkit. In one Taiwanese environment the actor reached root-level access across a three-node Proxmox cluster, targeting defense, elections, energy, aerospace, telecom, government, and research sectors.

The Hacker Newsupdated Sep 15, 11:16 UTC · 2d agofirst Sep 14, 16:56 UTC · 2d agoThreat actor in the wild 3 sources CVE-2026-60004

Hackers Abuse VSSAdmin to Extract NTDS.dit and Delete Windows Recovery Copies

Huntress details intruders using PsExec and VSSAdmin on domain controllers to steal NTDS.dit credentials and delete shadow copies before ransomware.

Huntress analysts identified attackers launching SYSTEM-level command shells via PsExec on a domain controller, then running 'vssadmin create shadow' to snapshot and copy the NTDS.dit Active Directory database. Shadow copies were later deleted to destroy local recovery options ahead of a likely ransomware stage. Huntress recommends correlating VSS creation/deletion events with remote execution, DNS enumeration, and lateral movement rather than alerting on any single VSS event.

Cyber Security NewsSep 15, 08:29 UTC · 2d agoThreat actor in the wild

Tajin Group: Guarantee Marketplace Vendor Involved in Phishing and Chinese Money Laundering Group

Recorded Future details Tajin Group, a Chinese-speaking vendor on Telegram guarantee marketplaces running phishing, carding, and money laundering operations targeting Chinese banks.

Insikt Group analyzed Tajin Group, a Chinese-speaking threat actor operating on Telegram-based guarantee marketplaces Dabai Guarantee and, since May 2026, Xinbi Guarantee. The group conducts phishing, payment card theft, and money laundering targeting mainland Chinese citizens and banks, testing stolen cards from twelve countries on platforms like CCAvenue and Geidea. Operators bought and sold at least 100 Telegram usernames and anonymous virtual numbers via Fragment Market to strengthen OPSEC, linking multiple usernames to single Telegram accounts. Recorded Future warns Tajin Group's TTPs are likely to be replicated by other vendors on Chinese-language guarantee marketplaces at global scale.

Recorded FutureSep 15, 00:00 UTC · 2d agoThreat actor

NightEagle Hackers Abuse Microsoft Dev Tunnels and GhostContainer to Breach Russian Companies

NightEagle (APT-Q-95) breached Russian firms using stolen VPN credentials, a GhostContainer Exchange backdoor, Dev Tunnels abuse, and DCSync.

Kaspersky's Securelink analysts, via Securelist, documented NightEagle (APT-Q-95) attacks on Russian companies that begin with VPN logins using stolen valid credentials from Cloudflare WARP and European infrastructure. On Exchange servers the group deployed GhostContainer, a .NET backdoor built from public components including Neo-reGeorg tunneling, CVE-2020-0688 logic, and the GhostWebShell class, controlled through Exchange web headers. The operators exposed RDP through Microsoft Dev Tunnels paired with rdp2tcp, staged tools in GitHub repositories, and exploited BlueKeep (CVE-2019-0708) to create admin accounts before running DCSync against Active Directory.

Cyber Security News07:55 UTC · 5h agoThreat actor in the wild 5 sources CVE-2020-0688 CVE-2019-0708

Hackers Are Hiding Espionage Infrastructure Inside Ordinary-Looking Casino Websites

Infoblox links China-aligned APT PeckBirdy C2 infrastructure hidden in casino and adult websites targeting Asian government, finance, IT, and education sectors.

Infoblox researchers report that China-aligned APT groups have used casino and adult websites as cover for PeckBirdy, a JavaScript command-and-control framework active since 2023. The sites embed C2 servers, register service workers for persistence, and serve fake browser-update prompts delivering backdoors capable of running commands, stealing credentials, and providing remote access. Targeted sectors across Asia include education, IT, banking, financial services, and government. Just over 3% of Infoblox enterprise customers resolved at least one PeckBirdy C2 domain, with detection coverage on VirusTotal ranging from 13 detections to none.

Cyber Security NewsSep 16, 11:44 UTC · 1d agoThreat actor 2 sources