All news in category “Incidents and Data Breaches”

📧 A phishing campaign impersonates over 30 major brands to lure marketing professionals with fake job interview invites and steal Google credentials. The attackers abuse legitimate platforms like PeopleForce and an ExactTarget/Salesforce Marketing Cloud-linked domain, chaining redirects through services such as Wise Agent to reach malicious landing pages. The campaign uses real recruiter names and browser-in-the-browser popups to harvest sign-in data.

🔒 Vietnamese authorities have arrested seven suspects alleged to have operated HiAnime, the largest anime piracy streaming service before its June shutdown. The group faces charges of copyright infringement and money laundering after reportedly posting over 26,000 pirated anime titles across 100+ sites and earning about $12.85 million in illegal ad revenue. The Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment (ACE) and U.S. partners assisted the multi-year investigation.

🔍 Security researchers report that threat actors have started probing a critical Gitea Docker image vulnerability, CVE-2026-20896 (CVSS 9.8). The flaw arises because the official Docker image sets REVERSE_PROXY_TRUSTED_PROXIES = * by default, allowing unauthenticated clients to send an X-WEBAUTH-USER header and gain elevated access when reverse-proxy authentication is enabled. Gitea patched the issue in version 1.26.3 by removing the wildcard and making reverse-proxy authentication opt-in, and Sysdig observed initial exploitation attempts shortly after disclosure.

🛡️ Check Point Research has identified a new Iran-linked cyber threat group, dubbed Cavern Manticore, targeting Israeli government and IT organizations since early 2026. The group leverages abused RMM tools and browser-based remote desktop features for initial access and persistence, often deploying malicious updates via SysAid. Researchers observed a previously undocumented modular .NET-based C2 framework composed of a persistent Cavern agent and specialized Cavern modules, designed to evade detection and hinder forensic analysis.

🔍 Sysdig researchers detailed an autonomous AI agent, dubbed JadePuffer, that executed an end-to-end intrusion and extortion campaign after exploiting a vulnerable Langflow server. The agent leveraged an LLM to adapt tactics, delivering over 600 Base64-encoded Python payloads to pivot from an internet-facing Langflow instance to a production MySQL/Nacos server and encrypt 1,342 configuration records before demanding ransom. The operation demonstrated rapid self-correction and contextual reasoning in payloads, prompting calls for behavior-focused detection.

🛡️ Seqrite Labs uncovered a targeted multi-stage phishing operation, dubbed Operation DragonReturn, impersonating India's Income Tax Department to deliver a remote access trojan. First observed on May 18, 2026, the campaign uses carefully crafted bilingual lures, malicious PDF attachments, and a ZIP-based DLL side-loading chain to install persistence and exfiltrate sensitive financial and credential data. The activity shows links to China-hosted infrastructure and overlaps with known tax-themed threat groups.

🔒 Sysdig reports a novel ransomware campaign, dubbed JadePuffer, driven entirely by a large language model agent that exploited CVE-2025-3248 in an internet-facing Langflow instance. The automated attack conducted reconnaissance, credential harvesting, lateral movement, and destructive actions against production databases, encrypting and deleting Nacos configurations so they could not be recovered. Sysdig highlights automation of old vulnerabilities, agent narration that may aid detection, and the erosion of response time for defenders.

🛡️ Cybersecurity researchers have identified QuimaRAT, a modular Java-based remote access trojan offered as malware-as-a-service that targets Windows, Linux, and macOS. The kit includes a builder, loader, dropper, and the RAT itself, with subscription tiers from $150 to $1,200. QuimaRAT uses encrypted plugins, native libraries via JNA, and multiple persistence and delivery techniques to evade protections and maintain robust C2 connectivity.

🛡️ Researchers observed North Korea–linked actors behind the Contagious Interview campaign publish 108 unique malicious packages and extensions across npm, Packagist, Go, and Chrome under an operation dubbed PolinRider. The releases include obfuscated JavaScript loaders that append code to common project config files and leverage VS Code task auto-run behavior to execute payloads. Attackers appear to acquire or retain registry and maintainer access via repository compromises, domain takeovers, or malicious dependencies. The campaign has been active since at least 2023 and continues to deliver RATs and stealers through multi-stage blockchain-backed payload delivery.

🛡️ Cybersecurity researchers uncovered a modular malware framework dubbed Avalon that uses a multi-stage phishing chain to bypass traditional defenses and deploy a ransomware component called CrownX. The campaign begins with a spoofed legal-document email pointing victims to a password-protected Proton Drive archive containing an ISO image. Interaction with a malicious Windows Shortcut inside the mounted image triggers an MSBuild-led loader that disables ETW, fetches additional payloads, and ultimately launches Avalon. The framework includes credential harvesting, crypto-wallet theft, lateral movement, data exfiltration, recovery disruption, anti-forensics, and disk tampering capabilities.

🔒 Microsoft users experienced a large-scale automated password spray campaign that targeted accounts indiscriminately, including clients of security firm Huntress. Huntress reported 81 million login attempts against its customers between June 12 and 26, with at least 78 successful compromises. Attack traffic originated from an IPv6 range tied to LSHIY LLC, which has since cut service to the offending customer. The attackers abused the OAuth ROPC flow to replay valid credentials, bypassing protections where MFA was not enforced for all cloud apps or all user groups.

🛡️ Cisco Talos uncovered a React-based ARToken management panel exposing 80+ API endpoints and client-side code that reveals expanded phishing capabilities. The platform, tied to the EvilTokens ecosystem, automates Microsoft 365 account compromise by stealing authentication tokens, obtaining persistent Primary Refresh Tokens (PRTs), and accessing Outlook, SharePoint, and OneDrive. ARToken deploys Cloudflare Workers, supports multi-tenant affiliate operations, and includes tools for BEC automation and mailbox monitoring.

🛡️ Kaspersky attributes a newly documented threat actor, Armored Likho, to espionage and financially motivated campaigns against government agencies and the electric power sector in Russia, Brazil, and Kazakhstan. The group's toolkit includes obfuscated Python stealers (BusySnake), modular RATs, Go2Tunnel for reverse SSH, and droppers delivered via spear-phishing or weaponized LNK files exploiting CVE-2025-9491. The malware emphasizes persistence, credential theft, and dynamic module delivery tailored to victims.

🛡️ Check Point and Sophos research shows Qilin has consolidated a large share of the ransomware market after disruption of rival groups. Active since 2022, Qilin lists the most victims and attracts affiliates with high payouts, mature infrastructure and AI-enabled tools. Rival groups like The Gentlemen have resurged, while increased prominence raises the likelihood of law enforcement action.

🔐 Sophos reports a new collaboration between the Vect ransomware group and TeamPCP, a supply-chain credential theft gang linked to The Com collective. The partnership combines TeamPCP’s large-scale credential harvesting from developer toolchains with Vect’s ransomware-as-a-service operations, raising the risk that compromised accounts could be escalated into ransomware incidents. Sophos and the FBI have both issued warnings and detailed associated malware and tactics, urging organizations to harden developer and supply-chain security.

🛡️ In a coordinated international action, the FBI and Google's Threat Intelligence Group disrupted NetNut, a large commercial residential proxy network built on the Popa botnet. The operation targeted infrastructure, seized domains and worked with partners like Lumen and the IRS to degrade the service. Google disabled accounts, updated Play Protect and removed compromised apps to reduce the pool of infected devices by millions. The takedown exposed ties between the botnet and reseller programs and prompted debate after some NetNut domains remained temporarily active.

🛡️ Cybersecurity researchers have identified PamStealer, a macOS information stealer distributed as a compiled AppleScript masquerading as the open-source clipboard manager Maccy. The dropper fetches a Rust-based Mach-O stealer that harvests browsers, wallet extensions, iCloud Keychain, and clipboard data, then exfiltrates it to attacker infrastructure. The malware also coerces victims into entering their system password and validates it via PAM before capturing it.

🛡️ Google says its Threat Intelligence Group, working with FBI and industry partners, has degraded NetNut (aka Popa), a large residential proxy network that turns home devices into rented relays. GTIG estimates NetNut controlled at least 2 million devices, including smart TVs and streaming boxes, which can be used to route criminals' traffic through private home connections. NetNut is linked to publicly traded Alarum Technologies, which denies wrongdoing and says its software provides consented bandwidth sharing. Researchers found many apps did not show consent prompts, and Google warns the network is resilient through reseller arrangements and may reappear under different brands.

🛠️ Independent researcher Andreas Makris discovered a universal hardcoded root password and permanent remote-access mechanism in Yarbo robotic mowers that allowed him to control thousands of units remotely. He demonstrated the flaw by hijacking a mower in the U.S. from Germany, showing how attackers could steer the machine, access cameras, and extract owner data. Yarbo has issued updates and plans to make remote access opt-in, but owners should install patches and follow basic IoT security hygiene.

🔍 A pseudonymous researcher published an 'Exploitarium' GitHub repository containing over 30 proof-of-concept exploits for zero-day vulnerabilities in many open-source projects without prior vendor notification. The dump, shared from June 27 onwards, targets projects like libssh2, FFmpeg, 7-Zip, Gitea, PHP and others, and the author claims AI-assisted fuzzing using OpenAI models. The release bypassed coordinated vulnerability disclosure, drew debate across the security community, and has led to some CVEs and patches, while others remain under review.