From August–September 2026, Chinese-speaking attackers used an open-source AI penetration testing framework called Cairn to autonomously conduct 25 operations against at least 19 organizations. The attackers weaponized Cairn by pairing it with Chinese AI models Zhipu GLM and DeepSeek.
The attackers supplied a target and a goal, then Cairn planned, executed and recorded results on its own. These attacks achieved unauthorized access or data retrieval at 10 of the targeted organizations, including:
- Accessing dozens of valid credentials
- Mass exposing personal data (exceeding one million records at one organization)
- Retrieving military and government identities
- Creating persistent administrator accounts in a production system
- Modifying a live industry standards-ballot document
Read more…
Source: Palo Alto Unit 42
Sign up for the Cyber Security Review Newsletter
The latest cyber security news and insights delivered right to your inbox
Related:
- Hacker releases Georgia county’s election-related files
October 29, 2020
Hackers on Tuesday released a sample of stolen election-related documents from networks in Hall County, Ga., as part of their efforts to pressure county officials into paying a ransom for control of the files. The Wall Street Journal reported that the batch of files, which were largely administrative and nonsensitive in nature, came as part of ...
- Brooklyn & Vermont hospitals are latest Ryuk ransomware victims
October 29, 2020
Wyckoff Heights Medical Center in Brooklyn and the University of Vermont Health Network are the latest victims of the Ryuk ransomware attack spree covering the healthcare industry across the U.S. Yesterday, the U.S. government hosted an emergency call with stakeholders in the healthcare industry to alert them to an “increased and imminent cybercrime threat to U.S. ...
- Threat Assessment: Ryuk Ransomware and Trickbot Targeting U.S. Healthcare and Public Health Sector
October 29, 2020
On Oct. 28, 2020, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released a joint cybersecurity alert regarding an increased and imminent cybersecurity threat to the U.S. healthcare system. Threat operators have displayed a heightened interest in targeting the healthcare and the public ...
- Domain Parking: A Gateway to Attackers Spreading Emotet and Impersonating McAfee
October 29, 2020
Domain parking services offer a simple solution for domain owners to monetize their sites’ traffic through third-party advertisements. While domain parking might appear harmless at first glance, parked domains pose significant threats, as they can redirect visitors to malicious or unwanted landing pages or turn entirely malicious at any point in time. We have been detecting ...
- FBI warning: Trickbot and ransomware attackers plan big hit on US hospitals
October 29, 2020
US healthcare providers, already under pressure from the COVID-19 pandemic, have been put on high alert over Trickbot malware and ransomware targeting the sector. The warning over an “imminent cybercrime threat to US hospitals and healthcare providers” comes from the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), ...
- Maze ransomware is shutting down its cybercrime operation
October 29, 2020
The Maze cybercrime gang is shutting down its operations after rising to become one of the most prominent players performing ransomware attacks. The Maze ransomware began operating in May 2019 but became more active in November. That’s when the media-savvy operation revolutionized ransomware attacks by introducing a double-extortion tactic. Read more… Source: Bleeping Computer