The hidden network: Inside the phishing infrastructure ecosystem powering global cybercrime


Over the past year, Microsoft uncovered a Chinese-language cybercriminal ecosystem, an interconnected network of phishing kit operators, developers, and an illicit marketplace selling tools and infrastructure for large-scale phishing, enabling cybercriminal operations worldwide.

Threat actors purchased and used these tools and infrastructure, including phishing kits and access to compromised or fraudulent Microsoft or Google cloud environments and related credentials, to target organizations across the healthcare, financial services, wholesale distribution, and information technology (IT) sectors in Japan, the United States, Australia, and India. In collaboration with law enforcement agencies and other partners worldwide, Microsoft’s Digital Crimes Unit (DCU) facilitated a disruption of the ecosystem’s primary developers and infrastructure.

Read more…
Source:  Microsoft


Sign up for the Cyber Security Review Newsletter
The latest cyber security news and insights delivered right to your inbox


Related:

  • Match, Hinge, OkCupid, and Panera Bread breached by ransomware group

    January 30, 2026

    The ShinyHunters ransomware group has claimed the theft of data containing 10 million records belonging to the Match Group and 14 million records from bakery-café chain Panera Bread. The Match Group, that runs multiple popular online dating services like Tinder, Match.com, Meetic, OkCupid, and Hinge has confirmed a cyber incident and is investigating the data breach. ...

  • Marquis confirms data breach, point finger of blame at SonicWall firewall

    January 30, 2026

    Marquis, a US fintech company building software for banks and credit unions, has confirmed suffering a ransomware attack and losing sensitive customer data, but shifted the blame onto its firewall provider, SonicWall. In mid-September 2025, SonicWall warned its firewall customers to reset their passwords after unnamed threat actors brute-forced their way into the company’s MySonicWall ...

  • Supply chain attack on eScan antivirus: detecting and remediating malicious updates

    January 29, 2026

    On January 20, a supply chain attack has occurred, with the infected software being the eScan antivirus developed by an Indian company MicroWorld Technologies. The previously unknown malware was distributed through the eScan update server. The same day, our security solutions detected and prevented cyberattacks involving this malware. On January 21, having been informed by Morphisec, ...

  • SoundCloud data breach hit 29.8 million accounts

    January 28, 2026

    TechRadar now have confirmation exactly how many people were affected by the December 2025 breach at SoundCloud, as well as how users can check if they are affected. In mid-December 2025, SoundCloud confirmed suffering a cyberattack and losing sensitive data on about 20% of its user base – approximately 28 million people. The company did not ...

  • No Agency Is Too Small

    January 28, 2026

    Back when nation-state threat actors were primarily targeting large government agencies, government contractors, and large companies, security through obscurity was a legitimate strategy. In years past, betting that attackers wouldn’t bother with smaller targets was a feasible way of operating. It’s feasible no longer. Hackers are better equipped than ever before, thanks in part to artificial ...

  • HoneyMyte updates CoolClient and deploys multiple stealers in recent campaigns

    January 27, 2026

    Over the past few years, we’ve been observing and monitoring the espionage activities of HoneyMyte (aka Mustang Panda or Bronze President) within Asia and Europe, with the Southeast Asia region being the most affected. The primary targets of most of the group’s campaigns were government entities. As an APT group, HoneyMyte uses a variety of sophisticated tools ...