Tag: dark web
60 articles

23andMe Breach Settlement Imposes $18 Million Penalty
New York Attorney General Letitia James slammed 23andMe for its lax security, saying the company's failure to protect customer data put millions at risk. The criticism comes as part of a settlement that hits 23andMe with an $18 million penalty for its role in a massive data breach.

UK Man Jailed for Inciting Swatting Attacks Globally
A Welsh man has been jailed for encouraging swatting attacks worldwide, a stark reminder that this so-called prank can have deadly consequences. Callum Dare, 26, played a key role in a dark web forum, fueling a campaign of harassment and terror that spanned three countries.

Ex-Con Ransomware Negotiator Sentenced for BlackCat Attacks
A former ransomware negotiator, Angelo Martino, has been sentenced to 70 months in prison for his role in a string of BlackCat ransomware attacks that targeted multiple victims between 2023 and 2025. Martino's guilty plea brings to justice a key player in the notorious ALPHV ransomware gang.

Algerian Man Charged with Running Cybercrime Marketplaces
Meet the Algerian man behind a daring cybercrime scheme that swindled hundreds of thousands of dollars from thousands of victims - all from the safety of his anonymous online hideout. He allegedly ran two illicit marketplaces, selling stolen bank account and credit card numbers, phishing kits, and other tools of financial fraud.

Threat Actors Monetize Stolen Credentials with Searchable Underground Services
Cybercriminals are cashing in on stolen credentials with a new breed of underground services that allow buyers to search and purchase specific, verified login details. This emerging market acts as a middleman between hackers who steal sensitive info and those who want to use it to take over accounts.

Cybercriminals Worry AI Tools Will Disrupt Their Illicit Trade
Cybercriminals are getting anxious about the impact of AI tools on their illicit trade, and experts warn that now is the time for organizations to step up their cyber hygiene game with measures like timely patching, multifactor authentication, and passkey use. By prioritizing these defenses, businesses can stay ahead of emerging threats, including AI-assisted attacks.

Dark Web Exposes Early Warning Signs of Supply-Chain Attacks
Attackers are quietly buying and selling access to trusted integrations, developer accounts, and unattended credentials on the dark web, revealing early warning signs of supply-chain attacks. Monitoring underground forums for these subtle signals can help flag potential risks long before a breach makes headlines.

Europol Disrupts Major Crypto Laundering Service Linked to Ransomware Gangs
Europol's operation has cut off a major crypto laundering service linked to ransomware gangs, freezing hundreds of millions in illicit profits and disrupting a key financial pipeline used by criminals. The crackdown seized over €86,000 in cash, froze €692,000 in cryptocurrency, and took down 25 domains and 30 servers.

US Crackdown Targets Dark Web Drug Trafficker with 26-Year Sentence
In a major victory for justice, Darren Hughes, a 39-year-old dark web drug trafficker, has been sentenced to over 26 years in federal prison for peddling poison to unsuspecting victims. This harsh sentence sends a strong message to those who think they can hide behind the anonymity of the dark web.

Europol Disrupts Migrant Smugglers' Fake ID Marketplace
Europol has successfully disrupted a major online marketplace selling fake IDs to migrant smugglers across Europe, dealing a significant blow to cross-border crime. The operation, led by French authorities and carried out by Spanish police, resulted in the arrest of one suspect and the seizure of 800 counterfeit identity documents.

AI-Powered Cybercrime Tools Flood Dark Web Marketplaces
The dark web has seen a staggering 3,810% surge in AI-powered cybercrime tools, with posts skyrocketing from 38 in December to 1,486 in February, signaling a new wave of threats. This alarming trend has experts like Cynthia Kaiser, SVP of the Ransomware Research Center at Halcyon, warning that cyber threats have become the "national security challenge of our lifetime."

FBI Disrupts Online Child Abuse Ring Linked to Violent Extremist Collective
The feds have taken down a predator, arresting a Tennessee man linked to a violent extremist collective for exploiting vulnerable children online. Zachary Sweeney, 30, faces up to 50 years in prison for his heinous crimes, including sexual exploitation and distributing child abuse material.

Authorities Arrest Suspect Tied to Dream Market Operations
A suspect linked to the notorious Dream Market operations, Owe Martin Andresen, has been taken into custody on cross-border charges of money laundering, facing penalties in both the US and Germany. Authorities reportedly have him in custody, but few details about the case have been released.

US Indicts Suspected Dream Market Admin on Money Laundering Charges
A suspected administrator of the now-defunct Dream Market has been indicted in the US on 12 federal counts of money laundering, with the Department of Justice alleging he used cryptocurrency to buy gold bars and ship them to his home in Germany. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison for each count.

Police Disrupt Relaunched German-Language Cybercrime Forum
In a major breakthrough, international authorities have shut down a notorious German-language cybercrime forum that had attracted over 22,000 users and 100 vendors peddling stolen data, drugs, and forged documents. A 35-year-old German national was arrested in Mallorca and faces charges for allegedly masterminding the illicit platform.

Police Disrupt Relaunched Crimenetwork Dark Web Marketplace
In a major blow to dark web crime, a 35-year-old German citizen was arrested in Mallorca for relaunched Crimenetwork marketplace. He built an entirely new online infrastructure just days after the previous version was shut down.

Checkmarx Breach Exposes GitHub Repository Data on Dark Web
Checkmarx revealed that a security breach, linked to a March 23 supply chain attack, exposed sensitive GitHub repository data, which has now surfaced on the dark web. The incident has been contained, with no customer data compromised, as the affected repository was separate from Checkmarx's customer production environment.

Vercel Breach Exposes Stolen Data for Sale
A security breach at Vercel has put sensitive data at risk, with hackers claiming to have stolen information and now trying to sell it - but where does the buck stop, and what's next for the internet? The incident raises crucial questions about responsibility and response in the face of cyber threats.

The Bunker Talk Rundown Unfolds
I personally can't wait to take you down, Mr. Bond.

Underground Guides Expose Methods for Vetting Stolen Credit Card Shops
Buyers of stolen credit card data use a surprisingly rational approach to choosing an underground marketplace - they verify and vet potential shops just like they would any other purchase. Underground guides even provide step-by-step checks to help them evaluate carding shops based on data quality, reputation, and survivability.

Cybercriminals Explore AI's Dark Potential
Cybercriminals are increasingly exploring the dark side of artificial intelligence, and a recent study offers a glimpse into their private conversations, revealing a mix of curiosity, experimentation, and concern. By analyzing over 160 cybercrime forum discussions, researchers shed light on how offenders perceive and discuss AI's potential for cybercrime.

Proton Exclusive: Alarming 300M Records Compromised
More than 300 million records have surfaced on the dark web — a startling tally that often mixes new leaks, resurfaced data and partial overlaps. Here’s what that number really means for your emails, passwords and IDs, and the simple steps you can take right now to protect yourself.

New Atroposia RAT Exclusive: Dangerous Dark Web Threat
Meet Atroposia RAT: a modular, encrypted remote-access trojan on the dark web that grants attackers a stealthy, persistent foothold to harvest credentials and siphon crypto wallets. Defenders need to move beyond static hashes and rely on behavioral analytics, EDR, and tuned network telemetry to spot its evasive moves.

Qilin ransomware: Stunning Risky Breach at Asahi
When ransomware group Qilin claimed to have stolen sensitive data from brewer Asahi, it wasn’t just a scare headline — it laid bare how even beloved brands can be vulnerable, putting employee privacy, proprietary recipes and supply chains at risk. The incident is a wake-up call: strong backups, multifactor authentication, network segmentation and smarter public-private cooperation aren’t optional anymore if companies want to stay trusted and resilient.