Security Squawk - The Business of Cybersecurity

Banks, airlines, and entire government tax agencies pulled their own websites offline this week, from Tokyo to Helsinki. They weren't hacked. They went dark on purpose after a flaw surfaced in the code running most of the internet. If a national tax agency had to hit the kill switch, your website isn't too small to be in the blast radius. *The attacks are automated now, and your weak spot is what you don't control.* Bryan Hornung, Randy Bryan, and Reginald Andre break down what owners and executives need to know without making them track every cyber headline. Two serious holes in PHP went public before a fix was ready. PHP is the behind-the-scenes code that runs an estimated 70% of all websites. The flaws, nicknamed PHP2Shell, drew attack attempts that Cloudflare watched climb from thousands to millions within hours. Microsoft's CEO said he hadn't seen anything like it in a long time. AI helped find the flaw, and attackers immediately used AI to try to exploit it. The gap between "discovered" and "under attack" shrank to almost nothing. Then Randy takes us inside Cairn. NorForge, a research firm, found more than 20 control panels for the AI hacking system sitting open online with no password. You type in a target and a goal. The AI does the recon, finds the hole, and breaks in. The biggest operation ran over 1,100 attack projects at roughly five dollars each. So much for "we're too small to bother with." When a break-in costs less than a sandwich and runs itself, everyone is worth a try. Finally, PwC confirmed a cyber incident, but it didn't happen inside PwC's network. An extortion crew called Everest claims it stole about 590 gigabytes from an outside vendor holding PwC's employee training records, then put a countdown timer on the release. PwC says the site held no client data and nothing sensitive. Even one of the world's biggest, most trusted firms can harden its own building and still get robbed through a side door it handed to a vendor. In this episode, we discuss: • The PHP2Shell flaw that forced banks and governments to take their own sites offline • Exposed AI hacking panels running automated break-ins for about five dollars each • The PwC breach that came through a third-party vendor, not PwC itself • Why your biggest exposure is now code and vendors you don't directly control • The one-week vendor inventory every owner should run after hearing this • How to make attackers' stolen passwords worthless with multi-factor logins Security Squawk is a weekly podcast and live stream for business owners and executives. Support the show: buymeacoffee.com/securitysquawk Subscribe | Like | Share #SecuritySquawk #CyberSecurity #PwC #PHP #DataBreach #Ransomware #VendorRisk #AI #Cloudflare #BusinessRisk #SMB #MSPAsk

A ransomware gang that did not exist three months ago claims it stole 344 gigabytes from one of America's biggest medical schools. It already has around 49 victims. The number of crews that can hit your business keeps growing. This week: the attack on the University of Illinois Chicago College of Medicine, a fake Boston biotech conference built to spread malware, and one of the largest law firms in the country talked into giving an attacker access to files containing Social Security numbers. *The tools got cheap. Your trust became the target.* Bryan Hornung, Randy Bryan, and Reginald Andre break down what these stories mean for executives, owners, and operators who don't have time to track cyber news but can't afford to be blindsided. A crew calling itself Booba claims it stole 344 gigabytes from the UIC College of Medicine. Booba did not exist before late July, and researchers believe it is an older operation called Frag under a new name. The University confirmed the attack and that some data was stolen. It restored its systems and kept patient care running. The warning: a working ransomware brand can launch in weeks. Bill Gates warned this month that the most imminent AI threat is not rogue machines. It is bad people with the latest tools and nobody guarding the door. The Boston biotech conference does not exist. Security firm Proofpoint found that BioTold, a polished event site listing geneticist George Church as a keynote and Thermo Fisher as a sponsor, is a fake built to get professionals to download malware. This is an entire fake institution, not one sketchy email. In August, the firm IRONSCALES caught the same tactic targeting a drug company. Its malicious conference invites passed every technical email check because the criminals owned and correctly configured their own sending domain. The lesson applies to every industry: if the only proof an event is real is the event's own website, you have proven nothing. We close with Holland & Knight, one of the largest law firms in America. The firm disclosed that an attacker used social engineering to get remote access, exposing files containing Social Security numbers. Nobody broke through a firewall. Somebody was talked into saying yes. It is part of a 2026 wave that has also hit Squire Patton Boggs and other major firms. If you use outside counsel, your sensitive data is sitting in a law firm that likely never went through your vendor security review. These breaches have drawn class-action lawsuits within days. Privilege is not a security control. Put your law firm through a vendor security review. • A brand-new ransomware gang, Booba, claims 344GB from the University of Illinois Chicago College of Medicine • A fake Boston biotech conference, BioTold, is really a Proofpoint-flagged malware trap using George Church and Thermo Fisher's names • Holland & Knight, a top US law firm, got socially engineered and exposed Social Security numbers • Why Bill Gates says the most imminent AI threat is bad people with cheap tools, not rogue machines • Why "it passed our email filters" no longer means a message is safe • What every business owner should ask their law firm and vendors this week Security Squawk is a weekly podcast and live stream for business owners and executives. Support the show: buymeacoffee.com/securitysquawk Subscribe | Like | Share #SecuritySquawk #CyberSecurity #Ransomware #BillGates #DataBreach #SocialEngineering #VendorRisk #Healthcare #Biotech #Phishing #MSP #BusinessRisk

One click on one email exposed 1.3 million Social Security numbers. If it can happen to a state Supreme Court, it can happen to the business you run. This week, the stories involve the Arizona courts, Microsoft, Walmart, Baxter, and Cardinal Health. *Your biggest cyber risk is the people and vendors you already trust.* Bryan Hornung, Randy Bryan, and Reginald Andre break down the cyber news executives, owners, and operators can't afford to miss. First, the Arizona Supreme Court. Attackers copied names and Social Security numbers for roughly 1.3 million people from debt records going back 30 years. It started when one employee opened a phishing email. IT shut the intrusion down in under two hours, but the attackers had already reached a backup server instead of the live system. An earlier wave of the disclosure was even worse: more than 150,000 reports on children in foster care. Your backups may be the least-watched copy of your most sensitive data. That's where these attackers went. Next, Microsoft's brand-new 2026 Digital Defense Report, built on more than 165 trillion security signals a day. One number should stop every owner: 97 percent of identity attacks still come down to a stolen password. AI has made phishing emails four to five times more effective. The "spot the typo" advice you've been giving your team is dead. And ransomware isn't just about locked files anymore. Almost two-thirds of break-ins now involve stolen data. Paying to unlock your systems does nothing about the copy that's already out the door. Finally, a vendor breach that should worry every company with suppliers. A Jacksonville freight company called TrailerBridge landed on the BrainCipher ransomware gang's leak site. The gang claims 76,200 files that name Walmart, Baxter, and Cardinal Health. Those giants did nothing wrong on their own systems. Their data was exposed because a mid-size partner holds their shipping and customs paperwork. One caution: the listing is unverified. A name on a leak site is an accusation, not proof. Verify the claim before you panic or dismiss it. • The Arizona Supreme Court breach that exposed 1.3 million Social Security numbers from one phishing email • Microsoft's 2026 report and why 97 percent of attacks still ride on a stolen password • The TrailerBridge leak that pulled Walmart, Baxter, and Cardinal Health into a ransomware gang's claims • Why your biggest risk is the people and vendors you already trust • How to protect your backups the way you protect your live systems • What to actually do when a vendor shows up on a leak site Security Squawk is a weekly podcast and live stream for business owners and executives. Support the show: buymeacoffee.com/securitysquawk Subscribe | Like | Share #SecuritySquawk #CyberSecurity #DataBreach #Ransomware #Microsoft #Walmart #VendorRisk #Phishing #BusinessRisk #MSP #SmallBusiness #IdentityTheft

FBI Breached, AI Malware Hijacks Servers, Defense Supplier Hit by Ransomware Hackers Claim They Breached the FBI and Stole Data on Nearly Every Agent A criminal crew says it stole data on nearly every FBI agent and job applicant through the bureau's hiring system. The reported way in was the kind of business software your company might run. "We're too small to be a target" doesn't hold up. *The tools you trust are now the attacker's way in.* Bryan Hornung, Randy Bryan, and Reginald Andre break down this week's stories for executives, owners, and operators who don't have time to track cyber news but can't afford to be blindsided by it. First, the FBI. The extortion group ShinyHunters claims it stole more than two terabytes of data on almost every agent and job applicant. The bureau has confirmed it's investigating. The reported way in was a flaw in Oracle's PeopleSoft HR software, the kind thousands of mid-size companies run. From there, the attackers reportedly jumped into the FBI's cloud. That flaw has been disclosed since June and used all year. Any company still running an unpatched box faces the same risk. Leaked HR and applicant data could give the next attacker a ready-made kit for targeting people and their families. Next, malware that brings its own AI. Researchers found a botnet called Carbonato that hijacks Docker servers left exposed to the internet. It installs an AI agent on the machine and lets that agent decide what to do next. The attackers didn't build the AI. They took an open-source tool and rewrote a single 39-line instruction file to turn it hostile. Running an adaptive attack now takes little more than editing a text file. Its number-one target is your AI keys. The crew uses stolen keys to run its own bootleg AI service, so a leak costs you data and funds the attacker. The way in wasn't a nation-state exploit. It was a server left open with no password. Finally, a defense supplier on a ransomware leak site. A group calling itself Storm posted Applied Composites, a California company that makes composite parts for aircraft, missiles, and satellites. There's no ransom number yet and no list of stolen files. Posting the name first puts pressure on the victim; details can follow if it stays quiet. A 500-to-1,000-person manufacturer deep in the defense supply chain is an attractive target: pressure to pay, without a Fortune 500 security budget. For a supplier, a leak-site listing isn't just downtime. It's a customer-trust and compliance event that can cost contracts. None of these started with a genius hack. Trusted software left unpatched, a server left open, a supplier left under-protected. The attackers walked through the door. • How ShinyHunters claims it breached the FBI and what data is at risk • Why the software running your HR and cloud is now the front line • Carbonato: the malware that installs its own AI agent to hack for it • Why stolen AI keys are the new top prize for attackers • How a small defense manufacturer ended up on a ransomware leak site • Why attackers target the small supplier to reach the big customer • What business owners should do before their name is the one on the list Security Squawk is a weekly podcast and live stream for business owners and executives. Support the show: buymeacoffee.com/securitysquawk Subscribe | Like | Share #SecuritySquawk #CyberSecurity #FBI #ShinyHunters #Ransomware #DataBreach #AI #Docker #VendorRisk #SupplyChainSecurity #MSP #BusinessRisk

Two ransomware crews are claiming the same Fortune 500 company at the same time. It's the second week in a row this has happened. If you still think your business is too small to be worth a hacker's time, this is the week that idea dies. *You're not facing one attacker anymore, you're facing a market of them.* Bryan Hornung, Randy Bryan, and Reginald Andre break down this week's stories for executives, owners, and operators who don't have time to follow cyber news but can't afford to be blindsided. First up: AECOM, a sixteen-billion-dollar engineering giant, is being claimed by two ransomware gangs in the same week. One lists 1.22 terabytes of stolen data. The other lists about 670 gigabytes. Same victim, side by side. More than 27,000 company email accounts are alleged to be floating around the dark web, and class-action lawyers filed before AECOM confirmed anything. For now, it all remains alleged. When a company this size gets picked over by two crews at once, budget and size aren't the shields many assumed they were. Then Randy takes CenterPoint Energy, the Houston utility serving about seven million customers across four states. A hacker walked off with 7.49 million customer records, including names, addresses, account numbers, and partial Social Security numbers. The wild part: there was no sophisticated break-in. The attacker simply counted upward through the ID numbers on CenterPoint's public website because nobody limited how many records it would return. Any business with a customer-facing app can have this exact hole. The lawsuits arrived before the company even disclosed the breach. Reginald closes with the number tying it all together. August 2026 was the worst month for ransomware ever recorded: 997 attacks, an all-time high averaging thirty-two a day. Business targets took the brunt, with law firms, tech companies, and finance firms rising fastest. Attacks on utilities doubled in a single month. Zoom out, and the picture gets worse: more than 7,500 victims over the past year, up nearly 25 percent, with over 60 brand-new gangs appearing. That's better than one a week. This flood of new crews is exactly why one victim now gets claimed by two of them. Here's the takeaway for owners: the boring basics still win. Turn on that second login code everywhere, quickly patch anything facing the internet, and keep backups you have actually tested. None of that requires a big budget. It stops the large majority of what we cover. • A Fortune 500 engineering firm gets claimed by two ransomware gangs in the same week • A utility leaks 7.5 million customer records through a wide-open public website • August 2026 becomes the worst month for ransomware ever recorded • Why you're now up against a whole market of attackers, not just one • The cheap, boring defenses that still stop most attacks • Why "we're too small to be a target" no longer holds up Security Squawk is a weekly podcast and live stream for business owners and executives. Support the show: buymeacoffee.com/securitysquawk Subscribe | Like | Share #SecuritySquawk #CyberSecurity #AECOM #CenterPointEnergy #Ransomware #DataBreach #BusinessRisk #SmallBusiness #MSP #Utilities #Infosec #CyberRisk