Chinese hackers spied on thousands of companies after breaching IT giant ConnectWise

Microsoft security researchers reported that Chinese state-aligned hackers breached ConnectWise's cloud backup service, stealing application credentials that link ConnectWise to its corporate customers. This allowed the hackers to log into customers' Microsoft-hosted environments as authorized users, accessing emails and files. The hackers used AI agents, specifically ARTEX, to rapidly hack into around 2,250 organizations, attempting nearly 3,000 sign-ins per minute. Microsoft noted this speed leaves defenders little time to detect and respond. The same AI software was used in a recent compromise of South Korea's financial systems, which lacked multi-factor authentication. ConnectWise has paused access to its cloud backup system and is investigating and restoring the service as of Thursday.

(Source：TechCrunch)