Category: Cisco

Cisco Data Breach: A Timeline of Events and Broader Implications

Posted on by Srishti Chaubey

A Breach That Keeps Unfolding:

When Cisco was accused of a breach by a hacker named IntelBroker in October 2024, the tech giant initially denied any compromise of its internal systems. However, as the situation unfolded and over 4GB of data was leaked, Cisco acknowledged the authenticity of the exposed files while maintaining that its enterprise environments remained secure.

This incident sheds light on a concerning trend: organizations frequently deny breaches outright, only to later concede limited impact as evidence continues to emerge. In this blog, we examine the timeline of events, the repercussions, and the broader lessons stemming from the Cisco breach.

Cisco Data Breach: IntelBroker's Claim
Credit: Bleeping Computer

Timeline of the Breach

  1. October 14, 2024
    • Hacker IntelBroker announced a “Cisco breach” on BreachForums.
    • Claims included access to source code, credentials, and confidential documents from major companies, including Cisco.
  2. October 21, 2024
    • Cisco confirmed an investigation was underway but denied a breach of its internal systems.
    • The company reported that the data was accessed from a public-facing DevHub environment due to a configuration error.
  3. Mid-December 2024
    • IntelBroker leaked 2.9GB of data, including source code, certificates, and scripts.
    • Cisco acknowledged the leak but reiterated no sensitive personal or financial information was compromised.
  4. December 25, 2024
    • The hacker released an additional 4.45GB of data on BreachForums, claiming it was part of a much larger dataset.
    • Cisco analyzed the leak and confirmed its alignment with files previously identified in October.
  5. December 31, 2024
    • Cisco confirmed the authenticity of the leaked data but maintained that its internal systems remained uncompromised.
Cisco Data Breach: Timeline

Impact Analysis: What’s at Stake?

The breach exposed:

  • Source Code: Critical for Cisco products like WebEx, Catalyst,z and Secure Access Service Edge (SASE).
  • Internal Project Archives: Java binaries, Cryptographic Signatures, Certificates, and Configuration files.
  • Customer-Related Data: Files linked to Cisco CX Professional Services customers.

 What Cisco Claims:

  • No sensitive personal or financial information was exposed.
  • Internal production systems were unaffected.

Risks Highlighted:

  1. Exploitation Potential: Exposed source code could help attackers identify vulnerabilities in Cisco products.
  2. Supply Chain Risks: Customers and partners could be indirectly targeted using leaked data.
  3. Reputation Damage: Prolonged uncertainty damages trust in Cisco’s security practices.

A Broader Trend: Denial, Admission, and Full Disclosure

Cisco’s handling of the breach mirrors a recurring pattern:

  1. Initial Denial: Early claims often assert no compromise.
  2. Partial Admission: As evidence mounts, organizations acknowledge limited impact.
  3. Full Scope Revealed: Final admissions often come after external pressure or further leaks.

The Okta breach followed a similar trajectory, where early denials gave way to admissions of more significant exposure.

Lessons for the Future

Cisco’s breach underscores critical lessons for organizations:

  1. Prioritize Transparency: Honest and timely communication can mitigate reputational damage.
  2. Audit Public-Facing Platforms: Regular checks can prevent inadvertent exposure of sensitive files.
  3. Strengthen Configuration Management: Misconfigurations remain a top cause of data exposure.
  4. Adopt Proactive Monitoring: Real-time alerts can detect unusual activity before damage escalates.

Conclusion: A Story Still Unfolding

The Cisco breach, though limited in scope compared to initial claims, highlights how vulnerabilities in public-facing platforms can quickly escalate into significant incidents. While Cisco has introduced corrective measures, the full impact of the exposed data remains unclear.

This case illustrates a broader trend where companies initially deny breaches, only to gradually disclose the extent of their impact over time. As we await further updates and mitigation efforts from Cisco, the importance of proactive security strategies and transparent communication has become increasingly evident.

Cisco VPNs Suffer Brute Force Attacks : Here’s Your Shield!

Posted on by Srishti Chaubey

Cisco recently issued a warning about large-scale brute-force attacks targeting VPN and SSH services on Cisco and other devices worldwide. These attacks pose significant risks to enterprise security, necessitating immediate action.

Hacker can login to VPN with stolen credentials

Cisco Warning and Compromised Services

Cisco Talos reports a surge in brute force attacks since March 18, 2024, targeting VPN services. These assaults exploit vulnerabilities in traditional password-based authentication, compromising network integrity. The known affected services are following:

  • Cisco Secure Firewall VPN 
  • Checkpoint VPN  
  • Fortinet VPN  
  • SonicWall VPN  
  • RD Web Services 
  • Miktrotik 
  • Draytek 
  • Ubiquiti 

History: Not so Private Virtual Private Networks

If you are here reading this blog, you know the drill. Maybe a password is slipped in code, spoofed, phished, whaled, 2FA or MFA is breached, or even a vendor is breached, and your organization and user information lies in the hands of a threat actor. According to an HBR Report “The FBI regards a cybersecurity breach at every organization—including yours—as a matter not of ‘if,’ or even ‘when,’ but ‘how often.'”

Most often then not, these threat actors will siege your assets, ask for ransom and cause a lot of trouble. Two out of Three organizations, without a regard of size, have faced ransomware in 2023. Beyond the cost of expenses, including, potentially, the ransom itself, downtime averages $365,000 an hour in revenue loss. When you consider that the average recovery time is three weeks, it becomes clear how devastating these attacks can be.

In our previous blog we have discussed VPN breaches in detail. Anyhow, here’s some compact data for you.

Affected EntityRoot CauseImpact
Avast AntivirusStolen credentialsAdversaries modified the CCleaner distributed by Avast .
Lockheed MartinCVE-2011-0609Critical data related to the defence contracts leaked.
Pulse SecureCVE-2019-115101000 enterprises are at risk of ransomware attacks.
Ukraine Power gridMalwarePower grid taken offline leading to no electricity for thousands.
List of the most serious VPN attacks due to stolen credentials

Brute Force Attacks

Brute force attacks involve systematically trying multiple username-password combinations until the correct one is found. Attackers leverage proxies like TOR, VPN Gate, IPIDEA Proxy etc to conceal their origins, intensifying the challenge of detection.Password spray attacks, on the other hand, target numerous accounts with commonly used passwords, increasing the likelihood of success.

Your Knight in Passwordless Armour – PureAuth

In light of escalating threats, enterprises must prioritise the adoption of passwordless VPN solutions. Embracing innovative authentication mechanisms ensures a resilient defence against evolving cyber threats.

Passwordless Authentication in popular VPN by PureAuth
VPNs you can make Passwordless

Transitioning to passwordless VPN systems offers a robust defence against brute force attacks. By eliminating passwords, these systems thwart credential stuffing attempts, enhancing overall security.

Conclusion

In the face of mounting VPN vulnerabilities, the imperative to transition to passwordless systems cannot be overstated. By embracing advanced authentication methods, organisations can fortify their defences against brute force attacks, safeguarding critical assets and data.

Read Also

Your 1st Step to #GoPasswordless

Credential stuffing Attacks on VPN: Serious Risk for Enterprise

© 2025 | PureID. All Rights Reserved

Privacy & Terms | Licenses