Description: A global cybercrime network, Storm-2139, allegedly exploited stolen credentials and developed custom tools to bypass AI safety guardrails. They reportedly generated harmful deepfake content, including nonconsensual intimate images of celebrities, and their software is reported to have disabled content moderation, hijacked AI access, and resold illicit services. Microsoft disrupted the operation and filed a lawsuit in December 2024, later identifying key members of the network in February 2025.
Editor Notes: The date for this incident, 12/19/2024, is the date Microsoft filed its lawsuit, which can be read here: https://www.noticeofpleadings.net/fizzdog/files/COMPLAINT_AND_SUMMONS/2024.12.19_DE_001_%5BMicrosoft%5D_Complaint.pdf. However, the lawsuit explains, "Defendants conspired to operate the Azure Abuse Enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity in furtherance of the common purpose of the Enterprise sometime prior to July 2024." Additionally, it details allegations of wire fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1343), stating that prior to July 2024, the defendants stole authentication information from Microsoft customers to fraudulently access the Azure OpenAI Service and deplete account balances (page 36). For information on a specific timeline, Microsoft's lawsuit also explains that "[f]rom July 26, 2024, to at least September 17, 2024, Defendants transmitted and/or caused to be transmitted by means of wire communication in interstate and foreign commerce writings, signals, and pictures for the purpose of executing their scheme to defraud" (page 37).
Entities
View all entitiesAlleged: Unidentified Storm-2139 actor from Illinois , Unidentified Storm-2139 actor from Florida , Storm-2139 , Ricky Yuen (cg-dot) , Phát Phùng Tấn (Asakuri) , Arian Yadegarnia (Fiz) , Alan Krysiak (Drago) , Proxy and credential abuse networks , Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service , Generative AI platforms , Content moderation systems , Azure Abuse Enterprise , API authentication mechanisms and AI safety guardrails developed and deployed an AI system, which harmed Victims of deepfake abuse , OpenAI , Microsoft , celebrities , Azure OpenAI customers and AI service providers.
Alleged implicated AI systems: Proxy and credential abuse networks , Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service , Generative AI platforms , Content moderation systems , Azure Abuse Enterprise , API authentication mechanisms and AI safety guardrails
Incident Stats
Incident ID
955
Report Count
1
Incident Date
2024-12-19
Editors
Daniel Atherton
Incident Reports
Reports Timeline
In an amended complaint to recent civil litigation, Microsoft is naming the primary developers of malicious tools designed to bypass the guardrails of generative AI services, including Microsoft's Azure OpenAI Service. We are pursuing this …
Variants
A "variant" is an incident that shares the same causative factors, produces similar harms, and involves the same intelligent systems as a known AI incident. Rather than index variants as entirely separate incidents, we list variations of incidents under the first similar incident submitted to the database. Unlike other submission types to the incident database, variants are not required to have reporting in evidence external to the Incident Database. Learn more from the research paper.
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