Google says attackers now use open-source AI agent frameworks in real breaches

Google Threat Intelligence Group and Mandiant say that since late August 2026 they have seen multiple threat actors use open-source agentic pentesting frameworks such as ARTEX, PentAGI and CAIRN in real incidents, with agents carrying out significant parts of an intrusion. Google says the methods are not new, mainly compromised credentials and unpatched systems, but agents test several paths at once and work at machine speed; in one campaign tracked by Wiz, the actor typically went from a first compromised account to deep system access in around four hours. The creator of ARTEX took the original repository down in October because of abuse, but forks keep spreading. Separately, CrowdStrike reported on 29 October that VAPOR PANDA, a China-nexus group, used ARTEX, mainly with DeepSeek, against more than 200 organisations in at least 14 countries, and confirmed post-exploitation activity at nine of them.