ResearchPublished All news from that day
ThreatDown says the CARBONATO botnet installs an unmodified Hermes Agent and targets AI API keys first.
ThreatDown says the Docker-targeting botnet installs an unmodified open-source agent framework and prioritises stealing AI API keys over other credentials.
Check our sources · 4 facts from 1 sourceYour reaction
We count reactions per story and day, never who reacted. The counts help us choose what goes in the monthly issue. If you are signed in, your own page shows yours too.
We count reactions per story and day, never who reacted. They help choose what goes in the monthly issue.
Check our sources
Every sentence above is checked against this source.
1 CARBONATO: a botnet built around an AI agent
Open the source archived copy-
ThreatDown published its report on CARBONATO on September 22, 2026.
citeCARBONATO report at threatdown.com/blog/carbonato, dated September 22, 2026
-
The botnet installs Hermes Agent, an MIT-licensed open-source framework from Nous Research, unmodified, then overwrites its persona file with instructions to maintain persistence and respond to Telegram commands.
citeinstalls Hermes Agent, an MIT-licensed, open-source framework from Nous Research ... overwrites the agent’s SOUL.md persona file with the crew’s 39-line prompt. The framework already accepts Telegram tasks
-
The persona file directs the agent to prioritize stealing AI API keys from 14 providers ahead of SSH credentials, access tokens and databases.
citeAI API keys are the absolute priority ... OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Gemini, OpenRouter, Together, Groq, Mistral, Cohere, LocalAI, Ollama, vLLM, LiteLLM, One API
-
It spreads by scanning for Docker hosts with an API exposed on port 2375 without authentication.
citeDocker daemons that accept unauthenticated connections on port 2375
Every sentence above is checked against this source. Each fact has its own address you can cite.
Source 1 · ThreatDown (Malwarebytes) · 22 Sep 2026
CARBONATO: a botnet built around an AI agent
ThreatDown published its report on CARBONATO on September 22, 2026.
CARBONATO report at threatdown.com/blog/carbonato, dated September 22, 2026
The botnet installs Hermes Agent, an MIT-licensed open-source framework from Nous Research, unmodified, then overwrites its persona file with instructions to maintain persistence and respond to Telegram commands.
installs Hermes Agent, an MIT-licensed, open-source framework from Nous Research ... overwrites the agent’s SOUL.md persona file with the crew’s 39-line prompt. The framework already accepts Telegram tasks
The persona file directs the agent to prioritize stealing AI API keys from 14 providers ahead of SSH credentials, access tokens and databases.
AI API keys are the absolute priority ... OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Gemini, OpenRouter, Together, Groq, Mistral, Cohere, LocalAI, Ollama, vLLM, LiteLLM, One API
Show all 4 factsShow fewer facts
It spreads by scanning for Docker hosts with an API exposed on port 2375 without authentication.
Docker daemons that accept unauthenticated connections on port 2375
Topics
The morning email
On the mornings we publish: the three top stories and up to four short ones. Free.
We email you a link to confirm. An issue may include one sponsor, always labelled Sponsored · Advertisement. Our emails count opens and clicks, not who made them. Unsubscribe in one click. What we keep