This month in cybersecurity, February 2026 saw significant incidents highlighted by ESET's Tony Anscombe. Threat actors notably exploited commercial generative AI tools to compromise over 600 FortiGate devices across 55 countries, leveraging exposed management ports and weak credentials without multi-factor authentication. This showcased a growing trend of bad actors misusing GenAI services, further evidenced by ESET researchers uncovering PromptSpy, the first Android malware to abuse generative AI for context-aware user interface manipulation.
Beyond AI-related threats, the FBI issued warnings regarding a surge in ATM jackpotting attacks across the U.S., where malware forces machines to dispense cash. Concurrently, a report from Poland's CERT detailed extensive cyberattacks targeting critical infrastructure, including the energy sector, involving wipers like DynoWiper. These incidents collectively underscore the evolving landscape of cyber threats, from sophisticated AI misuse to direct financial and infrastructure attacks.
The recurring themes of these February incidents emphasize the critical need for robust cybersecurity practices. Businesses are urged to learn from these events by strengthening their defenses against credential-based attacks, implementing multi-factor authentication, and improving incident response capabilities, especially within critical sectors. The rapid adoption of generative AI by threat actors necessitates a re-evaluation of security strategies to combat novel attack vectors.
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