Email addresses used in European school bomb hoaxes spotted in old infostealer logs
Researchers say organizations should have detected and secured them sooner
Two email addresses that sent bomb threats to thousands of Italian schools were discovered in infostealer logs for over a year, according to experts. The addresses, one belonging to Kafrelsheikh University in Egypt and the other to Dayeh University in Taiwan, were found in the logs as far back as October 2021 and February 2025, respectively.
While the presence of these addresses in the logs does not definitively indicate direct access by the perpetrators, it suggests that there was ample time for the affected universities and Microsoft to take action against the accounts, which should have been identified in the infostealer logs. The researchers noted that more investigation would be required to determine the exact origin of the emails, such as reviewing email headers and data from email providers.
The recent disruption underscores the importance of addressing credential exposure beyond fraud and data theft, as a compromised account can be used to create panic and consume emergency resources.
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