The Crimson Collective, a cybercriminal group, executed a **supply chain breach** of Red Hat’s consulting division, compromising **~800 organizations**, including **U.S. defense contractors (Naval Surface Warfare Centers, SOCOM, Raytheon), government agencies (House of Representatives, NASA’s JPL), and critical infrastructure entities**. The stolen data includes **Customer Engagement Reports (CERs)**—highly sensitive blueprints containing **network architectures, authentication tokens, API keys, and infrastructure configurations**, effectively granting attackers backdoor access to hundreds of interconnected systems. The breach was **timed to exploit the U.S. federal government shutdown (Oct 1, 2025)**, crippling incident response when cybersecurity teams were understaffed. Attackers **waited since mid-September**, testing capabilities via attacks on Nintendo and Claro Colombia before disclosing the breach at peak vulnerability. The data is now **for sale with an Oct 10 deadline**, while the government remains partially paralyzed. The exposure includes **cryptic defense projects**, risking **compromised entry points into critical systems**. Collaborating with **ShinyHunters’ extortion-as-a-service platform**, the attack represents an **ecosystem exploitation-as-a-service model**, targeting **entire supply chains** rather than individual entities. The precision, timing, and target selection (aligning with **nation-state intelligence priorities**) suggest **potential state-sponsored involvement or direction**, weaponizing **political divisions and technical gaps** for asymmetric warfare. The fallout threatens **U.S. defense industrial base resilience**, with implications for allies and global cybersecurity stability.
Source: https://www.thecipherbrief.com/red-hat-breach
TPRM report: https://www.rankiteo.com/company/red-hat
"id": "red4292342100825",
"linkid": "red-hat",
"type": "Breach",
"date": "9/2025",
"severity": "100",
"impact": "8",
"explanation": "Attack that could bring to a war"{'affected_entities': [{'customers_affected': '800+ organizations',
'industry': 'IT/software',
'location': 'Global (HQ: Raleigh, NC, USA)',
'name': 'Red Hat (Consulting Division)',
'type': 'technology consulting'},
{'industry': 'defense',
'location': 'USA',
'name': 'Naval Surface Warfare Centers',
'type': 'government/military'},
{'industry': 'defense',
'location': 'USA',
'name': 'SOCOM (U.S. Special Operations Command)',
'type': 'government/military'},
{'industry': 'defense',
'location': 'USA',
'name': 'DISA (Defense Information Systems Agency)',
'type': 'government/military'},
{'industry': 'aerospace/defense',
'location': 'USA',
'name': 'Raytheon',
'type': 'private corporation'},
{'industry': 'aerospace',
'location': 'USA',
'name': 'NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory',
'type': 'government/research'},
{'industry': 'public sector',
'location': 'USA',
'name': 'U.S. House of Representatives',
'type': 'government/legislative'},
{'industry': 'gaming/entertainment',
'location': 'Japan',
'name': 'Nintendo',
'type': 'private corporation'},
{'industry': 'telecommunications',
'location': 'Colombia',
'name': 'Claro Colombia',
'type': 'private corporation'}],
'attack_vector': ['compromised consulting repositories',
'stolen credentials/API keys',
'supply chain exploitation'],
'data_breach': {'data_exfiltration': True,
'file_types_exposed': ['consulting deliverables',
'configuration files',
'authentication tokens'],
'sensitivity_of_data': ['high (defense systems, government '
'networks)',
'critical infrastructure'],
'type_of_data_compromised': ['Customer Engagement Reports '
'(CERs)',
'network architectures',
'authentication tokens',
'API keys',
'infrastructure configurations',
'project blueprints']},
'date_publicly_disclosed': '2025-10-01T00:01:00-04:00',
'description': 'The Crimson Collective publicly disclosed a significant '
"supply chain compromise of Red Hat's consulting division on "
'October 1, 2025, coinciding with the U.S. federal government '
'shutdown. The breach affected ~800 organizations, including '
'critical defense contractors (e.g., Raytheon, Naval Surface '
'Warfare Centers, SOCOM, DISA, NASA’s Jet Propulsion '
'Laboratory) and government agencies (e.g., House of '
'Representatives). Stolen data includes Customer Engagement '
'Reports (CERs) with network architectures, authentication '
'tokens, API keys, and infrastructure configurations. The '
"attackers exploited the government's reduced cybersecurity "
'capacity during the shutdown, setting an October 10 deadline '
'for monetization. ShinyHunters is involved via an '
'extortion-as-a-service model, targeting entire supply chains. '
'The incident highlights precision timing to maximize '
'strategic impact, with potential nation-state ties (e.g., '
'China, Russia, Iran, North Korea).',
'impact': {'brand_reputation_impact': ['high (defense contractors, government '
'agencies)',
'loss of trust in Red Hat consulting '
'services'],
'data_compromised': ['Customer Engagement Reports (CERs)',
'network architectures',
'authentication tokens',
'API keys',
'infrastructure configurations',
'project blueprints (including defense '
'systems)'],
'operational_impact': ['forensic investigations required per '
'organization',
'security architecture rebuilds',
'potential defense system compromises']},
'initial_access_broker': {'data_sold_on_dark_web': ['planned monetization by '
'October 10, 2025'],
'entry_point': ['compromised Red Hat consulting '
'repositories',
'stolen credentials/API keys from '
'CERs'],
'high_value_targets': ['defense contractors '
'(Raytheon)',
'government agencies (SOCOM, '
'DISA, House of '
'Representatives)',
'critical infrastructure '
'(NASA JPL)'],
'reconnaissance_period': ['breach occurred '
'mid-September 2025',
'Telegram channel '
'established September '
'24, 2025']},
'investigation_status': 'ongoing (individual organizations conducting '
'forensic investigations)',
'lessons_learned': ['Supply chain attacks via consulting firms create '
'unpatchable vulnerabilities due to custom '
'implementations.',
'Political timing (e.g., government shutdowns) can be '
'weaponized to maximize impact.',
'Extortion-as-a-service models enable broader ecosystem '
'exploitation.',
'Nation-states may leverage criminal groups for deniable '
'asymmetric warfare.',
'Defense industrial base remains vulnerable to '
'precision-targeted intelligence collection.'],
'motivation': ['financial gain (extortion)',
'strategic disruption',
'potential nation-state intelligence collection',
'weaponizing political timing'],
'post_incident_analysis': {'root_causes': ['Over-reliance on third-party '
'consulting firms with broad '
'access.',
'Lack of centralized patching for '
'custom implementations.',
'Political vulnerability '
'exploitation (government shutdown '
'timing).',
'Extortion-as-a-service '
'collaboration (Crimson Collective '
'+ ShinyHunters).']},
'ransomware': {'data_exfiltration': True,
'ransom_demanded': ['data monetization via extortion',
'October 10 deadline for payments']},
'recommendations': ['Implement centralized oversight for consulting '
'deliverables with sensitive data.',
'Develop playbooks for supply chain attacks during '
'political/crisis windows.',
'Enhance cross-agency coordination resilience during '
'government disruptions.',
'Monitor dark web for stolen consulting data (e.g., '
'CERs).',
'Assess defense contractor dependencies on third-party '
'consulting firms.'],
'references': [{'source': 'The Cipher Brief'},
{'source': 'Belgian Centre for Cybersecurity'}],
'regulatory_compliance': {'regulatory_notifications': ['Belgian Centre for '
'Cybersecurity '
'warning']},
'response': {'communication_strategy': ['Belgian Centre for Cybersecurity '
'advisory',
'media coverage (e.g., The Cipher '
'Brief)'],
'incident_response_plan_activated': ['Belgian Centre for '
'Cybersecurity (warning '
'issued)',
'individual organizations '
'(forensic investigations '
'ongoing)'],
'remediation_measures': ['security architecture rebuilds per '
'organization',
'reestablishing integrity of custom '
'configurations']},
'stakeholder_advisories': ['Belgian Centre for Cybersecurity (high-risk '
'warning)'],
'threat_actor': ['Crimson Collective',
'ShinyHunters (extortion-as-a-service partner)'],
'title': 'Red Hat Consulting Division Supply Chain Compromise by Crimson '
'Collective',
'type': ['supply chain attack',
'data breach',
'extortion',
'espionage (potential)'],
'vulnerability_exploited': ['custom network architectures in CERs',
'unique implementation flaws',
'lack of centralized patching for consulting '
'deliverables']}