Hackers Issue Ultimatum to Google: Fire Two Staff, Cease Intel Probes or Face Data Leak

A new hacking collective has issued a stark ultimatum to Google, threatening to leak sensitive company databases unless two specific employees are terminated and ongoing threat intelligence investigations into their network are halted. The demands were reportedly posted on Telegram, originating from a group calling itself “Scattered LapSus Hunters.”

The hackers explicitly named Austin Larsen and Charles Carmakal, both members of Google’s Threat Intelligence Group, as the employees they demand be fired. Furthermore, they insist that all investigations by the Google Threat Intelligence Group into the collective’s activities be immediately suspended.

The self-proclaimed “Scattered LapSus Hunters” identifies itself as a collaboration of notable cybercriminal entities, including Scattered Spider, LapSus, and ShinyHunters. This amalgamation of established hacking communities under a new banner signifies a potentially formidable threat actor.

While the group has not yet provided concrete evidence to substantiate their claims of accessing Google databases, and no recent direct breaches of Google’s primary systems have been confirmed, the threat emerges in the wake of a recent security incident. In August, Google disclosed that ShinyHunters, a component of the new collective, had successfully exfiltrated data from Salesforce. Salesforce is a third-party service provider that supports various Google operations, raising concerns about potential indirect vulnerabilities.

Google has been approached for comment regarding these serious allegations and demands. This remains a developing story, and further updates will be provided as information becomes available.