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TL;DR
Reuters reports that an operator using Cairn, an open-source AI-agent platform, directed agents to probe more than 1,200 websites and breach sites belonging to more than 100 companies. NorForge estimates the campaign cost about $5,000 in AI usage, or roughly $50 per successful intrusion, but data theft and total harm remain unclear.
An operator using the Cairn AI-agent platform directed automated probes at more than 1,200 websites from September 25 through mid-October, and Reuters identified breaches at websites belonging to more than 100 companies, including Deere, SharkNinja and Cummins. The campaign shows how a small number of operators may use software agents to conduct sustained attacks at scale, although the amount of data accessed or taken has not been established.
The campaign came to light after security researcher Snorre Fagerland of NorForge searched for exposed control panels used to coordinate Cairn agents. NorForge said it found more than 20 panels it associated with likely malicious activity, allowing the researcher to observe some operations. The panels were accessible without passwords, the report said. NorForge published its findings on October 19; Reuters published a separate investigation the same day.
Reuters said it reviewed the operator’s Cairn activity to identify affected organizations and contacted them. The targets included online shops and websites in the United States, Canada, Australia and Japan. Deere told Reuters it took “necessary remediation actions” and had “no indication that sensitive information was accessed.” SharkNinja said an independent product-support site was affected and the threat was contained. Cummins said it was investigating a potential cyberattack on a website operated by a third-party vendor.
NorForge counted more than 1,100 attack projects across 14 panels in the largest activity cluster it identified, which it named AIA0001. For successful projects in that cluster, the firm measured just under 23 hours from start to goal on average; one project ran for more than five days. NorForge estimated the campaign’s AI costs at about $5,000, or roughly $50 per successful intrusion, while warning that the estimate carries “considerable” uncertainty.
One operator, a swarm of agents
The campaign in numbers
What the researcher and Reuters report about the busiest group NorForge found. Counts come from the attackers’ own exposed panels; cost and success figures are estimates.
The price tag estimates
NorForge / Fagerland, “uncertainty considerable”
- ~$5 per task on average, including tasks that fail early
- $100+ for long projects with more than 1,000 intents and facts
- ~$5,000 in AI costs for the campaign, about $50 per successful hack
- ~10% success rate, NorForge’s “reasonable assumption”
How the swarm runs
Simplified, no attack details
- Shop websites are ranked by traffic and checked automatically in a browser
- Each target becomes a Cairn project: a starting point and a goal
- Agents post facts and next steps on a shared board and build on each other
- Goal: a hidden way back in to shop and payment systems, for later
- 22 SepGambit reportGambitCairn found among three AI harnesses on a criminal’s staging server (separate campaign)
- 25 SepCampaign startsReutersA Chinese-speaking operator turns agents on shops in the US, Canada, Australia and Japan
- ≈ 2 OctOpen panels foundReutersFagerland starts finding Cairn panels in malicious use, about two dozen
- mid-Oct1,200+ sites triedReutersBreaks into websites of 100+ companies, incl. Deere, SharkNinja, Cummins
- 19 OctReport and investigationNorForge · ReutersNorForge publishes “Inside Cairn”; Reuters publishes its investigation
Sources: NorForge, Inside Cairn (19 Oct 2026); Reuters (19 Oct 2026); Gambit Security (22 Sep 2026). Numbers as published, same rounding as the article.
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Low-Cost Automation, Larger Attack Surface
The reported campaign matters because agents can carry out repeated, multi-step work with less continuous human involvement. NorForge described Cairn as a system in which agents share findings and next steps through a common workspace. In this case, the operator’s instructions were reportedly brief, while the software continued probing over many hours. That does not mean the attack required no human expertise or oversight: the operator selected targets and goals, and the available reporting does not establish how much direct intervention occurred.
The estimated $50 per successful intrusion is a measure of AI costs, not the full cost of an attack or a verified price for compromising a company. It excludes other potential expenses and does not quantify losses to victims. Still, the estimate highlights why automated operations can change the economics of persistence: attackers may be able to test many sites without dedicating a person to each one.
The reported targets also underline the importance of support pages and third-party websites, not only a company’s main online store. A supplier-managed site or separate product-support service may offer a route into an organization or its customers, though the evidence available here does not show that every affected site exposed corporate networks or sensitive information. For defenders, the volume of automated activity can also make it harder to distinguish a meaningful intrusion from routine scanning.
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How Exposed Cairn Panels Revealed Activity
Cairn is a free, open-source platform for coordinating AI agents. NorForge characterized it as a general-purpose, state-based problem-solving engine rather than a hacking tool. Its author, who uses the name le1xia0, told Reuters that Cairn was not designed for attacks and that harmful use was not the author’s intention. The software’s general-purpose design does not, by itself, determine how an operator will use it.
The investigation followed a separate report from Gambit Security in September. Gambit said it recovered a criminal staging server containing three AI-related tools, including Cairn. NorForge then searched for internet-accessible control panels, finding some without password protection. From around October 2, Fagerland identified roughly two dozen panels associated with malicious activity, according to Reuters. NorForge grouped observed operations into three clusters; its report named no victims.
Reuters said it independently reviewed activity recorded in Cairn and contacted organizations to identify victims. That distinction matters: the count of more than 100 companies comes from Reuters’ investigation of the attacker’s records, while NorForge’s report supplies technical observations about the panels and projects. A related campaign reported by Gambit involved at least 27 companies and, according to the firm, at least 600,000 card records taken from two of them. That was a separate campaign and should not be treated as evidence that the Cairn operation stole the same kind of data.
““Necessary remediation actions” were taken, and the company had “no indication that sensitive information was accessed.””
— Deere, in a statement to Reuters
Victim Impact and Operator Remain Unknown
The operator’s identity has not been established publicly. NorForge described the activity cluster as Chinese-language, but that does not establish the operator’s nationality or location. The source material reports no arrest or criminal charge connected with this campaign.
It is also unclear how much data, if any, was taken. Reuters could not establish the amount of information accessed or removed. Deere said it had no indication sensitive information was accessed; SharkNinja said the threat was contained, while Cummins was still investigating a potential attack on a vendor-operated site. Those statements do not provide a complete account of every company Reuters identified.
The financial estimate is also uncertain. NorForge put AI costs at about $5,000 for the campaign and roughly $50 per successful intrusion, but said the estimate involved considerable uncertainty. The available reporting does not specify a complete accounting method or establish the attackers’ total costs, financial gains, or losses to affected organizations.
Company Reviews and Security Follow-Up
Companies identified in the reporting may continue reviewing affected websites, third-party services and any records tied to them. Cummins said it was investigating; Reuters reported that Deere had taken remediation steps and SharkNinja said the threat was contained. The source material does not give a common timetable for further company disclosures or say whether additional victims will be identified.
Security teams will also be watching for exposed agent-control panels and signs of automated activity against online shops and related services. NorForge’s findings show how unsecured dashboards can expose operational records to outside observers. Whether the observed campaign led to wider data exposure, persistent access or monetization remains undetermined based on the reporting available as of October 30, 2026.
Key Questions
What happened in the reported campaign?
An operator used Cairn to coordinate AI agents that probed more than 1,200 websites. Reuters identified breaches at websites belonging to more than 100 companies, based on its review of the operator’s activity.
Who was behind the operation?
The operator has not been publicly identified. NorForge described the largest activity cluster as using Chinese-language tasks, but that does not confirm the operator’s identity, nationality or location.
Was sensitive information stolen?
The amount of data accessed or taken is unknown. Reuters could not establish how much data, if any, was removed. Deere said it had no indication sensitive information was accessed; that statement does not resolve the status of every affected company.
What does the $50 figure mean?
NorForge estimated about $50 in AI costs per successful intrusion, based on its estimate of roughly $5,000 in AI costs for the campaign. The firm said the estimate had considerable uncertainty; it is not a measure of total attack costs, victim losses or attacker revenue.
Was Cairn created as a hacking tool?
NorForge described Cairn as a general-purpose agent-coordination platform. Its author told Reuters it was not designed for hacking attacks and said harmful use was not the author’s intention. The reported campaign concerns how an operator used the platform, not proof that it was built specifically for cyberattacks.
Source: ThorstenMeyerAI.com
