Ethical Hacking News
Japan's GMO Internet Group has launched a $1 million bounty program to encourage the public to provide information that can help identify and apprehend the hackers responsible for a recent breach of its Onamae.com Desktop Cloud service. The breach, which occurred in October 2026, saw the attackers steal sensitive customer information, including login credentials and payment card data.
GMO Internet Group launches $1 million bounty program to identify and apprehend hackers responsible for a recent breach of its Onamae.com Desktop Cloud service.The breach, which occurred in October 2026, saw the attackers steal sensitive customer information, including login credentials and payment card data.The company has assured customers that it will pay every current user ¥5,000 (approximately $45 USD) and cover actual trading losses and fees from trades it confirms were unauthorized and caused by the breach.The breach affected 26,739 servers, and the attackers threatened to manipulate customers' accounts, publish information, and hit those PCs with ransomware.The GMO Internet Group has taken steps to protect its customers, including restricting trading on affected accounts and instructing customers to change their passwords.The program is open to anyone, regardless of location or identity, and tips can be submitted anonymously.The company has a long history of engaging with the public and encouraging them to report suspicious activity, and has invested heavily in its cybersecurity measures.
Japan's GMO Internet Group, a leading provider of internet services in Japan, has launched a $1 million bounty program to encourage the public to provide information that can help identify and apprehend the hackers responsible for a recent breach of its Onamae.com Desktop Cloud service. The breach, which occurred in October 2026, saw the attackers steal sensitive customer information, including login credentials and payment card data.
The breach was discovered on October 20, 2026, when the GMO Internet Group's internal security team detected malicious programs on some of its customers' servers. The attackers claimed that they had gained access to the service through a shared administrator account and that customers' PC drives were visible from the servers by default when they connected. However, the company has not publicly confirmed the authenticity of these claims.
Despite the attackers' claims, the GMO Internet Group has stated that it has not yet confirmed how many customers its payments will cover, how much information was published, or which trades qualify for compensation. The company has, however, assured customers that it will pay every current user ¥5,000 (approximately $45 USD) and cover actual trading losses and fees from trades it confirms were unauthorized and caused by the breach.
The breach was significant, with 26,739 servers potentially affected, although not all of them were confirmed to have been accessed. The attackers also threatened to manipulate customers' accounts at over 70 securities and FX firms, to publish information about the service and about customers' PCs, to hit those PCs with ransomware, and to publish details of GMO's systems.
The GMO Internet Group has taken steps to protect its customers, including restricting trading on accounts that may be affected, and instructing customers to change their trading-account and trading-software passwords from a device not used for FX trading. The company has also advised customers to run a full antivirus scan on devices used to connect, and back up data.
The breach is just the latest in a string of high-profile cyber attacks that have targeted companies in Japan and around the world. In recent years, the country has seen a significant increase in cyber attacks, with many of them targeting companies in the financial sector.
The GMO Internet Group's decision to launch a $1 million bounty program is a significant move in the fight against cyber crime. The program, which is open until an arrest, an international wanted notice, or October 27, 2027, whichever comes first, is designed to encourage the public to provide information that can help identify and apprehend the hackers responsible for the breach.
The program is open to anyone, regardless of their location or identity, and tips are sent by email to a dedicated website. The program is designed to be anonymous, and tips can be submitted in Japanese, English, or Chinese. The GMO Internet Group has stated that it will pay the full $1 million to one tipster who provides information that leads to an arrest or an international wanted notice.
The program is just one part of the GMO Internet Group's efforts to combat cyber crime. The company has a long history of engaging with the public and encouraging them to report suspicious activity. The company has also invested heavily in its cybersecurity measures, including the development of its own white-hat hacking team.
The launch of the $1 million bounty program is a significant step in the fight against cyber crime. It demonstrates the GMO Internet Group's commitment to protecting its customers and its commitment to working with the public to identify and apprehend hackers. The program is a model for other companies to follow, and it highlights the importance of cybersecurity in the modern digital age.
Related Information:
https://www.ethicalhackingnews.com/articles/Japans-GMO-Internet-Group-Launches-1-Million-Bounty-for-Hackers-Behind-Onamaecom-Desktop-Cloud-Breach-ehn.shtml
https://thehackernews.com/2026/10/japans-gmo-offers-1-million-bounty-to.html
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/news/20261028de66738/
Published: Wed Oct 28 03:21:52 2026 by llama3.2 3B Q4_K_M
