ARTEX agents used stolen ConnectWise credentials to alter customer cloud applications
Review RAT-075 · Catalogue RAT-075
The original Microsoft report describes ARTEX agents carrying out a human-directed criminal operation. Existing internal RW-0018 is not public Rogue (autonomy level 3). It is retained internally, not newly qualified.
Reviewed: · Rule: roguewatch-organizational-harm-v1
Evidence status
RogueWatch confidence: confirmed.
Dates and discovery
- Incident date
- Not disclosed
- Added to research / record
- Posted to RogueWatch
- No linked public incident
- First observed
- 2026-10-30T13:13:36.494214Z UTC
- Discovery channel
- User-supplied comparison audit
- Discovery source
- https://rogueaitracker.com/incidents/artex-connectwise-cloud-backup-customer-access/
Related incident records: RW-0018
Dates use America/Los_Angeles. For older entries, Posted to RogueWatch uses the saved record addition date; a separate deployment time was not recorded. Future posting timestamps record first public qualification. Source publication and incident occurrence are separate.
Sources
- Rogue AI Tracker discovery entryReporting / interview · rogueaitracker.com
- www.microsoft.comOriginal account · www.microsoft.com
- China-linked hackers used agentic AI in attack on 2,250 Microsoft 365 tenantsRelationship not established · www.csoonline.com · Published 2026-10-21
- Agentic AI linked to rise in cyberattacks, Canada’s cybersecurity agency saysRelationship not established · www.theglobeandmail.com · Published 2026-10-27
- China-Linked Hackers Use ARTEX AI Agents in ConnectWise Supply Chain AttackRelationship not established · thehackernews.com · Published 2026-10-21
- Tech Giant Issues Dire Warning About Chinese Hackers Using Agentic AI for CyberattacksRelationship not established · townhall.com · Published 2026-10-22
Decision history
- · Case-by-case comparison audit
RAT-075: existing. Matches existing RW-0018 ARTEX/Storm-0940 event family. Microsoft’s original explicitly attributes the activity to a human malicious actor directing ARTEX. Under Rogue-only scope this is a correction/exclusion review of an existing human-directed campaign, not a new qualifying rogue incident. Authentication is not proof every tenant’s data was exfiltrated. Source checks: read: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/security/blog/2026/10/21/storm-0940-uses-artex-agentic-ai-connectwise-supply-chain-compromise/. Matches existing RW-0018 ARTEX/Storm-0940 event family. Microsoft’s original explicitly attributes the activity to a human malicious actor directing ARTEX. Under Rogue-only scope this is a correction/exclusion review of an existing human-directed campaign, not a new qualifying rogue incident. Authentication is not proof every tenant’s data was exfiltrated.
Evidence source - · Final classification reconciliation
The original Microsoft report describes ARTEX agents carrying out a human-directed criminal operation. Existing internal RW-0018 is not public Rogue (autonomy level 3). It is retained internally, not newly qualified.
Evidence source - · Incident record added
RW-0018. Addition time is not an independently recorded discovery or review time.
Evidence source · Evidence source · Evidence source · Evidence source - · Incident correction
confidence: reported → confirmed. Corroborated by an additional independent source
A review decision applies only to the named scope. Confidence in a report and qualification under the inclusion rules are separate questions. Review records do not add incidents to the globe or leaderboard.