--- title: AI malware just removed the human from the attack loop description: Cisco Talos has identified CLOSEDQUORUM, described as the first 'LLM-as-C2' malware architecture that fully automates the command-and-control chain without... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/ai-malware-just-removed-the-human-from-the-attack-loop-tliohlv4h twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: AI malware just removed the human from the attack loop | daily.dev og:description: Cisco Talos has identified CLOSEDQUORUM, described as the first 'LLM-as-C2' malware architecture that fully automates the command-and-control chain without... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/ai-malware-just-removed-the-human-from-the-attack-loop-tliohlv4h og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/tliohlV4h.png og:image:alt: AI malware just removed the human from the attack loop og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # AI malware just removed the human from the attack loop **[CSO Online](https://daily.dev/sources/csoonline)** · 6 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary Cisco Talos has identified CLOSEDQUORUM, described as the first 'LLM-as-C2' malware architecture that fully automates the command-and-control chain without human operators. The Go-compiled Windows binary queries a panel of LLMs (DeepSeek, Qwen, Mistral, Gemini), tallies votes on a constrained JSON decision format, and executes actions targeting LSASS credential dumping, browser-saved passwords, and crypto wallets like MetaMask and Exodus. Ties default deterministically to DeepSeek. No confirmed in-the-wild deployment yet exists, but Talos released an open-source toolkit called CAIRN to hunt and classify such AI-integrated malware, warning the technique could be adapted to other attacker objectives. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### What is CLOSEDQUORUM malware and how does it use multiple LLMs? CLOSEDQUORUM is a malware binary identified by Cisco Talos that uses a panel of large language models (DeepSeek, Qwen, Mistral, Google Gemini) to fully automate command-and-control decisions without human input. Each model votes on the next action using a constrained JSON output format, and the majority decision is automatically executed, with ties resolved deterministically favoring DeepSeek, then Qwen, Mistral, and Gemini. _Security teams tracking AI-driven attack techniques can follow this kind of research on daily.dev._ ### What does CLOSEDQUORUM malware target on infected Windows systems? CLOSEDQUORUM targets Microsoft's LSASS process to dump domain and local credentials from memory, steals saved browser passwords from Chrome, Edge, and Firefox, and extracts crypto wallet data from MetaMask, Ethereum, and Exodus wallets. It is compiled in Go as a 64-bit Windows executable and communicates via Discord webhooks at randomized five-to-fifteen-minute intervals. _Defenders hardening endpoint credential stores against novel malware can track findings like this on daily.dev._ ### What is Cisco Talos's CAIRN toolkit used for? CAIRN (Cognitive Artifact Intelligence Research Network) is an open-source research toolkit released by Cisco Talos for hunting, classifying, and tracking AI-integrated malware. It is metadata-first, pulling static, dynamic, reputation, and behavioral data from VirusTotal submissions, using 12 targeted filters to surface AI-related artifacts like prompts, APIs, frameworks, and runtimes, and mapping campaign infrastructure relationships. _Researchers building AI-malware detection workflows can keep up with tooling releases like this via daily.dev._ ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [AI helps Chinese-speaking hackers speed up attacks on exposed servers](https://daily.dev/posts/ai-helps-chinese-speaking-hackers-speed-up-attacks-on-exposed-servers-os1x7amnl) · CSO Online · 1 upvotes · 0 comments - [AI Threat Landscape Digest January-February 2026](https://daily.dev/posts/ai-threat-landscape-digest-january-february-2026-6mpb4zx7p) · Check Point Research · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [AI-Powered Ransomware Attacks Are Here: What CISOs Need to Validate Now](https://daily.dev/posts/ai-powered-ransomware-attacks-are-here-what-cisos-need-to-validate-now-wbeutjlkd) · Security Boulevard · 0 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#security](https://daily.dev/tags/security), [#malware](https://daily.dev/tags/malware) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/ai-malware-just-removed-the-human-from-the-attack-loop-tliohlv4h) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"AI malware just removed the human from the attack loop","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/ai-malware-just-removed-the-human-from-the-attack-loop-tliohlv4h","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/ai-malware-just-removed-the-human-from-the-attack-loop-tliohlv4h"},"datePublished":"2026-09-23T00:42:28.546Z","dateModified":"2026-09-23T00:43:45.347Z","description":"Cisco Talos has identified CLOSEDQUORUM, described as the first 'LLM-as-C2' malware architecture that fully automates the command-and-control chain without...","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/53aaf8a8ea2761047eba7d2a17f38a03?_a=AQAEuop","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/53aaf8a8ea2761047eba7d2a17f38a03?_a=AQAEuop","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"CSO Online","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"CSO Online","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/t_logo,f_auto/v1/logos/98667e4b5cac46cf9c470819c6cf71cd","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/csoonline"},"commentCount":0,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/ai-malware-just-removed-the-human-from-the-attack-loop-tliohlv4h","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":0},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":0}],"keywords":"security,malware","timeRequired":"PT6M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"CSO Online","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/csoonline"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"AI malware just removed the human from the attack loop"}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/ai-malware-just-removed-the-human-from-the-attack-loop-tliohlv4h#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"What is CLOSEDQUORUM malware and how does it use multiple LLMs?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"CLOSEDQUORUM is a malware binary identified by Cisco Talos that uses a panel of large language models (DeepSeek, Qwen, Mistral, Google Gemini) to fully automate command-and-control decisions without human input. 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