Threat Actor Uses DeepSeek-Powered Hermes Agent for Exploitation

# Threat Actor Uses DeepSeek-Powered Hermes Agent for Exploitation

https://gcdradar.vercel.app/incidents/threat-actor-uses-deepseek-powered-hermes-agent-for-exploita · AIR-2026-0363 · closed 2026-09-13

- Lane: Breaches & attacks
- Severity: 3 (Confirmed exploitation)
- Fix status: No fix needed
- First reported: 2026-08-30 (happened 2026-05-07)
- AI role: AI-enabled attack
- Products: DeepSeek, Hermes Agent, Langflow, n8n

## Summary

A threat actor configured Hermes Agent with DeepSeek as its reasoning engine to facilitate terminal access and exploit Langflow and n8n. The agent utilized integrated tools and custom red-team skills during the session.

## What to do

No action recorded; read the sources below and the vendor's advisory.

## Latest updates

- 2026-08-30: Chinese-Speaking Threat Actor Harnesses AI Models for Autonomous Cyberattacks (https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/autonomous-ai-cyber-attack-campaign)
- 2026-08-30: Threat Actor Uses a DeepSeek-Powered Hermes Agent in Langflow and n8n Exploitation Attempts (https://atlas.mitre.org/studies/AML.CS0070)

## Sources

- 2026-08-30 MITRE ATLAS: Threat Actor Uses a DeepSeek-Powered Hermes Agent in Langflow and n8n Exploitation Attempts https://atlas.mitre.org/studies/AML.CS0070
- 2026-08-30 Unit 42: Chinese-Speaking Threat Actor Harnesses AI Models for Autonomous Cyberattacks https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/autonomous-ai-cyber-attack-campaign

Verify against the vendor's advisory before changing production. Data CC BY-SA 4.0, https://gcdradar.vercel.app.