Disney’s Security Breach: The Hidden Risks of AI-Based Applications
What We Know
In July 2024, The Walt Disney Company suffered a major security breach when the hacking group NullBulge infiltrated its internal communications. The attack targeted Disney’s Slack channels, leading to the leak of approximately 44 million internal messages and exposing sensitive company information.
How Did It Happen?
The breach was caused by a Disney employee who unknowingly downloaded an unverified AI tool from GitHub. The software contained embedded malware, which allowed hackers to infiltrate both personal and corporate environments, including:
- Disney’s Slack channels – exposing internal conversations and sensitive data
- The employee’s 1Password account – which contained stored credentials, including access to Disney’s internal systems, and was NOT protected by Multi-Factor Authentication
By compromising the employee’s 1Password vault, the hackers gained access to Disney’s organization-wide credentials, further escalating the breach’s impact.
Following the attack, Disney launched an internal investigation and terminated the employee. The company claimed inappropriate materials ware found on the work computer—a claim the employee disputes.
Key Takeaways: Strengthening Security Against AI-based 3rd party apps
This breach underscores the risks associated with unmanaged AI-based 3rd party apps and Shadow SaaS applications, reinforcing the need for proactive security measures:
1. Implement Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)
MFA significantly reduces the risk of unauthorized access by requiring multiple verification steps, preventing attackers from easily exploiting compromised credentials.
2. Restrict AI-based 3rd party Software Usage
Unverified GitHub repositories and third-party apps can introduce malware into corporate systems. Organizations should enforce strict policies on software usage and require security approval before authorization.
3. Automate Discovery and Response
Security teams cannot manually monitor all applications that employees use. Automated discovery of AI-based Shadow SaaS apps and 3rd-party apps is critical to stopping security threats before they escalate.
How Suridata could prevent such breaches
Suridata provides comprehensive visibility into any unauthorized third-party and shadow SaaS applications, allowing security teams to detect, assess, and mitigate risks before they lead to breaches, using the following capabilities:
Identify AI-Based Applications in Use – Suridata has the ability to recognize AI tools, helping security teams track and monitor their adoption across the organization.
Prioritize Risky Apps – The malicious GitHub AI tool would have been immediately detected and classified as critical, triggering a security notification.
Automated Security Actions Through Workflows – Suridata enables organizations to automate security responses through predefined and custom workflows, such as:
- Revoking access to suspicious apps
- Blocking installations of unverified tools
- Requesting business justification for app usage before approval or removal
- Continuous notifications- automatically notifies when AI-based apps are authorized or are in use
Final Thoughts
The Disney breach is a powerful reminder that 3rd party apps, Shadow SaaS apps and AI applications, pose serious security threats. Companies must move beyond reactive security measures and adopt proactive solutions like Suridata to prevent data leaks before they happen.
Product Lead