Once. Someone named “Vincenzo lozzo” wrote to Epstein in email, in 2016: “I wouldn’t pay too much attention to this, Schneier has a long tradition of dramatizing and misunderstanding things.” The topic of the email is DDoS attacks, and it is unclear what I am dramatizing and misunderstanding.
Rabbi Schneier is also mentioned, also incidentally, also once. As far as either of us know, we are not related.
EDITED TO ADD (2/7): There is more context on the Justice.gov website version.
The LastPass Threat Intelligence, Mitigation, and Escalation (TIME) team has published a warning about an active phishing campaign in which fake “maintenance” emails pressure users to back up their vaults within 24 hours. The emails lead to credential-stealing phishing sites rather than any legitimate LastPass page.
The phishing campaign that started around January 19, 2026, uses emails that falsely claim upcoming infrastructure maintenance and urge users to “backup your vault in the next 24 hours.”
Image courtesy of LastPass
“Scheduled Maintenance: Backup Recommended
As part of our ongoing commitment to security and performance, we will be conducting scheduled infrastructure maintenance on our servers. Why are we asking you to create a backup? While your data remains protected at all times, creating a local backup ensures you have access to your credentials during the maintenance window. In the unlikely event of any unforeseen technical difficulties or data discrepancies, having a recent backup guarantees your information remains secure and recoverable. We recommend this precautionary measure to all users to ensure complete peace of mind and seamless continuity of service.
Create Backup Now (link)
How to create your backup 1 Click the “Create Backup Now” button above 2 Select “Export Vault” from you account settings 3 Download and store your encrypted backup file securely”
The link in the email points to mail-lastpass[.]com, a domain that doesn’t belong to LastPass and has now been taken down.
Note that there are different subject lines in use. Here is a selection:
LastPass Infrastructure Update: Secure Your Vault Now
Your Data, Your Protection: Create a Backup Before Maintenance
Don’t Miss Out: Backup Your Vault Before Maintenance
Important: LastPass Maintenance & Your Vault Security
Protect Your Passwords: Backup Your Vault (24-Hour Window)
It is imperative for users to ignore instructions in emails like these. Giving away the login details for your password manager can be disastrous. For most users, it would provide access to enough information to carry out identity theft.
Stay safe
First and foremost, it’s important to understand that LastPass will never ask for your master password or demand immediate action under a tight deadline. Generally speaking, there are more guidelines that can help you stay safe.
Don’t click on links in unsolicited emails without verifying with the trusted sender that they’re legitimate.
Always log in directly on the platform that you are trying to access, rather than through a link.
Use a real-time, up-to-date anti-malware solution with a web protection module to block malicious sites.
Report phishing emails to the company that’s being impersonated, so they can alert other customers. In this case emails were forwarded to abuse@lastpass.com.
Pro tip: Malwarebytes Scam Guard would have recognized this email as a scam and advised you how to proceed.
We don’t just report on threats—we help safeguard your entire digital identity
Cybersecurity risks should never spread beyond a headline. Protect your, and your family’s, personal information by using identity protection.
The LastPass Threat Intelligence, Mitigation, and Escalation (TIME) team has published a warning about an active phishing campaign in which fake “maintenance” emails pressure users to back up their vaults within 24 hours. The emails lead to credential-stealing phishing sites rather than any legitimate LastPass page.
The phishing campaign that started around January 19, 2026, uses emails that falsely claim upcoming infrastructure maintenance and urge users to “backup your vault in the next 24 hours.”
Image courtesy of LastPass
“Scheduled Maintenance: Backup Recommended
As part of our ongoing commitment to security and performance, we will be conducting scheduled infrastructure maintenance on our servers. Why are we asking you to create a backup? While your data remains protected at all times, creating a local backup ensures you have access to your credentials during the maintenance window. In the unlikely event of any unforeseen technical difficulties or data discrepancies, having a recent backup guarantees your information remains secure and recoverable. We recommend this precautionary measure to all users to ensure complete peace of mind and seamless continuity of service.
Create Backup Now (link)
How to create your backup 1 Click the “Create Backup Now” button above 2 Select “Export Vault” from you account settings 3 Download and store your encrypted backup file securely”
The link in the email points to mail-lastpass[.]com, a domain that doesn’t belong to LastPass and has now been taken down.
Note that there are different subject lines in use. Here is a selection:
LastPass Infrastructure Update: Secure Your Vault Now
Your Data, Your Protection: Create a Backup Before Maintenance
Don’t Miss Out: Backup Your Vault Before Maintenance
Important: LastPass Maintenance & Your Vault Security
Protect Your Passwords: Backup Your Vault (24-Hour Window)
It is imperative for users to ignore instructions in emails like these. Giving away the login details for your password manager can be disastrous. For most users, it would provide access to enough information to carry out identity theft.
Stay safe
First and foremost, it’s important to understand that LastPass will never ask for your master password or demand immediate action under a tight deadline. Generally speaking, there are more guidelines that can help you stay safe.
Don’t click on links in unsolicited emails without verifying with the trusted sender that they’re legitimate.
Always log in directly on the platform that you are trying to access, rather than through a link.
Use a real-time, up-to-date anti-malware solution with a web protection module to block malicious sites.
Report phishing emails to the company that’s being impersonated, so they can alert other customers. In this case emails were forwarded to abuse@lastpass.com.
Pro tip: Malwarebytes Scam Guard would have recognized this email as a scam and advised you how to proceed.
We don’t just report on threats—we help safeguard your entire digital identity
Cybersecurity risks should never spread beyond a headline. Protect your, and your family’s, personal information by using identity protection.
Brand, website, and corporate mailout impersonation is becoming an increasingly common technique used by cybercriminals. The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) reported a spike in such incidents in 2025. While tech companies and consumer brands are the most frequent targets, every industry in every country is generally at risk. The only thing that changes is how the imposters exploit the fakes In practice, we typically see the following attack scenarios:
Luring clients and customers to a fake website to harvest login credentials for the real online store, or to steal payment details for direct theft.
Luring employees and business partners to a fake corporate login portal to acquire legitimate credentials for infiltrating the corporate network.
Prompting clients and customers to contact the scammers under various pretexts: getting tech support, processing a refund, entering a prize giveaway, or claiming compensation for public events involving the brand. The goal is to then swindle the victims out of as much money as possible.
Luring business partners and employees to specially crafted pages that mimic internal company systems, to get them to approve a payment or redirect a legitimate payment to the scammers.
Prompting clients, business partners, and employees to download malware — most often an infostealer — disguised as corporate software from a fake company website.
The words “luring” and “prompting” here imply a whole toolbox of tactics: email, messages in chat apps, social media posts that look like official ads, lookalike websites promoted through SEO tools, and even paid ads.
These schemes all share two common features. First, the attackers exploit the organization’s brand, and strive to mimic its official website, domain name, and corporate style of emails, ads, and social media posts. And the forgery doesn’t have to be flawless — just convincing enough for at least some of business partners and customers. Second, while the organization and its online resources aren’t targeted directly, the impact on them is still significant.
Business damage from brand impersonation
When fakes are crafted to target employees, an attack can lead to direct financial loss. An employee might be persuaded to transfer company funds, or their credentials could be used to steal confidential information or launch a ransomware attack.
Attacks on customers don’t typically imply direct damage to the company’s coffers, but they cause substantial indirect harm in the following areas:
Strain on customer support. Customers who “bought” a product on a fake site will likely bring their issues to the real customer support team. Convincing them that they never actually placed an order is tough, making each case a major time waster for multiple support agents.
Reputational damage. Defrauded customers often blame the brand for failing to protect them from the scam, and also expect compensation. According to a European survey, around half of affected buyers expect payouts and may stop using the company’s services — often sharing their negative experience on social media. This is especially damaging if the victims include public figures or anyone with a large following.
Unplanned response costs. Depending on the specifics and scale of an attack, an affected company might need digital forensics and incident response (DFIR) services, as well as consultants specializing in consumer law, intellectual property, cybersecurity, and crisis PR.
Increased insurance premiums. Companies that insure businesses against cyber-incidents factor in fallout from brand impersonation. An increased risk profile may be reflected in a higher premium for a business.
Degraded website performance and rising ad costs. If criminals run paid ads using a brand’s name, they siphon traffic away from its official site. Furthermore, if a company pays to advertise its site, the cost per click rises due to the increased competition. This is a particularly acute problem for IT companies selling online services, but it’s also relevant for retail brands.
Long-term metric decline. This includes drops in sales volume, market share, and market capitalization. These are all consequences of lost trust from customers and business partners following major incidents.
Does insurance cover the damage?
Popular cyber-risk insurance policies typically only cover costs directly tied to incidents explicitly defined in the policy — think data loss, business interruption, IT system compromise, and the like. Fake domains and web pages don’t directly damage a company’s IT systems, so they’re usually not covered by standard insurance. Reputational losses and the act of impersonation itself are separate insurance risks, requiring expanded coverage for this scenario specifically.
Of the indirect losses we’ve listed above, standard insurance might cover DFIR expenses and, in some cases, extra customer support costs (if the situation is recognized as an insured event). Voluntary customer reimbursements, lost sales, and reputational damage are almost certainly not covered.
What to do if your company is attacked by clones
If you find out someone is using your brand’s name for fraud, it makes sense to do the following:
Send clear, straightforward notifications to your customers explaining what happened, what measures are being taken, and how to verify the authenticity of official websites, emails, and other communications.
Create a simple “trust center” page listing your official domains, social media accounts, app store links, and support contacts. Make it easy to find and keep it updated.
Monitor new registrations of social media pages and domain names that contain your brand names to spot the clones before an attack kicks off.
Follow a takedown procedure. This involves gathering evidence, filing complaints with domain registrars, hosting providers, and social media administrators, then tracking the status until the fakes are fully removed. For a complete and accurate record of violations, preserve URLs, screenshots, metadata, and the date and time of discovery. Ideally, also examine the source code of fake pages, as it might contain clues pointing to other components of the criminal operation.
Add a simple customer reporting form for suspicious sites or messages to your official website and/or branded app. This helps you learn about problems early.
Coordinate activities between your legal, cybersecurity, and marketing teams. This ensures a consistent, unified, and effective response.
How to defend against brand impersonation attacks
While the open nature of the internet and the specifics of these attacks make preventing them outright impossible, a business can stay on top of new fakes and have the tools ready to fight back.
Continuously monitor for suspicious public activity using specialized monitoring services. The most obvious indicator is the registration of domains similar to your brand name, but there are others — like someone buying databases related to your organization on the dark web. Comprehensive monitoring of all platforms is best outsourced to a specialized service provider, such as Kaspersky Digital Footprint Intelligence (DFI).
The quickest and simplest way to take down a fake website or social media profile is to file a trademark infringement complaint. Make sure your portfolio of registered trademarks is robust enough to file complaints under UDRP procedures before you need it.
When you discover fakes, deploy UDRP procedures promptly to have the fake domains transferred or removed. For social media, follow the platform’s specific infringement procedure — easily found by searching for “[social media name] trademark infringement” (for example, “LinkedIn trademark infringement”). Transferring the domain to the legitimate owner is preferred over deletion, as it prevents scammers from simply re-registering it. Many continuous monitoring services, such as Kaspersky Digital Footprint Intelligence, also offer a rapid takedown service, filing complaints on the protected brand’s behalf.
Act quickly to block fake domains on your corporate systems. This won’t protect partners or customers, but it’ll throw a wrench into attacks targeting your own employees.
Consider proactively registering your company’s website name and common variations (for example, with and without hyphens) in all major top-level domains, such as .com, and local extensions. This helps protect partners and customers from common typos and simple copycat sites.
Our experts have detected a new wave of malicious emails targeting Russian private-sector organizations. The goal of the attack is to infect victims’ computers with an infostealer. This campaign is particularly noteworthy because the attackers tried to disguise their activity as the operations of legitimate software and traffic to the ubiquitously-used state and municipal services website.
How the attack begins
The attackers distribute an email containing a malicious attachment disguised as a regular PDF document. In reality, the file is an executable hiding behind a PDF icon; double-clicking it triggers an infection chain on the victim’s computer. In the campaign we analyzed, the malicious files were named УВЕДОМЛЕНИЕ о возбуждении исполнительного производства (NOTICE of Initiation of Enforcement Proceedings) and Дополнительные выплаты (Additional Payouts), though these are probably not the only document names the attackers employ to trick victims into clicking the files.
Technically, the file disguised as a document is a downloader built with the help of the .NET framework. It downloads a secondary loader that installs itself as a service to establish persistence on the victim’s machine. This other loader then retrieves a JSON string containing encrypted files from the command-and-control server. It saves these files to the compromised computer in C:\ProgramData\Microsoft Diagnostic\Tasks, and executes them one by one.
Example of the server response
The key feature of this delivery method is its flexibility: the attackers can provide any malicious payload from the command-and-control server for the malware to download and execute. Presently, the attackers are using an infostealer as the final payload, but this attack could potentially be used to deliver even more dangerous threats – such as ransomware, wipers, or tools for deeper lateral movement within the victim’s infrastructure.
Masking malicious activity
The command-and-control server used to download the malicious payload in this attack was hosted on the domain gossuslugi{.}com. The name is visually similar to Russia’s widely used state and municipal services portal. Furthermore, the second-stage loader has the filename NetworkDiagnostic.exe, which installs itself in the system as a Network Diagnostic Service.
Consequently, an analyst doing only a superficial review of network traffic logs or system events might overlook the server communication and malware execution. This can also complicate any subsequent incident investigation efforts.
What the infostealer collects
The attackers start by gathering information about the compromised system: the computer name, OS version, hardware specifications, and the victim’s IP address. Additionally, the malware is capable of capturing screenshots from the victim’s computer, and harvesting files in formats of interest to the attackers (primarily various documents and archives). Files smaller than 100MB, along with the rest of the collected data, are sent to a separate communication server: ants-queen-dev.azurewebsites{.}net.
File formats of interest to the attackers
The final malicious payload currently in use consists of four files: one executable and three DLL libraries. The executable enables screen capture capabilities. One of the libraries is used to add the executable to startup, another is responsible for data collection, while the third handles data exfiltration.
During network communication, the malware adds an AuthKey header to its requests, which contains the victim’s operating system identifier.
Code snippet: a function for sending messages to the attackers’ server
How to stay safe
Our security solutions detect both the malicious code used in this attack and its communication with the attackers’ command-and-control servers. Therefore, we recommend using reliable security solutions on all devices used by your company to access the internet. And to prevent malicious emails from ever reaching your employees, we also advise deploying a security solution at the corporate email gateway level too.
Our experts from the Global Research and Analysis Team (GReAT) have investigated a new wave of targeted emails from the ForumTroll APT group. Whereas previously their malicious emails were sent to public addresses of organizations, this time the attackers have targeted specific individuals — scientists from Russian universities and other organizations specializing in political science, international relations, and global economics. The purpose of the campaign was to infect victims’ computers with malware to gain remote access thereto.
What the malicious email looks like
The attackers sent the emails from the address support@e-library{.}wiki, which imitates the address of the scientific electronic library eLibrary (its real domain is elibrary.ru). The emails contained personalized links to a report on the plagiarism check of some material, which, according to the attackers’ plan, was supposed to be of interest to scientists.
In reality, the link downloaded an archive from the same e-library{.}wiki domain. Inside was a malicious .lnk file and a .Thumbs directory with some images that were apparently needed to bypass security technologies. The victim’s full name was used in the filenames of the archive and the malicious link-file.
In case the victim had doubts about the legitimacy of the email and visited the e-library{.}wiki page, they were shown a slightly outdated copy of the real website.
What happens if the victim clicks on the malicious link
If the scientist who received the email clicked on the file with the .lnk extension, a malicious PowerShell script was executed on their computer, triggering a chain of infection. As a result, the attackers installed a commercial framework Tuoni for red teams on the attacked machine, providing the attackers with remote access and other opportunities for further compromising the system. In addition, the malware used COM Hijacking to achieve persistency, and downloaded and displayed a decoy PDF file, the name of which also included the victim’s full name. The file itself, however, was not personalized — it was a rather vague report in the format of one of the Russian plagiarism detection systems.
Interestingly, if the victim tried to open the malicious link from a device running on a system that didn’t support PowerShell, they were prompted to try again from a Windows computer. A more detailed technical analysis of the attack, along with indicators of compromise, can be found in a post on the Securelist website.
How to stay safe
The malware used in this attack is successfully detected and blocked by Kaspersky’s security products. We recommend installing a reliable security solution not only on all devices used by employees to access the internet, but also on the organization's mail gateway, which can stop most threats delivered via email before they reach an employee’s device.
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