A self-styled cybercrime crew calling itself Scattered LAPSUS$ Hunters claimed on Telegram to have breached the internal systems of cybersecurity company Resecurity and accessed sensitive logs and employee data — but multiple independent reports confirm the breach was a deliberate trap, a honeypot loaded with fake information designed to lure and monitor attackers rather than represent real assets. According to coverage by ITPro, the threat actors posted screenshots of supposed access to internal chats, logs, and client data before the post was removed; Resecurity’s security team says the incident involved an isolated environment full of synthetic data used to observe and analyze malicious activity rather than a genuine production breach. BleepingComputer reported that the attackers insisted they had infiltrated Resecurity systems, even alleging social-engineering tactics during alleged data acquisition, while Resecurity and other security outlets such as Cybernews explain the accessed targets were decoys. Additional reporting confirms the group’s screenshots are widely believed to show only the fake environment. The incident highlights the ongoing tactics of cybercrime crews on platforms like Telegram and the effectiveness of honeypots in catching them off guard. Full reporting from each source is linked below.
Sources:
https://www.itpro.com/security/cyber-crime-group-claims-successful-attack-on-security-firm-crows-about-it-on-telegram-but-it-was-all-an-elaborate-honeypot
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/hackers-claim-resecurity-hack-firm-says-it-was-a-honeypot/
https://cybernews.com/cybercrime/resecurity-denies-breach-says-attackers-hit-a-honeypot/
Key Takeaways
• A cybercrime faction Scattered LAPSUS$ Hunters publicly claimed a breach of Resecurity, but cybersecurity researchers set a honeypot trap that the group fell into.
• Honeypots — deceptive, isolated systems filled with synthetic data — can lure attackers and provide defenders with insight while protecting real assets.
• The incident demonstrates the cat-and-mouse nature of cybercrime, where criminal groups use platforms like Telegram to broadcast exploits that may not be valid.
In-Depth
In recent days, cybersecurity headlines were dominated by an attention-grabbing claim: a shadowy cybercrime collective had allegedly breached a respected security firm’s systems. The group, self-identifying as Scattered LAPSUS$ Hunters, boasted on Telegram that it had accessed internal chats, logs, employee information, and client data from security vendor Resecurity. Given the sensitive nature of cybersecurity intelligence and threat data, such a breach would have been a significant embarrassment for a company whose core business is defending organizations against precisely this sort of threat.
However, deeper scrutiny by multiple independent reporting outlets reveals a different — and reassuring — reality. Rather than being compromised, Resecurity appears to have anticipated malicious probes and constructed a deliberate honeypot environment designed to mimic real systems. Honeypots are decoy computing resources or datasets that resemble legitimate targets but actually contain fabricated, synthetic content. These traps attract the attention of malicious actors and allow defenders to observe, study, and counteract attack behavior without risking real operational systems.
The key twist in this story is that the attackers themselves walked into this trap. They may have believed they had valid access, even publishing screenshots that they took as evidence of success. Within cybersecurity circles, it’s understood that such screenshots can be deceiving — especially if taken from an environment crafted to look authentic but engineered to mislead. Resecurity has confirmed that the data accessed was synthetic and isolated, and its monitors logged the intrusions. Reporting from outlets like BleepingComputer and Cybernews corroborates this, noting that the attackers appeared to engage with fabricated data rather than live systems, a hallmark of honeypot events.
This episode serves as a useful case study in modern defensive cybersecurity strategies. Honeypots aren’t simply passive lures; they can actively gather intelligence on attack vectors, techniques, and even the real identities or infrastructure used by criminal gangs. For defenders, the ability to turn the tables — allowing attackers to expose their methods within a controlled setting — represents a potent deterrent and analytical tool.
At the same time, the incident underscores the boldness of criminal groups that promote their exploits across platforms like Telegram, seeking notoriety and, potentially, recruitment or leverage. The fact that Resecurity’s decoy succeeded in attracting attention instead of real compromise is a testament to proactive defense and the importance of understanding threat actor psychology in addition to technical fortification.
In the ongoing cyber conflict between defenders and attackers, incidents like this highlight that technological superiority and strategic deception can blunt the impact of even brazen claims of compromise. For companies and observers alike, it reinforces the value of both hardening systems and employing smart decoys to protect real assets while learning from adversarial behavior.