Cybercrime group Anonymous Sudan recently claimed to have successfully hacked Microsoft and stolen a “large database” containing over 30 million Microsoft accounts, emails, and passwords. The group announced its intentions to sell the database for $50,000, stating that interested buyers can contact them through a Telegram bot to complete the transaction.
To support their claims, Anonymous Sudan shared a data sample that included 100 credential pairs. However, the origin of these credentials cannot be verified, leaving open the possibility that they may have been obtained from a different data breach or a third-party source unrelated to Microsoft.
Microsoft has categorically denied being breached and stated that the data is likely an aggregation from various other sources. A spokesperson for the company emphasized that there is no evidence to suggest that customer data has been accessed or compromised.
Anonymous Sudan has previously targeted Microsoft with Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks, disrupting services such as Outlook, SharePoint Online, OneDrive for Business, and Azure. Microsoft tracked the group as Storm-1359 and identified multiple layer 7 DDoS attack techniques employed, including HTTP(S) floods, cache bypass tactics, and slowloris attacks.
While services were temporarily disrupted during these attacks, Microsoft maintains that customer data remains secure. Anonymous Sudan describes itself as hacktivists but is believed to have pro-Russia affiliations. The group has targeted government entities in France, Denmark, and Sweden, indicating political motivations.
Critics have questioned the low asking price for the alleged database, suggesting it may be suspiciously low and driven by quick financial gain. Some speculate that Anonymous Sudan may be based in the United Arab Emirates, despite its Sudanese origins. However, there are arguments that the group is a Russian information operation leveraging Islamic credentials to advocate for closer Russia-Islamic world cooperation.
As Microsoft continues to investigate the claims made by Anonymous Sudan, further updates and responses from the company are yet to be revealed.
