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November 29, 2025
Introduction
The modern Security Operations Center (SOC) relies on Threat-Informed Defense, the idea that an organisation’s security posture should be driven by real-world knowledge of adversary tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs). A SOC can consume feeds, read reports, and scrape the web for the latest Indicators of Compromise (IoCs) to stay one step ahead.
But what happens when the intelligence consumed isn’t just wrong, but entirely fabricated?
Arachne Digital recently analyzed a disturbing example of this growing trend: an article detailing a “new” threat that contained completely incorrect and possibly hallucinatory data. As generative AI floods the internet with content, the line between open-source intelligence (OSINT) and “AI sludge” is blurring, threatening to poison the well of information we all rely on.
Anatomy of a Hallucination: The “Lyrix” Case
Our analysts recently flagged a blog post from a generic cybersecurity news vendor claiming to analyze “Lyrix Ransomware.” On the surface, the article looked professional. It had a structured layout, technical headings, and a table of IoCs ready for ingestion.
However, a closer look revealed that the “intelligence” was essentially useless, and potentially dangerous.
The article listed technical indicators that were fraudulent, yet they were presented with total confidence:
- The article listed the Command and Control (C2) IP address as 192.168.1.100. This is a private RFC1918 address used for local home or office networks. It is physically impossible for a global ransomware campaign to use this address as a public C2 server over the internet.
- The provided SHA256 hash was a1b2c3d4e5f6789012345678901234567890abcdef1234567890abcdef123456. Real cryptographic hashes look like randomised numbers and characters. This string is a clear pattern (a1b2c3d4e5… followed by 123456…), indicating it was likely a placeholder added by a human or hallucinated by an AI model. The real hash, as reported by CYFIRMA, was fcfa43ecb55ba6a46d8351257a491025022f85e9ae9d5e93d945073f612c877b.
- The article claimed encrypted files were appended with .lyrix. The real extension was .02dq34jROu.
The fake article likely took the headline of the real Cyfirma report and either copied the wrong IoCs from somewhere else, or used a Large Language Model (LLM) to generate the article. If an AI was used, it has filled in the blanks with plausible-sounding but factually incorrect values.
The Rise of “Content Farms” in Cybersecurity
This is not an isolated incident. It is a symptom of a broader trend, the use of generative AI for Search Engine Optimization (SEO).
“Content farms” are websites designed solely to generate ad revenue by capturing search traffic. In the past, they hired low-paid freelancers to write generic articles. Today, they can use AI to churn out articles on trending topics. When a new threat like “Lyrix” hits the news, these bots automatically generate articles to capture keywords, and can fabricate technical details to make the content appear “authoritative” to search algorithms.
For a general news reader, an AI hallucination might be confusing, if they notice. For a SOC analyst, it is a resource drain.
The Cost of Bad Intelligence
The danger is not just that the information is fake; it is that it undermines the workflow of Threat-Informed Defence.
- Wasted Cycles: If an analyst or an automated scraper ingests the fake IoCs from the “Lyrix” article, the security team might waste hours hunting for a non-existent file extension (.lyrix) or blocking a harmless private IP address.
- False Sense of Security: While the team is blocking fake indicators, the actual ransomware (using the .02dq34jROu extension) could be encrypting the network undetected.
- Pollution of Datasets: Many threat intelligence platforms aggregate data from OSINT sources. If poisoned articles are ingested into these feeds, the fake data propagates downstream, lowering the fidelity of intelligence for everyone.
Navigating the Era of Synthetic Noise
As AI-generated content becomes indistinguishable from human reporting in style and tone, we must adapt our verification processes. “Trust but verify” has never been more critical.
Arachne Digital believes that accurate, verified intelligence is the bedrock of security. In an era of infinite synthetic noise, the value of human-curated, technically validated data is higher than ever. Don’t let your defenses be led astray by a hallucination.
Benefits
Why select Arachne?
Our platform searches the internet for information on threat actors, gathers reports, and categorises the findings by region, industry, and threat actor. Our process automatically maps TTPs to MITRE ATT&CK®, slashing research time and saving you money.
Testimonials & Partnerships
“Arachne Digital’s team works closely with us in integrating our tool, Speculo, with their data. Speculo is designed to help organisations get a full picture of their cyber risk with reliable analytics and a streamlined risk assessment process. The integration of Arachne Digital’s threat intelligence into Speculo provides evidence-based insights into cyber risks, making the tool more relevant to our customers. Arachne facilitated multiple face-to-face meetings and video calls, provided technical resources, comprehensive documentation, and example reports. This collaboration ensured that we could seamlessly integrate and utilize their data, significantly enriching the value we deliver to our clients.
Arachne Digital’s commitment to excellence and their proactive approach in supporting our needs have made them an indispensable partner. We highly recommend their services to any organisation looking to strengthen their threat intelligence capabilities.”
Speculo
Partnership
Arachne Digital is proud to partner with the DISARM Foundation as the inaugural member of their Partner Programme, launched at the beginning of 2024.
This partnership is crucial in supporting the DISARM Foundation’s mission to maintain and enhance the DISARM Framework, ensuring it remains a free and continuously updated resource in the fight against disinformation.
Through our collaboration, Arachne Digital provides valuable feedback, promotes the integration of the framework into our operations, and encourages wider adoption within the defender community. This partnership highlights our commitment to combating evolving threats and fostering a secure digital environment.
