Vercel says some of its customers’ data was stolen prior to its recent hack

Vercel, a prominent player in app and website hosting, has issued an alarming update regarding a recent data breach, revealing that hackers accessed customer information prior to the incident's discovery. This revelation indicates that the security threat may be more extensive than previously believed. In an update posted on its security incident page, the company stated that its investigation uncovered signs of malicious activity on its network that occurred before the breach reported in early April. The update revealed that a limited number of customer accounts showed evidence of prior compromises, potentially due to tactics such as social engineering or malware. Additionally, Vercel has identified more accounts affected by the April breach, although it has not disclosed specific details on the scope or number of customers impacted. The San Francisco-based company initially attributed the internal breach to an employee who inadvertently downloaded an app from the software startup Context AI, which hackers exploited to infiltrate the employee's work account and, subsequently, Vercel’s systems. CEO Guillermo Rauch confirmed via a post on X that the hackers had been active beyond the breach of Context AI, which also acknowledged a recent security incident. Despite the ongoing investigation, a spokesperson for Vercel declined to provide further comments on the extent of the breach or how long the compromises may have been occurring. While the exact method of the intrusion remains unconfirmed, Rauch suggested that the attackers likely employed malware designed to extract sensitive information, including access tokens for Vercel accounts and other platforms. This type of malware, often disguised as legitimate software, can harvest private data from infected computers, enabling hackers to infiltrate systems using compromised keys. Rauch noted a pattern of rapid and extensive API usage once the attackers obtained these keys, indicating significant access to internal systems and unencrypted customer credentials. Recent reports from security researchers highlighted that an employee at Context AI may have fallen victim to infostealer malware while searching for Roblox game cheats. As the investigation continues, the full impact of the breaches on Vercel’s customers remains unclear. Both Vercel and Context AI have suggested that the ramifications of these security incidents may extend to additional companies, with more victims potentially emerging in the days ahead.