# The ‘first’ AI-run ransomware attack still needed a human; plus, hacktivists call out Trump by hacking and defacing US Army websites

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/techcrunch-industry-news-2136933/the-first-ai-run-ransomware-attack-still-needed-a-human-plus-hacktivists-call-out-trump-by-hacking-and-defacing-us-army-websites
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/techcrunch-industry-news-2136933/the-first-ai-run-ransomware-attack-still-needed-a-human-plus-hacktivists-call-out-trump-by-hacking-and-defacing-us-army-websites.md
Podcast: [TechCrunch Industry News](https://stenobird.com/podcast/techcrunch-industry-news-2136933)
Published: 2026-07-08T07:30:00+00:00
Episode link: https://mgln.ai/e/211/traffic.megaphone.fm/AIRWV4033840097.mp3
Audio file: https://mgln.ai/e/211/traffic.megaphone.fm/AIRWV4033840097.mp3
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Duration seconds: 454

## Resource

An AI agent carried out the technical execution of a real-world ransomware attack for the first known time, but new details show a human still chose the victim, set up the infrastructure, and supplied stolen credentials — meaning it wasn't quite the fully autonomous cybercrime debut that last week's headlines suggested. Also, the U.S. Army has fixed two of its websites that were hacked to display messages calling President Trump a "pedophile" and a "thief." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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