Carbonato Botnet Leverages Hermes Agent AI Framework to Compromise Docker Hosts

According to recent analysis, the Carbonato botnet targets Docker hosts that are inadvertently exposed to the internet. Once access is obtained, the malware installs the Hermes Agent framework, which provides a conversational interface over Telegram. Attackers can send commands to the bot via Telegram to execute shell commands on the host, pivot within the network, and exfiltrate data. A primary objective of the campaign is the theft of AI API keys, which can be used to access paid large language model services or integrated into further attack tools. The malware also scans for and exfiltrates configuration files and environment variables from compromised containers. The use of a legitimate AI framework in this manner represents a novel convergence of generative AI tools and traditional botnet infrastructure. Security vendors have observed the botnet targeting hosts across multiple cloud providers, suggesting a broad scan for misconfigured container orchestration endpoints.