Ankura CTIX FLASH Update – July 7, 2026

Malware Activity

Emerging Threats Highlight Risks Across Malware-as-a-Service and AI Ecosystems

Recent research highlights how cybercriminals are continuing to expand their capabilities through both traditional malware and emerging AI-driven attack techniques. Researchers identified QuimaRAT, a new cross-platform Remote Access Trojan (RAT) being sold as a Malware-as-a-Service (MaaS) offering, enabling threat actors to easily deploy advanced malware across Windows, Linux, and macOS environments without developing their own tools. The malware uses encrypted plugins, stealth capabilities, and multiple delivery mechanisms to maintain long-term access to compromised systems. At the same time, researchers uncovered SkillCloak, a novel technique that allows malicious AI agent extensions to evade security scanners by disguising harmful code and restoring it only during execution. Testing showed that these hidden payloads were able to bypass detection in the majority of cases, raising