PromptLock: How AI Could Supercharge Ransomware Attacks

Cybersecurity firm ESET has announced the discovery of what its researchers call “the first known AI-powered ransomware.”

The malicious software, called PromptLock, shows how AI can be used in dangerous cyberthreats. Researchers at ESET explain that PromptLock can steal data, while encrypting files, and destroy data. However, the researchers say that this destructive function does not seem to be active yet.

In other words the ransomware does not seem to have been deployed in real-world attacks. As a result, ESET believes that the software is either an unfinished proof-of-concept, or a project still under development.

“The PromptLock malware uses the gpt-oss-20b model from OpenAI locally via the Ollama API to generate malicious Lua scripts on the fly, which it then executes. PromptLock leverages Lua scripts generated from hard-coded prompts to enumerate the local filesystem, inspect target files, exfiltrate selected data, and perform encryption,” said ESET researchers.

They added: “The PromptLock ransomware is written in Golang, and we have identified both Windows and Linux variants uploaded to VirusTotal.” Golang is a flexible programming language often used by malware developers because it can run across different platforms.

Experts have long warned that AI could give hackers new tools. “AI models have made it child’s play to craft convincing phishing messages, as well as deepfake images, audio and video,” ESET noted. With these tools widely available, even attackers with limited technical skills can launch more advanced attacks.

For example, researchers at CloudSek recently discovered that hackers can embed ransomware instructions inside documents via AI summarizers. “A novel adaptation of the ClickFix social engineering technique has been identified, leveraging invisible prompt injection to weaponize AI summarization systems,” they said.

These infected AI summarizers can produce dangerous instructions through invisible text tricks and repeated hidden commands, leading users to unknowingly execute malicious tasks automatically.

Ransomware has evolved into a major cybersecurity threat, often used by both criminals and advanced hacking groups. The discovery of PromptLock technology indicates that AI systems could enhance these ransomware attacks, automating file scanning, data theft, and adjusting tactics in real time.

While PromptLock may not yet be in active use, researchers say it highlights a future of cyberattacks powered by artificial intelligence.