Was flybase.org hit by ransomware?

flybase.org was listed by the funksec ransomware operation (United States), and stolen data was published on the group's leak site. Darkfield tracks this disclosure with the original leak post, screenshot and group context.

Who is the funksec ransomware group?

funksec is a ransomware operator tracked by Darkfield. See the full operator dossier for its known victims, sectors targeted, IOCs and leak-site infrastructure.

What data was leaked in the flybase.org breach?

funksec published data attributed to flybase.org. Darkfield captured the leak post and a screenshot of the listing.

Ransomware victim disclosure

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FlyBase

listed as flybase.org · Claimed by Funksec · listed 2 years ago

19m

Age

since listed · data leaked

Status timeline

ListedDec 18, 2024
Data leakeddate unknown

At a glance

Group: Funksec
Status: Data leaked
Country: United States
Sector: Education
Listed on leak site: Dec 18, 2024

About the victim

AI dossier — public-source company profile

FlyBase is a comprehensive database for information on the genetics and molecular biology of Drosophila, primarily Drosophila melanogaster. It serves as a vital resource for the global research community, providing curated genetic information, gene functions, biological pathways, data analysis tools, and supporting advances in genetic research.

Industry: Scientific Research & Bioinformatics

Attack summary

Severity: medium — Data has been published by the group, but the leak post contains only generic AI-generated descriptions with no specific proof files, screenshots, or detailed inventory of sensitive data disclosed. FlyBase is a public research resource, limiting the sensitivity of baseline content, though unauthorized access and data publication represent a breach.

The ransomware group claims to have accessed FlyBase systems and published data. No specific details are provided regarding the scope of exfiltration, encryption, or operational impact.

medium

Data the group says was taken

AI dossier — extracted from the leak post

Genetic database records
Research data
Scientific information

Original description

AI-summarised, not from the leak post

FlyBase is a comprehensive database for information on the genetics and molecular biology of Drosophila, primarily Drosophila melanogaster. It serves as a vital resource for researchers, providing extensive data on fruit fly genetics, gene functions, and associated biological pathways. FlyBase supports the scientific community by offering curated genetic information, tools for data analysis, and facilitating advances in genetic research.

Sources

Victim siteflybase.org
Leak posthttp://7ixfdvqb4eaju5lzj4gg76kwlrxg4ugqpuog5oqkkmgfyn33h527oyyd.onion/Breach49.html

Source

Indexed 2 years ago

This page surfaces a public ransomware disclosure indexed by Darkfield. Original posts come from the operator's own leak site; we cross-check against ransomware.live, RansomLook and RansomWatch where applicable. Share this URL freely.

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Disclosure context

About funksec

Funksec is a recently emerged ransomware group first observed in December 2024, operating with apparent financial motivations based on their targeting patterns and victim acquisition approach. The group's origin and potential state affiliations remain unclear due to their recent emergence, though they appear to operate independently rather than as a Ransomware-as-a-Service model based on available intelligence. With 172 documented victims across multiple countries, Funksec has demonstrated a broad targeting approach, primarily focusing on the United States, India, Brazil, Spain, and Israel, with particular emphasis on technology companies, government entities, educational institutions, and business services organizations. The group's attack methodology, encryption techniques, and specific tactics, techniques, and procedures remain largely undocumented by major threat intelligence firms, though their rapid victim acquisition suggests an established operational capability. Given the group's recent discovery in December 2024, there have been no widely reported major campaigns or high-profile incidents that have drawn significant public attention from law enforcement or cybersecurity organizations. Funksec remains active as of early 2025, continuing to target organizations across their established geographic and sectoral preferences. The group has been linked to 172 public disclosures across our corpus. First observed on a leak site on December 4, 2024; most recent post March 18, 2025. The operation is currently inactive.

Timeline of this disclosure

December 18, 2024flybase.org listed by funksecon the group's public leak site

Other recent disclosures by funksec

funksec has been linked to 172 public victims on Darkfield. A sample of the most recent:

See the full funksec dossier →

Sector and geography

This disclosure adds to ransomware activity in the Education sector, which has 1,082 disclosures indexed across all operators we track. Geographically, flybase.org is reported in United States, a country with 11,033 ransomware disclosures in our corpus.

If your organisation is affected

A listing by funksec means flybase.org appeared on a ransomware extortion site and data attributed to it has been published. If this is your organisation, or a supplier you depend on, the priority is to confirm the intrusion and contain it before the window to act closes.

Engage your incident-response team and preserve forensic evidence before remediating — do not wipe affected systems first.
Force a password reset and revoke active sessions for exposed accounts; rotate any credentials, API keys or certificates that may have been in the stolen data.
Assess regulatory notification duties (GDPR, NIS2, sector regulators) — many carry a 72-hour reporting clock from awareness.
Report the incident to your national CERT, CISA (United States), as required for your jurisdiction.
Monitor for the data appearing on funksec's leak site and across paste and breach channels, and brief downstream partners who may be exposed through you.

How we know this. Darkfield monitors public ransomware leak sites continuously, archiving every new disclosure and the data later released against the victim. Each entry on this page is sourced from the operator's own publication and cross-checked against complementary OSINT feeds (RansomLook, ransomware.live, RansomWatch). We do not collect or host stolen data — only the metadata, timestamps and screenshots needed to make the public disclosure searchable and accountable. Records here are corrected when the original post is edited, retracted, or merged with another disclosure.