Disclosure context

About payload

Based on the limited publicly available information, Payload is an emerging ransomware group first observed in February 2026 with a primarily financial motivation, having targeted 19 documented victims across multiple countries and sectors. The group's origin and affiliations remain unclear, with no documented evidence of their operational structure, country of origin, or whether they operate as a Ransomware-as-a-Service model or independent entity. Their attack methodology, encryption techniques, and specific tools used have not been publicly documented by major cybersecurity firms or law enforcement agencies. The group has demonstrated a diverse targeting approach, focusing primarily on victims in the Philippines, United States, United Kingdom, Mexico, and Dominican Republic, with particular emphasis on manufacturing, agriculture and food production, transportation/logistics, and telecommunication sectors, though the specific campaigns and ransom demands remain undisclosed in public threat intelligence reports. Given the group's recent emergence and limited public documentation, Payload appears to be currently active but remains a relatively obscure threat actor with insufficient publicly available data to establish comprehensive intelligence assessments from major cybersecurity organizations or law enforcement agencies. The group has been linked to 46 public disclosures across our corpus. First observed on a leak site on February 17, 2026; most recent post May 19, 2026. The operation is currently active.

Timeline of this disclosure

May 19, 2026Kabushiki Gaisha Hodozuka Setsubi listed by payloadon the group's public leak site

Sector and geography

This disclosure adds to ransomware activity in the Manufacturing sector, which has 2,458 disclosures indexed across all operators we track. Geographically, Kabushiki Gaisha Hodozuka Setsubi is reported in JP, a country with 88 ransomware disclosures in our corpus.

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.

Ransomware victim disclosure

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Kabushiki Gaisha Hodozuka Setsubi

Claimed by payload · listed 2 days ago

Age

since listed · data leaked

Status timeline

Listed
May 19, 2026
Data leaked

At a glance

Group: payload
Status: Data leaked
Country: JP
Sector: Manufacturing
Listed on leak site: May 19, 2026

About the victim

AI dossier — public-source company profile

Kabushiki Gaisha Hodozuka Setsubi is a Japanese company operating under the website hs1992.jp, specializing in the design, installation, and maintenance of building utility systems. The company focuses on water supply, drainage, air conditioning, and heating systems. It operates in the construction and engineering sector in Japan.

Industry: Building Utility Systems Installation & Maintenance

Attack summary

Severity: medium — Data has been published by the threat actor, confirming exfiltration, but no details on the volume, sensitivity, or nature of the data are provided in the leak post, and the victim is a small engineering services firm with no indication of regulated or critical data at scale.

The ransomware group 'payload' has listed Kabushiki Gaisha Hodozuka Setsubi with a disclosed status of 'data_published', indicating that data has been exfiltrated and published. No specific ransom amount or data size was stated in the post.

medium

What the group claims

hs1992.jp is the official website of Kabushiki Gaisha Hodozuka Setsubi, a Japanese company specializing in the design, installation, and maintenance of building utility systems. The enterprise operates in the field of construction and engineering, focusing on water supply, drainage, air conditioning, and heating systems.

The leak post

captured from the group's site

[ 
```
Elohim Law Corporation is a full-service law firm based in Singapore, operating since 2014.

The firm provides a comprehensive range of legal services, including corporate and commercial law, intellectual property protection, and civil or criminal litigation. They focus on delivering practical, customized solutions for individuals, startups, small and medium enterprises (SMEs), and international corporations alike.
```
](http://payloadrz5yw227brtbvdqpnlhq3rdcdekdnn3rgucbcdeawq2v6vuyd.onion/posts/10ce6aac-4a2d-4f5e-880c-943d762afcc7) [ Tang Seng Nitrogen & Pump Systems Pte. Ltd.  
```
Tang Seng Nitrogen & Pump Systems Pte. Ltd. is a Singapore-based engineering and manufacturing company established in 1990. It specializes in designing, fabricating, and servicing equipment for the marine, oil and gas, and offshore industries. Their product portfolio includes nitrogen pumping units, industrial pumps, fire-fighting systems, and oil spill response equipment.
```
](http://payloadrz5yw227brtbvdqpnlhq3rdcdekdnn3rgucbcdeawq2v6vuyd.onion/posts/acf6bc9f-c454-47cd-9ffd-36fbf55b0dc3) [ 
```
hs1992.jp is the official website of Kabushiki Gaisha Hodozuka Setsubi, a Japanese company speciali…

Screenshot of the leak post

Leak screenshot for Kabushiki Gaisha Hodozuka Setsubi

Sources

Leak posthttp://payloadrz5yw227brtbvdqpnlhq3rdcdekdnn3rgucbcdeawq2v6vuyd.onion/posts/fd10449c-7db5-41f0-8648-5c2b76887f25

Source

Indexed 2 days 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.