EvilTokens Uses AI to Speed Up Fraud

CSO Online · High sophistication
Last updated October 26, 2026

EvilTokens is a real phishing-as-a-service operation that abuses Microsoft’s device-code sign-in process to persuade victims to grant access to their Microsoft 365 accounts. After access is granted, its AI analyzes inboxes and business relationships, identifies people involved in payments, and drafts fraud messages based on real conversations.

Key findings

  • EvilTokens abuses the legitimate OAuth 2.0 device authorization grant flow rather than relying on a fake login page.
  • Victims are persuaded to authorize attacker access to Microsoft accounts without providing their passwords.
  • Once inside a mailbox, AI can identify payment owners, trusted business relationships, and invoice or transaction opportunities.
  • The service can recommend impersonation targets and draft fraud messages based on genuine business conversations.
  • Microsoft attributed the operation to Storm-2992 and said AI was used at every stage of the attack chain.

Who’s being targeted

  • Commonly targeted roles: All Microsoft 365 users, Finance and accounts payable teams, Payment approvers, Executives, IT and identity teams.
  • Affected industries: Organizations using Microsoft 365, Finance and accounts payable functions, Organizations with invoice-based supplier relationships.
  • Attack channels: website, email.
  • Impersonated: Microsoft account sign-in or device authorization service, A trusted business contact or payment-related contact.

Awareness takeaways

  • Treat unexpected device-authorization prompts as suspicious, especially if you did not start a sign-in or connect a device yourself.
  • Do not assume a payment or invoice email is safe just because it appears within an existing business conversation; verify sensitive requests through a known, independent contact method.
  • Finance teams should use established verification procedures for payment changes, invoices, and unusual transaction requests.
  • Report suspected account-authorization activity quickly, because AI-assisted attackers can rapidly expand what they can access after gaining an initial foothold.

Red flags to watch for

  • The request authorizes a device or application the employee did not initiate.
  • The user is asked to approve access rather than sign in through their normal work process.
  • Approval could grant mailbox access without requiring the employee to share a password.
  • The message requests payment action or changed transaction details unexpectedly.
  • It relies on trust from an existing supplier or business conversation.
  • The wording may appear highly convincing because it is based on real mailbox content.
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Read the video transcript

“Authorize this device to access your Microsoft account.” Didn’t start that sign-in? EvilTokens exploits Microsoft’s real OAuth device-code flow. Approve a device you don’t recognize, and someone else can access your Microsoft 365 mailbox, without your password. Here’s the twist: its AI reads real conversations, finds who handles payments, then drafts an invoice email that sounds like your trusted supplier. The giveaway isn’t a bad password page. It’s a device request you never started. Don’t approve it.

MITRE ATT&CK techniques

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