Brinztech Alert: Everest Group Claims 176GB Seismic Data Breach of Petrobras & SAExploration

Dark Web News Analysis

The Everest ransomware group has added a new listing to their dark web leak site, claiming to hold 176 GB of sensitive seismic survey data involving Petrobras, Brazil’s state-owned multinational energy corporation, and SAExploration, a seismic data acquisition company.

This claim, observed on November 17, 2025, represents a critical industrial espionage threat targeting Brazil’s energy sovereignty.

The dataset is highly technical and specific, allegedly containing:

• 90 GB of Raw Navigation & Positioning Data: Specifically from Petrobras’ Campos Basin surveys, one of the world’s most prolific oil-producing regions.
• Technical Schematics: Equipment details, node configurations, hydrophone depths, and shot pressures.
• Quality Control (QC) Reports: Internal documents verifying the accuracy of the surveys.
• Processed PDFs: Summaries of survey progress and technical findings.

This appears to be a supply chain attack. SAExploration, as a service provider collecting data for Petrobras, was likely the entry point. The theft of seismic data is not a typical “ransomware” event; this is the theft of intellectual property worth millions of dollars. Seismic surveys are expensive to conduct, and the data is the blueprint for future oil exploration.

Key Cybersecurity Insights

This alleged data breach presents a critical threat to the energy sector:

• High-Value Industrial Espionage: Seismic data is the “treasure map” of the oil industry. Competitors or foreign state actors could use this data to estimate reserves, bid on drilling rights, or analyze Petrobras’ strategic expansion plans without spending a cent on their own surveys.
• Supply Chain Vulnerability: The inclusion of SAExploration indicates that critical operational data was likely exfiltrated from a third-party contractor’s network, bypassing Petrobras’ own internal defenses.
• Operational Sabotage Risk: Knowledge of “node configurations” and “shot pressures” provides a level of technical detail that could theoretically be used to disrupt future surveys or spoof sensor data if an attacker gained access to the OT network.
• Strategic National Interest: The Campos Basin is a strategic national asset for Brazil. The exposure of raw data from this region has geopolitical implications regarding energy security.

Mitigation Strategies

In response to this claim, Petrobras and energy sector stakeholders must take immediate action:

• Supply Chain Audit (SAExploration): Petrobras must immediately audit the security posture of SAExploration and any other seismic data vendors. All connections and data transfers between these entities must be suspended or subjected to rigorous scrutiny.
• Data Valuation & Impact Analysis: Assess the age and relevance of the Campos Basin data. If the surveys are current, the strategic impact is severe. If they are legacy data, the risk is lower but still significant for modeling.
• Dark Web Monitoring: Actively monitor for the sale of this specific dataset to competitors or data brokers.
• Enhance OT/ICS Security: Ensure that the networks used to upload and process seismic data (often in remote field locations or vessels) are strictly segmented from corporate IT networks to prevent lateral movement.

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