Hackers stole this engineer's 1Password database. Could it happen to you?

rob dobi/Getty Images Here's the very definition of a nightmare scenario. In February 2024, Matthew Van Andel downloaded a free AI tool on the computer in his home office. Five months later, the Southern California-based engineer learned that the app included an unwelcome extra component -- an infostealing tool that gave outside attackers full access to his computer. Also: The best password managers of 2025 As Robert McMillan and Sarah Krouse reported in the Wall Street Journal, that malware was under the control of a stranger who claimed to be part of an anti-AI activist group that had targeted Van Andel's employer, the Walt Disney Company. The hacker gained access to 1Password, a password-manager that Van Andel used to store passwords and other sensitive information, as well as "session cookies," digital files stored on his computer that allowed him to access online resources including Disney's Slack channel. (If you don't have a WSJ subscription, you can read a copy of the art ... Read full article.