Cybersecurity for Panamanian SMBs: AI now finds (and exploits) vulnerabilities before you do
In October 2026 it became clear that cybersecurity has changed pace. An AI discovered a critical flaw on its own in a file server used by thousands of offices worldwide. And within a few days, attackers were already exploiting it against real companies.
The case has a name: Rejetto HFS, a free, lightweight program for sharing files in offices. The flaw, catalogued as CVE-2026-61500 with a severity of 9.3 out of 10, lets an attacker take full control of the machine. What used to take weeks to appear is now discovered and exploited in days.
Does that mean you need an in-house security team to protect your SMB? No. It means the time between «something is happening» and «it is already too late» has shortened — and protection can no longer be reactive.
What happened: an AI found a flaw and attackers exploited it within days
Rejetto HFS is a free file server for Windows that many small offices use to share documents among colleagues or with clients, without setting up complex infrastructure. That is exactly why it became a target. We cover it in detail in our article on the critical Rejetto HFS flaw.
The flaw CVE-2026-61500 is critical: HFS generated the administrator session identifier in a predictable way. An attacker could forge that session without a username or password and, once in as administrator, execute code at will on the machine (remote code execution).
The detail that marks a shift in era: the vulnerability was discovered by an AI — the Mythos model from Anthropic, used by the Horizon3.ai team — on September 30. The proof of concept went public in late September, and by October 5 VulnCheck had already confirmed active exploitation in the wild. The fix is version 3.2.1.
The 2026 shift: AI accelerates both attacks and vulnerability discovery
The news is not «another flaw appeared». It is that the whole cycle sped up in both directions:
- They are found faster: AI reviews code and finds flaws at a speed a human team cannot match.
- They are exploited faster: from discovery to exploitation no longer takes months, but days.
And this is not an isolated case. In September, researchers used Claude (Anthropic) to chain two vulnerabilities and get into OpenAI accounts and an internal repository in under 72 hours. Google revealed that its Gemini model accessed three real companies during security tests.
The point is not that AI turned bad. It is that the targeted attack — the one that used to require an expert team and weeks — is now cheaper and faster. And the favorite target is still the easiest one: the SMB without monitoring.
Your real surface: file servers, email, remote access, and outdated patches
To an attacker, your business is not «too small to matter». It is a target with open doors: old file servers, unprotected email, uncontrolled remote access, and outdated patches.
Ransomware is still the number one threat, and phishing the most common vector: around 86% of SMBs suffered some incident in the last year. And most found out after the damage was already done.
The question worth asking today is not «will they attack me?», but «would I know in real time if someone got in?». Without monitoring, the answer is usually no. If you want to start with the basics, read our guide to cybersecurity for SMBs in Panama.
Without an in-house team: 24/7 monitoring + up-to-date patches
The good news is you do not need to build a security department. What you need is a process that keeps watching all the time and acts before the problem reaches your customer.
PG Tech’s 24/7 Security Monitoring (MPS) combines a Spanish-speaking AI agent + human analysts: it watches your devices, email, and access, applies patches on time, and alerts you to anything unusual. Plans from $149.95/month.
It is the same shift as in health: you do not wait for a heart attack to get a checkup. In cybersecurity, neither should you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need an in-house security team?
No. 24/7 monitoring with an AI agent and analysts replaces what used to require an in-house team: continuous watching, up-to-date patches, and early alerts, at a fraction of the cost.
Does it work if I am a small office?
Yes, and that is where it shows the most. A small office is the attackers’ favorite target because it tends to run old tools with no monitoring. Starting with 24/7 monitoring protects you without hiring staff.
What if I use HFS or another file server?
If you use HFS, update to version 3.2.1 immediately. In general, a loose, exposed file server is a risk: the lasting fix is to move to a managed file solution with backup, access control, and monitoring.
How much does it cost and how soon am I protected?
24/7 Security Monitoring starts at $149.95/month, and protection begins as soon as monitoring is connected to your devices. Book a consultation and we will put together the exact plan for your case.
Sources: VulnCheck and Horizon3.ai (CVE-2026-61500 / Rejetto HFS, Oct 5 2026), GitHub Advisory Database, The Hacker News, and the 2026 SMB cybersecurity report.
