”We find cyber weapons made by creators of stuxnet, duqu, flame.” 
 
 The security firm Kaspersky Lab unmasked Equation Group in 2015, billing it as the most advanced hacking group Kaspersky researchers had ever seen. The Equation Group, according to Kaspersky Lab, targeted the same victims as the group behind Stuxnet, which is widely believed to have been a joint US-Israeli operation targeting Iran’s nuclear program, and also used two of the same zero-day exploits. Using broken English, Shadow Brokers posted the following: 
 
 We follow Equation Group traffic. We find Equation Group source range. The motives behind this strange dump are unclear, but if legitimate, this could be one of the most shocking hacks ever. The Shadow Broker claimed to have gotten the files by following Equation Group “traffic,” hacking the group and finding its “cyber weapons.” (The hackers did not respond to a request for comment, and neither did the NSA.) You see pictures. We give you some Equation Group files free, you see. This is good proof no? You enjoy!!! You break many things. You find many intrusions. You write many words. But not all, we are auction the best files.” 
 
 The group delivered a message to what it called “wealthy elites” and assailed the integrity of elections. While it wasn't immediately possible for outsiders to prove the posted data—mostly batch scripts and poorly coded python scripts—belonged to Equation Group, there was little doubt the data has origins with some advanced hacking group. The set of files available for free contains a series of tools for penetrating network gear made by Cisco, Juniper, and other major firms.
– An apparent hacking group calling itself the "Shadow Brokers" claims to have hacked the NSA and is asking for about $570 million to share the data. Two sets of files were posted online Saturday—one open, the other encrypted—which the group claims are from the Equation Group, an advanced group of hackers believed to be working with US intelligence. The open files contain "a series of tools for penetrating network gear made by Cisco, Juniper, and other major firms," along with code words found in documents leaked by Edward Snowden, reports Foreign Policy. They are "most likely … part of the NSA toolset," an expert tells Ars Technica. But the encrypted files are "the best files," says the Shadow Brokers, which is asking for 1 million Bitcoin, currently worth about $570 million, to release them. "We hack Equation Group. We find many many Equation Group cyber weapons," the Shadow Brokers writes in a manifesto. In a message directed to "wealthy elites," the group warns about the danger of cyber weapons, noting "your wealth and control depends on electronic data." The NSA hasn't confirmed any breach, but security researchers say the open files—dating from about 2010 to 2013—look authentic. "It's at minimum very interesting; at maximum, hugely damaging," says a former NSA research scientist. "It'll blow some operations if those haven't already been blown." Another expert tells Motherboard that the files could be from "a hacked NSA server used in an operation." Others suspect Russia is involved, given the reported source of the recent DNC hack.