According to CoinMeta, hackers took advantage of the craze around artificial intelligence (AI) technology to distribute cryptocurrency mining malware through fake desktop applications. These counterfeit applications mimicked popular AI tools such as [specific tools not mentioned in the original text]. Cybersecurity company [company name not mentioned in the original text] pointed out that attackers set up fake repositories to promote these fake applications and tricked victims into downloading malicious files. The attackers also used search engine optimization (SEO) tactics to ensure their malicious websites ranked high on Google. The malicious compressed files contained legitimate digitally signed executable files that were bundled with the malware. Once victims ran these files, the malware would load unnoticed, ultimately leading to the installation of cryptocurrency miners that quietly exploited the victims' resources. Researchers warn that this malware could potentially be used to deploy other types of malicious software as well.