Definition
An attack where compromised or malicious plugins installed in developer IDEs (such as JetBrains) silently steal API keys and credentials stored in the IDE's memory or configuration. AI developers are targeted because their keys grant access to expensive, powerful models.
Why it matters
IDE plugins have broad access to developer credentials and run with minimal visibility; a single plugin can harvest keys to OpenAI, Anthropic, and cloud platforms, enabling attackers to run queries on frontier models at the victim's expense or gain cloud infrastructure access.