Proofpoint reported that BioTold 2026 was a fraudulent conference operation used as a cybersecurity front to trick life sciences professionals into downloading malicious software. The campaign used a convincing event website, including fake speaker and sponsor identities. High-profile names listed on the program—including Harvard geneticist George Church, Broad Institute researchers Feng Zhang and Pardis Sabeti, and insitro CEO Daphne Koller—denied any affiliation after the claims were challenged. Multiple corporate sponsors, including Thermo Fisher Scientific, Illumina, and Agilent Technologies, also said they were not involved. Proofpoint said invitations were sent as part of a targeted phishing workflow rather than a simple attempt to harvest registrations. The alert matters for clinical research and investment stakeholders who may receive similar spearphishing lures tied to scientific events.