Iran and Hezbollah Hackers Launch Attacks to Influence Israel-Hamas Narrative

Hackers backed by Iran and Hezbollah staged cyber attacks designed to undercut public support for the Israel-Hamas war after October 2023. This includes destructive attacks against key Israeli organizations, hack-and-leak operations targeting entities in Israel and the U.S., phishing campaigns designed to steal intelligence, and information operations to turn public opinion against Israel. Iran

Anatsa Android Trojan Bypasses Google Play Security, Expands Reach to New Countries

The Android banking trojan known as Anatsa has expanded its focus to include Slovakia, Slovenia, and Czechia as part of a new campaign observed in November 2023. "Some of the droppers in the campaign successfully exploited the accessibility service, despite Google Play's enhanced detection and protection mechanisms," ThreatFabric said in a report shared with The Hacker News.

MoqHao Android Malware Evolves with Auto-Execution Capability

Threat hunters have identified a new variant of Android malware called MoqHao that automatically executes on infected devices without requiring any user interaction. "Typical MoqHao requires users to install and launch the app to get their desired purpose, but this new variant requires no execution," McAfee Labs said in a report published this week. "While the app is

Kimsuky's New Golang Stealer 'Troll' and 'GoBear' Backdoor Target South Korea

The North Korea-linked nation-state actor known as Kimsuky is suspected of using a previously undocumented Golang-based information stealer called Troll Stealer. The malware steals "SSH, FileZilla, C drive files/directories, browsers, system information, [and] screen captures" from infected systems, South Korean cybersecurity company S2W said in a new technical report. Troll

After FBI Takedown, KV-Botnet Operators Shift Tactics in Attempt to Bounce Back

The threat actors behind the KV-botnet made "behavioral changes" to the malicious network as U.S. law enforcement began issuing commands to neutralize the activity. KV-botnet is the name given to a network of compromised small office and home office (SOHO) routers and firewall devices across the world, with one specific cluster acting as a covert data transfer system for other Chinese

Global Coalition and Tech Giants Unite Against Commercial Spyware Abuse

A coalition of dozens of countries, including France, the U.K., and the U.S., along with tech companies such as Google, MDSec, Meta, and Microsoft, have signed a joint agreement to curb the abuse of commercial spyware to commit human rights abuses. The initiative, dubbed the Pall Mall Process, aims to tackle the proliferation and irresponsible use of commercial cyber intrusion tools by

Hackers Exploit Job Boards, Stealing Millions of Resumes and Personal Data

Employment agencies and retail companies chiefly located in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region have been targeted by a previously undocumented threat actor known as ResumeLooters since early 2023 with the goal of stealing sensitive data. Singapore-headquartered Group-IB said the hacking crew's activities are geared towards job search platforms and the theft of resumes, with as many as 65

Hands-On Review: SASE-based XDR from Cato Networks

Companies are engaged in a seemingly endless cat-and-mouse game when it comes to cybersecurity and cyber threats. As organizations put up one defensive block after another, malicious actors kick their game up a notch to get around those blocks. Part of the challenge is to coordinate the defensive abilities of disparate security tools, even as organizations have limited resources and a dearth of

Pegasus Spyware Targeted iPhones of Journalists and Activists in Jordan

The iPhones belonging to nearly three dozen journalists, activists, human rights lawyers, and civil society members in Jordan have been targeted with NSO Group's Pegasus spyware, according to joint findings from Access Now and the Citizen Lab. Nine of the 35 individuals have been publicly confirmed as targeted, out of whom six had their devices compromised with the mercenary

U.S. Sanctions 6 Iranian Officials for Critical Infrastructure Cyber Attacks

The U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced sanctions against six officials associated with the Iranian intelligence agency for attacking critical infrastructure entities in the U.S. and other countries. The officials include Hamid Reza Lashgarian, Mahdi Lashgarian, Hamid Homayunfal, Milad Mansuri, Mohammad Bagher Shirinkar, and Reza Mohammad Amin

AnyDesk Hacked: Popular Remote Desktop Software Mandates Password Reset

Remote desktop software maker AnyDesk disclosed on Friday that it suffered a cyber attack that led to a compromise of its production systems. The German company said the incident, which it discovered following a security audit, is not a ransomware attack and that it has notified relevant authorities. "We have revoked all security-related certificates and systems have been remediated or replaced

INTERPOL Arrests 31 in Global Operation, Identifies 1,900+ Ransomware-Linked IPs

An INTERPOL-led collaborative operation targeting phishing, banking malware, and ransomware attacks has led to the identification of 1,300 suspicious IP addresses and URLs. The law enforcement effort, codenamed Synergia, took place between September and November 2023 in an attempt to blunt the "growth, escalation and professionalization of transnational cybercrime." Involving 60 law

U.S. Feds Shut Down China-Linked "KV-Botnet" Targeting SOHO Routers

The U.S. government on Wednesday said it took steps to neutralize a botnet comprising hundreds of U.S.-based small office and home office (SOHO) routers hijacked by a China-linked state-sponsored threat actor called Volt Typhoon and blunt the impact posed by the hacking campaign. The existence of the botnet, dubbed KV-botnet, was first disclosed by the Black Lotus Labs team at

Telegram Marketplaces Fuel Phishing Attacks with Easy-to-Use Kits and Malware

Cybersecurity researchers are calling attention to the "democratization" of the phishing ecosystem owing to the emergence of Telegram as an epicenter for cybercrime, enabling threat actors to mount a mass attack for as little as $230. "This messaging app has transformed into a bustling hub where seasoned cybercriminals and newcomers alike exchange illicit tools and insights creating a dark and

Brazilian Feds Dismantle Grandoreiro Banking Trojan, Arresting Top Operatives

A Brazilian law enforcement operation has led to the arrest of several Brazilian operators in charge of the Grandoreiro malware. The Federal Police of Brazil said it served five temporary arrest warrants and 13 search and seizure warrants in the states of São Paulo, Santa Catarina, Pará, Goiás, and Mato Grosso. Slovak cybersecurity firm ESET, which provided additional

Microsoft Warns of Widening APT29 Espionage Attacks Targeting Global Orgs

Microsoft on Thursday said the Russian state-sponsored threat actors responsible for a cyber attack on its systems in late November 2023 have been targeting other organizations and that it's currently beginning to notify them. The development comes a day after Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) revealed that it had been the victim of an attack perpetrated by a hacking crew

China-backed Hackers Hijack Software Updates to Implant "NSPX30" Spyware

A previously undocumented China-aligned threat actor has been linked to a set of adversary-in-the-middle (AitM) attacks that hijack update requests from legitimate software to deliver a sophisticated implant named NSPX30. Slovak cybersecurity firm ESET is tracking the advanced persistent threat (APT) group under the name Blackwood. It's said to be active since at least 2018. The NSPX30

Kasseika Ransomware Using BYOVD Trick to Disarm Security Pre-Encryption

The ransomware group known as Kasseika has become the latest to leverage the Bring Your Own Vulnerable Driver (BYOVD) attack to disarm security-related processes on compromised Windows hosts, joining the likes of other groups like Akira, AvosLocker, BlackByte, and RobbinHood. The tactic allows "threat actors to terminate antivirus processes and services for the deployment of ransomware," Trend

North Korean Hackers Weaponize Research Lures to Deliver RokRAT Backdoor

Media organizations and high-profile experts in North Korean affairs have been at the receiving end of a new campaign orchestrated by a threat actor known as ScarCruft in December 2023. "ScarCruft has been experimenting with new infection chains, including the use of a technical threat research report as a decoy, likely targeting consumers of threat intelligence like cybersecurity

Chinese Hackers Silently Weaponized VMware Zero-Day Flaw for 2 Years

An advanced China-nexus cyber espionage group previously linked to the exploitation of security flaws in VMware and Fortinet appliances has been attributed to the abuse of a critical vulnerability in VMware vCenter Server as a zero-day since late 2021. "UNC3886 has a track record of utilizing zero-day vulnerabilities to complete their mission without being detected, and this latest example

Russian COLDRIVER Hackers Expand Beyond Phishing with Custom Malware

The Russia-linked threat actor known as COLDRIVER has been observed evolving its tradecraft to go beyond credential harvesting to deliver its first-ever custom malware written in the Rust programming language. Google's Threat Analysis Group (TAG), which shared details of the latest activity, said the attack chains leverage PDFs as decoy documents to trigger the infection sequence. The lures are

Iranian Hackers Masquerade as Journalists to Spy on Israel-Hamas War Experts

High-profile individuals working on Middle Eastern affairs at universities and research organizations in Belgium, France, Gaza, Israel, the U.K., and the U.S. have been targeted by an Iranian cyber espionage group called Mint Sandstorm since November 2023. The threat actor "used bespoke phishing lures in an attempt to socially engineer targets into downloading malicious files," the

New iShutdown Method Exposes Hidden Spyware Like Pegasus on Your iPhone

Cybersecurity researchers have identified a "lightweight method" called iShutdown for reliably identifying signs of spyware on Apple iOS devices, including notorious threats like NSO Group's Pegasus, QuaDream's Reign, and Intellexa's Predator.  Kaspersky, which analyzed a set of iPhones that were compromised with Pegasus, said the infections left traces in a file

Zero-Day Alert: Update Chrome Now to Fix New Actively Exploited Vulnerability

Google on Tuesday released updates to fix four security issues in its Chrome browser, including an actively exploited zero-day flaw. The issue, tracked as CVE-2024-0519, concerns an out-of-bounds memory access in the V8 JavaScript and WebAssembly engine, which can be weaponized by threat actors to trigger a crash. <!-- adsense --> "By reading out-of-bounds memory, an attacker might be able to

New Python-based FBot Hacking Toolkit Aims at Cloud and SaaS Platforms

A new Python-based hacking tool called&nbsp;FBot&nbsp;has been uncovered targeting web servers, cloud services, content management systems (CMS), and SaaS platforms such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft 365, PayPal, Sendgrid, and Twilio. “Key features include credential harvesting for spamming attacks, AWS account hijacking tools, and functions to enable attacks against PayPal and various

Mandiant's X Account Was Hacked Using Brute-Force Attack

The compromise of Mandiant's X (formerly Twitter) account last week was likely the result of a "brute-force password attack," attributing the hack to a drainer-as-a-service (DaaS) group. "Normally, [two-factor authentication] would have mitigated this, but due to some team transitions and a change in X's 2FA policy, we were not adequately protected," the threat intelligence firm&nbsp;said&nbsp;

Turkish Hackers Exploiting Poorly Secured MS SQL Servers Across the Globe

Poorly secured Microsoft SQL (MS SQL) servers are being targeted in the U.S., European Union, and Latin American (LATAM) regions as part of an ongoing financially motivated campaign to gain initial access. “The analyzed threat campaign appears to end in one of two ways, either the selling of ‘access’ to the compromised host, or the ultimate delivery of ransomware payloads,” Securonix researchers

Beware! YouTube Videos Promoting Cracked Software Distribute Lumma Stealer

Threat actors are resorting to YouTube videos featuring content related to cracked software in order to entice users into downloading an information stealer malware called Lumma. “These YouTube videos typically feature content related to cracked applications, presenting users with similar installation guides and incorporating malicious URLs often shortened using services like TinyURL and Cuttly,

North Korea's Cyber Heist: DPRK Hackers Stole $600 Million in Cryptocurrency in 2023

Threat actors affiliated with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (also known as North Korea) have plundered at least $600 million in cryptocurrency in 2023. The DPRK "was responsible for almost a third of all funds stolen in crypto attacks last year, despite a 30% reduction from the USD 850 million haul in 2022," blockchain analytics firm TRM Labs&nbsp;said&nbsp;last week. "Hacks

Pro-Iranian Hacker Group Targeting Albania with No-Justice Wiper Malware

The&nbsp;recent wave of cyber attacks&nbsp;targeting Albanian organizations involved the use of a wiper called&nbsp;No-Justice. The&nbsp;findings&nbsp;come from cybersecurity company ClearSky, which said the Windows-based malware "crashes the operating system in a way that it cannot be rebooted." The intrusions have been attributed to an Iranian “psychological operation group” known as Homeland

SpectralBlur: New macOS Backdoor Threat from North Korean Hackers

Cybersecurity researchers have discovered a new Apple macOS backdoor called&nbsp;SpectralBlur&nbsp;that overlaps with a known malware family that has been attributed to North Korean threat actors. “SpectralBlur is a moderately capable backdoor that can upload/download files, run a shell, update its configuration, delete files, hibernate, or sleep, based on commands issued from the [

Russian Hackers Had Covert Access to Ukraine's Telecom Giant for Months

Ukrainian cybersecurity authorities have disclosed that the Russian state-sponsored threat actor known as&nbsp;Sandworm&nbsp;was inside telecom operator Kyivstar's systems at least since May 2023. The development was&nbsp;first reported&nbsp;by Reuters. The&nbsp;incident, described as a "powerful hacker attack," first came to light last month, knocking out access to mobile and internet services

Three Ways To Supercharge Your Software Supply Chain Security

Section four of the "Executive Order on Improving the Nation’s Cybersecurity" introduced a lot of people in tech to the concept of a “Software Supply Chain” and securing it. If you make software and ever hope to sell it to one or more federal agencies, you&nbsp;have&nbsp;to pay attention to this. Even if you never plan to sell to a government, understanding your Software Supply Chain and

New JinxLoader Targeting Users with Formbook and XLoader Malware

A new Go-based malware loader called&nbsp;JinxLoader&nbsp;is being used by threat actors to deliver next-stage payloads such as&nbsp;Formbook and its successor XLoader. The&nbsp;disclosure&nbsp;comes from cybersecurity firms Palo Alto Networks Unit 42 and Symantec, both of which highlighted multi-step attack sequences that led to the deployment of JinxLoader through phishing attacks. "The

Albanian Parliament and One Albania Telecom Hit by Cyber Attacks

The Assembly of the Republic of Albania and telecom company One Albania have been targeted by cyber attacks, the country’s National Authority for Electronic Certification and Cyber Security (AKCESK) revealed this week. “These infrastructures, under the legislation in force, are not currently classified as critical or important information infrastructure,” AKCESK&nbsp;said. One Albania, which has

Microsoft Disables MSIX App Installer Protocol Widely Used in Malware Attacks

Microsoft on Thursday said it’s once again disabling the&nbsp;ms-appinstaller protocol handler&nbsp;by default following its abuse by multiple threat actors to distribute malware. “The observed threat actor activity abuses the current implementation of the ms-appinstaller protocol handler as an access vector for malware that may lead to ransomware distribution,” the Microsoft Threat Intelligence

Chinese Hackers Exploited New Zero-Day in Barracuda's ESG Appliances

Barracuda has revealed that Chinese threat actors exploited a new zero-day in its Email Security Gateway (ESG) appliances to deploy backdoors on a "limited number" of devices. Tracked as&nbsp;CVE-2023-7102, the issue relates to a case of&nbsp;arbitrary code execution&nbsp;that resides within a third-party and open-source library named Spreadsheet::ParseExcel that's used by the Amavis scanner

Microsoft Warns of New 'FalseFont' Backdoor Targeting the Defense Sector

Organizations in the Defense Industrial Base (DIB) sector are in the crosshairs of an Iranian threat actor as part of a campaign designed to deliver a never-before-seen backdoor called FalseFont. The findings come from Microsoft, which is tracking the activity under its weather-themed moniker&nbsp;Peach Sandstorm&nbsp;(formerly Holmium), which is also known as APT33, Elfin, and Refined Kitten. "

Behind the Scenes of Matveev's Ransomware Empire: Tactics and Team

Cybersecurity researchers have shed light on the inner workings of the ransomware operation led by Mikhail Pavlovich Matveev, a Russian national who was&nbsp;indicted by the U.S. government&nbsp;earlier this year for his alleged role in launching thousands of attacks across the world. Matveev, who resides in Saint Petersburg and is known by the aliases Wazawaka, m1x, Boriselcin, Uhodiransomwar,

New Pierogi++ Malware by Gaza Cyber Gang Targeting Palestinian Entities

A pro-Hamas threat actor known as&nbsp;Gaza Cyber Gang&nbsp;is targeting Palestinian entities using an updated version of a backdoor dubbed Pierogi. The findings come from SentinelOne, which has given the malware the name Pierogi++ owing to the fact that it's implemented in the C++ programming language unlike its Delphi- and Pascal-based predecessor. "Recent Gaza Cybergang activities show

Reimagining Network Pentesting With Automation

Network penetration testing plays a crucial role in protecting businesses in the ever-evolving world of cybersecurity. Yet, business leaders and IT pros have misconceptions about this process, which impacts their security posture and decision-making.&nbsp; This blog acts as a quick guide on network penetration testing, explaining what it is, debunking common myths and reimagining its role in

New Hacker Group 'GambleForce' Tageting APAC Firms Using SQL Injection Attacks

A previously unknown hacker outfit called&nbsp;GambleForce&nbsp;has been attributed to a series of SQL injection attacks against companies primarily in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region since at least September 2023. "GambleForce uses a set of basic yet very effective techniques, including SQL injections and the exploitation of vulnerable website content management systems (CMS) to steal sensitive

Major Cyber Attack Paralyzes Kyivstar - Ukraine's Largest Telecom Operator

Ukraine's biggest telecom operator Kyivstar has&nbsp;become&nbsp;the victim of a "powerful hacker attack,” disrupting customer&nbsp;access to mobile and internet services. "The cyberattack on Ukraine's #Kyivstar telecoms operator has impacted all regions of the country with high impact to the capital, metrics show, with knock-on impacts reported to air raid alert network and banking sector as

Russian APT28 Hackers Targeting 13 Nations in Ongoing Cyber Espionage Campaign

The Russian nation-state threat actor known as&nbsp;APT28&nbsp;has been observed making use of lures related to the ongoing Israel-Hamas war to facilitate the delivery of a custom backdoor called HeadLace. IBM X-Force is tracking the adversary under the name ITG05, which is also known as BlueDelta, Fancy Bear, Forest Blizzard (formerly Strontium), FROZENLAKE, Iron Twilight, Sednit, Sofacy, and

Chinese Hackers Using SugarGh0st RAT to Target South Korea and Uzbekistan

A suspected Chinese-speaking threat actor has been attributed to a malicious campaign that targets the Uzbekistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs and South Korean users with a remote access trojan called&nbsp;SugarGh0st RAT. The activity, which commenced no later than August 2023, leverages two different infection sequences to deliver the malware, which is a customized variant of&nbsp;Gh0st RAT&nbsp

U.S. Treasury Sanctions North Korean Kimsuky Hackers and 8 Foreign-Based Agents

The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on Thursday sanctioned the North Korea-linked adversarial collective known as Kimsuky as well as eight foreign-based agents who are alleged to have facilitated sanctions evasion. The agents, the Treasury&nbsp;said, helped in "revenue generation&nbsp;and missile-related technology procurement that support the DPRK's

U.S. Treasury Sanctions Sinbad Cryptocurrency Mixer Used by North Korean Hackers

The U.S. Treasury Department on Wednesday imposed sanctions against&nbsp;Sinbad, a virtual currency mixer that has been put to use by the North Korea-linked&nbsp;Lazarus Group&nbsp;to launder ill-gotten proceeds. "Sinbad has processed millions of dollars' worth of virtual currency from Lazarus Group heists, including the Horizon Bridge and Axie Infinity heists," the department said. "Sinbad is

Iranian Hackers Exploit PLCs in Attack on Water Authority in U.S.

The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) revealed that it's responding to a cyber attack that involved the active exploitation of Unitronics programmable logic controllers (PLCs) to target the Municipal Water Authority of Aliquippa in western Pennsylvania. The attack has been attributed to an Iranian-backed hacktivist collective known as Cyber Av3ngers. "Cyber threat

Stop Identity Attacks: Discover the Key to Early Threat Detection

Identity and Access Management (IAM) systems are a staple to ensure only authorized individuals or entities have access to specific resources in order to protect sensitive information and secure business assets. But did you know that today over 80% of attacks now involve identity, compromised credentials or bypassing the authentication mechanism? Recent breaches at MGM and Caesars have

N. Korean Hackers 'Mixing' macOS Malware Tactics to Evade Detection

The North Korean threat actors behind macOS malware strains such as RustBucket and KANDYKORN have been observed "mixing and matching" different elements of the two disparate attack chains, leveraging RustBucket droppers to deliver KANDYKORN. The&nbsp;findings&nbsp;come from cybersecurity firm SentinelOne, which also tied a third macOS-specific malware called ObjCShellz to the RustBucket campaign

Cybercriminals Using Telekopye Telegram Bot to Craft Phishing Scams on a Grand Scale

More details have emerged about a malicious Telegram bot called Telekopye that's used by threat actors to pull off large-scale phishing scams. "Telekopye can craft phishing websites, emails, SMS messages, and more," ESET security researcher Radek Jizba said in a new analysis. The threat actors behind the operation – codenamed Neanderthals – are known to run the criminal enterprise as a

N. Korean Hackers Distribute Trojanized CyberLink Software in Supply Chain Attack

A North Korean state-sponsored threat actor tracked as Diamond Sleet is distributing a trojanized version of a legitimate application developed by a Taiwanese multimedia software developer called CyberLink to target downstream customers via a supply chain attack. "This malicious file is a legitimate CyberLink application installer that has been modified to include malicious code that downloads,

New Flaws in Fingerprint Sensors Let Attackers Bypass Windows Hello Login

A new research has uncovered multiple vulnerabilities that could be exploited to bypass Windows Hello authentication on Dell Inspiron 15, Lenovo ThinkPad T14, and Microsoft Surface Pro X laptops. The flaws were discovered by researchers at hardware and software product security and offensive research firm Blackwing Intelligence, who found the weaknesses in the fingerprint sensors from Goodix,

North Korean Hackers Pose as Job Recruiters and Seekers in Malware Campaigns

North Korean threat actors have been linked to two campaigns in which they masquerade as both job recruiters and seekers to distribute malware and obtain unauthorized employment with organizations based in the U.S. and other parts of the world. The activity clusters have been codenamed Contagious Interview and Wagemole, respectively, by Palo Alto Networks Unit 42. While the first set of attacks

Why Defenders Should Embrace a Hacker Mindset

Today’s security leaders must manage a constantly evolving attack surface and a dynamic threat environment due to interconnected devices, cloud services, IoT technologies, and hybrid work environments. Adversaries are constantly introducing new attack techniques, and not all companies have internal Red Teams or unlimited security resources to stay on top of the latest threats. On top of that,

Indian Hack-for-Hire Group Targeted U.S., China, and More for Over 10 Years

An Indian hack-for-hire group targeted the U.S., China, Myanmar, Pakistan, Kuwait, and other countries as part of a wide-ranging espionage, surveillance, and disruptive operation for over a decade. The Appin Software Security (aka Appin Security Group), according to an in-depth analysis from SentinelOne, began as an educational startup offering offensive security training programs, while

Russian Cyber Espionage Group Deploys LitterDrifter USB Worm in Targeted Attacks

Russian cyber espionage actors affiliated with the Federal Security Service (FSB) have been observed using a USB propagating worm called LitterDrifter in attacks targeting Ukrainian entities. Check Point, which detailed Gamaredon's (aka Aqua Blizzard, Iron Tilden, Primitive Bear, Shuckworm, and Winterflounder) latest tactics, branded the group as engaging in large-scale campaigns that are

Zero-Day Flaw in Zimbra Email Software Exploited by Four Hacker Groups

A zero-day flaw in the Zimbra Collaboration email software was exploited by four different groups in real-world attacks to pilfer email data, user credentials, and authentication tokens. "Most of this activity occurred after the initial fix became public on GitHub," Google Threat Analysis Group (TAG) said in a report shared with The Hacker News. The flaw, tracked as CVE-2023-37580 (CVSS score:

Vietnamese Hackers Using New Delphi-Powered Malware to Target Indian Marketers

The Vietnamese threat actors behind the Ducktail stealer malware have been linked to a new campaign that ran between March and early October 2023, targeting marketing professionals in India with an aim to hijack Facebook business accounts. "An important feature that sets it apart is that, unlike previous campaigns, which relied on .NET applications, this one used Delphi as the programming

Chinese Hackers Launch Covert Espionage Attacks on 24 Cambodian Organizations

Cybersecurity researchers have discovered what they say is malicious cyber activity orchestrated by two prominent Chinese nation-state hacking groups targeting 24 Cambodian government organizations. "This activity is believed to be part of a long-term espionage campaign," Palo Alto Networks Unit 42 researchers said in a report last week. "The observed activity aligns with geopolitical goals of