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

Riding the AI Waves: The Rise of Artificial Intelligence to Combat Cyber Threats

In nearly every segment of our lives, AI (artificial intelligence) now makes a significant impact: It can deliver better healthcare diagnoses and treatments; detect and reduce the risk of financial fraud; improve inventory management; and serve up the right recommendation for a streaming movie on Friday night. However, one can also make a strong case that some of AI’s most significant impacts

AllaKore RAT Malware Targeting Mexican Firms with Financial Fraud Tricks

Mexican financial institutions are under the radar of a new spear-phishing campaign that delivers a modified version of an open-source remote access trojan called AllaKore RAT. The BlackBerry Research and Intelligence Team attributed the activity to an unknown Latin America-based financially motivated threat actor. The campaign has been active since at least 2021. "Lures use Mexican Social

Free Decryptor Released for Black Basta and Babuk's Tortilla Ransomware Victims

A decryptor for the Tortilla variant of the Babuk ransomware has been released by Cisco Talos, allowing victims targeted by the malware to regain access to their files. The cybersecurity firm said the threat intelligence it shared with Dutch law enforcement authorities made it possible to arrest the threat actor behind the operations. The encryption key has also been shared with Avast,

Carbanak Banking Malware Resurfaces with New Ransomware Tactics

The banking malware known as Carbanak has been observed being used in ransomware attacks with updated tactics. "The malware has adapted to incorporate attack vendors and techniques to diversify its effectiveness," cybersecurity firm NCC Group said in an analysis of ransomware attacks that took place in November 2023. "Carbanak returned last month through new

FBI Takes Down BlackCat Ransomware, Releases Free Decryption Tool

The U.S. Justice Department (DoJ) has officially announced the disruption of the BlackCat ransomware operation and released a decryption tool that more than 500 affected victims can use to regain access to files locked by the malware. Court documents show that the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) enlisted the help of a confidential human source (CHS) to act as an affiliate

8Base Group Deploying New Phobos Ransomware Variant via SmokeLoader

The threat actors behind the 8Base ransomware are leveraging a variant of the Phobos ransomware to conduct their financially motivated attacks. The findings come from Cisco Talos, which has recorded an increase in activity carried out by the cybercriminals. “Most of the group’s Phobos variants are distributed by SmokeLoader, a backdoor trojan," security researcher Guilherme Venere said in an

U.S. Cybersecurity Agencies Warn of Scattered Spider's Gen Z Cybercrime Ecosystem

U.S. cybersecurity and intelligence agencies have released a joint advisory about a cybercriminal group known as Scattered Spider that's known to employ sophisticated phishing tactics to infiltrate targets. "Scattered Spider threat actors typically engage in data theft for extortion using multiple social engineering techniques and have recently leveraged BlackCat/ALPHV ransomware alongside their

New BiBi-Windows Wiper Targets Windows Systems in Pro-Hamas Attacks

Cybersecurity researchers have warned about a Windows version of a wiper malware that was previously observed targeting Linux systems in cyber attacks aimed at Israel. Dubbed BiBi-Windows Wiper by BlackBerry, the wiper is the Windows counterpart of BiBi-Linux Wiper, which has been put to use by a pro-Hamas hacktivist group in the wake of the Israel-Hamas war last month. "The Windows variant [...

Predictive AI in Cybersecurity: Outcomes Demonstrate All AI is Not Created Equally

Here is what matters most when it comes to artificial intelligence (AI) in cybersecurity: Outcomes.  As the threat landscape evolves and generative AI is added to the toolsets available to defenders and attackers alike, evaluating the relative effectiveness of various AI-based security offerings is increasingly important — and difficult. Asking the right questions can help you spot solutions

Numbers Don't Lie: Exposing the Harsh Truths of Cyberattacks in New Report

How often do cyberattacks happen? How frequently do threat actors target businesses and governments around the world? The BlackBerry® Threat Research and Intelligence Team recently analyzed 90 days of real-world data to answer these questions. Full results are in the latest BlackBerry Global Threat Intelligence Report, but read on for a teaser of several interesting cyber attack statistics.

Malware Unleashed: Public Sector Hit in Sudden Surge, Reveals New Report

The just-released BlackBerry Global Threat Intelligence Report reveals a 40% increase in cyberattacks against government and public service organizations versus the previous quarter. This includes public transit, utilities, schools, and other government services we rely on daily. With limited resources and often immature cyber defense programs, these publicly funded organizations are struggling

Zoom ZTP & AudioCodes Phones Flaws Uncovered, Exposing Users to Eavesdropping

Multiple security vulnerabilities have been disclosed in AudioCodes desk phones and Zoom's Zero Touch Provisioning (ZTP) that could be potentially exploited by a malicious attacker to conduct remote attacks. "An external attacker who leverages the vulnerabilities discovered in AudioCodes Ltd.'s desk phones and Zoom's Zero Touch Provisioning feature can gain full remote control of the devices,"

AVRecon Botnet Leveraging Compromised Routers to Fuel Illegal Proxy Service

More details have emerged about a botnet called AVRecon, which has been observed making use of compromised small office/home office (SOHO) routers as part of a multi-year campaign active since at least May 2021. AVRecon was first disclosed by Lumen Black Lotus Labs earlier this month as malware capable of executing additional commands and stealing victim's bandwidth for what appears to be an

FIN8 Group Using Modified Sardonic Backdoor for BlackCat Ransomware Attacks

The financially motivated threat actor known as FIN8 has been observed using a "revamped" version of a backdoor called Sardonic to deliver the BlackCat ransomware. According to the Symantec Threat Hunter Team, part of Broadcom, the development is an attempt on the part of the e-crime group to diversify its focus and maximize profits from infected entities. The intrusion attempt took place in

BlackCat Operators Distributing Ransomware Disguised as WinSCP via Malvertising

Threat actors associated with the BlackCat ransomware have been observed employing malvertising tricks to distribute rogue installers of the WinSCP file transfer application. "Malicious actors used malvertising to distribute a piece of malware via cloned webpages of legitimate organizations," Trend Micro researchers said in an analysis published last week. "In this case, the distribution

State-Sponsored Sidewinder Hacker Group's Covert Attack Infrastructure Uncovered

Cybersecurity researchers have unearthed previously undocumented attack infrastructure used by the prolific state-sponsored group SideWinder to strike entities located in Pakistan and China. This comprises a network of 55 domains and IP addresses used by the threat actor, cybersecurity companies Group-IB and Bridewell said in a joint report shared with The Hacker News. "The identified phishing

Industrial Cellular Routers at Risk: 11 New Vulnerabilities Expose OT Networks

Several security vulnerabilities have been disclosed in cloud management platforms associated with three industrial cellular router vendors that could expose operational technology (OT) networks to external attacks. The findings were presented by Israeli industrial cybersecurity firm OTORIO at the Black Hat Asia 2023 conference last week. "Industrial cellular routers and gateways are essential

Google Gets Court Order to Take Down CryptBot That Infected Over 670,000 Computers

Google on Wednesday said it obtained a temporary court order in the U.S. to disrupt the distribution of a Windows-based information-stealing malware called CryptBot and "decelerate" its growth. The tech giant's Mike Trinh and Pierre-Marc Bureau said the efforts are part of steps it takes to "not only hold criminal operators of malware accountable, but also those who profit from its distribution.

APT-C-36 Strikes Again: Blind Eagle Hackers Target Key Industries in Colombia

The threat actor known as Blind Eagle has been linked to a new campaign targeting various key industries in Colombia. The activity, which was detected by the BlackBerry Research and Intelligence Team on February 20, 2023, is also said to encompass Ecuador, Chile, and Spain, suggesting a slow expansion of the hacking group's victimology footprint. Targeted entities include health, financial, law

VMware Patches Critical Vulnerability in Carbon Black App Control Product

VMware on Tuesday released patches to address a critical security vulnerability affecting its Carbon Black App Control product. Tracked as CVE-2023-20858, the shortcoming carries a CVSS score of 9.1 out of a maximum of 10 and impacts App Control versions 8.7.x, 8.8.x, and 8.9.x. The virtualization services provider describes the issue as an injection vulnerability. Security researcher Jari

Chinese Hackers Using Russo-Ukrainian War Decoys to Target APAC and European Entities

The China-linked nation-state hacking group referred to as Mustang Panda is using lures related to the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian War to attack entities in Europe and the Asia Pacific. That's according to the BlackBerry Research and Intelligence Team, which analyzed a RAR archive file titled "Political Guidance for the new EU approach towards Russia.rar." Some of the targeted countries include

Black Basta Ransomware Gang Actively Infiltrating U.S. Companies with Qakbot Malware

Companies based in the U.S. have been at the receiving end of an "aggressive" Qakbot malware campaign that leads to Black Basta ransomware infections on compromised networks. "In this latest campaign, the Black Basta ransomware gang is using QakBot malware to create an initial point of entry and move laterally within an organization's network," Cybereason researchers Joakim Kandefelt and

Top Cyber Threats Facing E-Commerce Sites This Holiday Season

Delivering a superior customer experience is essential for any e-commerce business. For those companies, there's a lot at stake this holiday season. According to Digital Commerce 360, nearly $1.00 of every $4.00 spent on retail purchases during the 2022 holiday season will be spent online, resulting in $224 billion in e-commerce sales. To ensure your e-commerce site is ready for the holiday rush

Researchers Find Links b/w Black Basta Ransomware and FIN7 Hackers

A new analysis of tools put to use by the Black Basta ransomware operation has identified ties between the threat actor and the FIN7 (aka Carbanak) group. This link "could suggest either that Black Basta and FIN7 maintain a special relationship or that one or more individuals belong to both groups," cybersecurity firm SentinelOne said in a technical write-up shared with The Hacker News. Black

Hackers Using Rogue Versions of KeePass and SolarWinds Software to Distribute RomCom RAT

The operators of RomCom RAT malware are continuing to evolve their campaigns by distributing rogue versions of software such as SolarWinds Network Performance Monitor, KeePass password manager, and PDF Reader Pro via fake copycat websites. Targets of the operation consist of victims in Ukraine and select English-speaking countries like the U.K. "Given the geography of the targets and the current

BlackByte Ransomware Abuses Vulnerable Windows Driver to Disable Security Solutions

In yet another case of bring your own vulnerable driver (BYOVD) attack, the operators of the BlackByte ransomware are leveraging a flaw in a legitimate Windows driver to bypass security solutions. "The evasion technique supports disabling a whopping list of over 1,000 drivers on which security products rely to provide protection," Sophos threat researcher Andreas Klopsch said in a new technical

Pay What You Want for This Collection of White Hat Hacking Courses

Whether you relish a mental challenge or fancy a six-figure paycheck, there are many good reasons to get into white hat hacking. That said, picking up the necessary knowledge to build a new career can seem like a daunting task. There is a lot to learn, after all. To help you get started, The Hacker News Deals is currently running an eye-catching offer: pay what you want for one video course, and

BlackCat Ransomware Attackers Spotted Fine-Tuning Their Malware Arsenal

The BlackCat ransomware crew has been spotted fine-tuning their malware arsenal to fly under the radar and expand their reach. "Among some of the more notable developments has been the use of a new version of the Exmatter data exfiltration tool, and the use of Eamfo, information-stealing malware that is designed to steal credentials stored by Veeam backup software," researchers from Symantec 

High-Severity Firmware Security Flaws Left Unpatched in HP Enterprise Devices

A number of firmware security flaws uncovered in HP's business-oriented high-end notebooks continue to be left unpatched in some devices even months after public disclosure. Binarly, which first revealed details of the issues at the Black Hat USA conference in mid-August 2022, said the vulnerabilities "can't be detected by firmware integrity monitoring systems due to limitations of the Trusted

BlackCat Ransomware Gang Targeting Unpatched Microsoft Exchange Servers

Microsoft is warning that the BlackCat ransomware crew is leveraging exploits for unpatched Exchange server vulnerabilities to gain access to targeted networks. Upon gaining an entry point, the attackers swiftly moved to gather information about the compromised machines, followed by carrying out credential theft and lateral movement activities, before harvesting intellectual property and