New Malicious PyPI Packages Caught Using Covert Side-Loading Tactics

Cybersecurity researchers have discovered two malicious packages on the Python Package Index (PyPI) repository that were found leveraging a technique called DLL side-loading to circumvent detection by security software and run malicious code. The packages, named NP6HelperHttptest and NP6HelperHttper, were each downloaded 537 and 166 times, respectively,

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

URGENT: Upgrade GitLab - Critical Workspace Creation Flaw Allows File Overwrite

GitLab once again released fixes to address a critical security flaw in its Community Edition (CE) and Enterprise Edition (EE) that could be exploited to write arbitrary files while creating a workspace. Tracked as CVE-2024-0402, the vulnerability has a CVSS score of 9.9 out of a maximum of 10. "An issue has been discovered in GitLab CE/EE affecting all versions from 16.0 prior to

Remcos RAT Spreading Through Adult Games in New Attack Wave

The remote access trojan (RAT) known as Remcos RAT has been found being propagated via webhards by disguising it as adult-themed games in South Korea. WebHard, short for web hard drive, is a popular online file storage system used to upload, download, and share files in the country. While webhards have been used in the past to deliver njRAT, UDP RAT, and DDoS botnet malware, the

Urgent: GitLab Releases Patch for Critical Vulnerabilities - Update ASAP

GitLab has released security updates to address two critical vulnerabilities, including one that could be exploited to take over accounts without requiring any user interaction. Tracked as CVE-2023-7028, the flaw has been awarded the maximum severity of 10.0 on the CVSS scoring system and could facilitate account takeover by sending password reset emails to an unverified email address. The

Beware: 3 Malicious PyPI Packages Found Targeting Linux with Crypto Miners

Three new malicious packages have been discovered in the Python Package Index (PyPI) open-source repository with capabilities to deploy a cryptocurrency miner on affected Linux devices. The three harmful packages, named modularseven, driftme, and catme, attracted a total of 431 downloads over the past month before they were taken down. “These packages, upon initial use, deploy a CoinMiner

Kimsuky Hackers Deploying AppleSeed, Meterpreter, and TinyNuke in Latest Attacks

Nation-state actors affiliated to North Korea have been observed using spear-phishing attacks to deliver an assortment of backdoors and tools such as AppleSeed, Meterpreter, and TinyNuke to seize control of compromised machines. South Korea-based cybersecurity company AhnLab attributed the activity to an advanced persistent threat group known as Kimsuky. “A notable point about attacks that

N. Korea's Kimsuky Targeting South Korean Research Institutes with Backdoor Attacks

The North Korean threat actor known as Kimsuky has been observed targeting research institutes in South Korea as part of a spear-phishing campaign with the ultimate goal of distributing backdoors on compromised systems. "The threat actor ultimately uses a backdoor to steal information and execute commands," the AhnLab Security Emergency Response Center (ASEC) said in an

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 findings come from cybersecurity firm SentinelOne, which also tied a third macOS-specific malware called ObjCShellz to the RustBucket campaign

Discover 2023's Cloud Security Strategies in Our Upcoming Webinar - Secure Your Spot

In 2023, the cloud isn't just a technology—it's a battleground. Zenbleed, Kubernetes attacks, and sophisticated APTs are just the tip of the iceberg in the cloud security warzone. In collaboration with the esteemed experts from Lacework Labs, The Hacker News proudly presents an exclusive webinar: 'Navigating the Cloud Attack Landscape: 2023 Trends, Techniques, and Tactics.' Join us for an

Malicious NuGet Packages Caught Distributing SeroXen RAT Malware

Cybersecurity researchers have uncovered a new set of malicious packages published to the NuGet package manager using a lesser-known method for malware deployment. Software supply chain security firm ReversingLabs described the campaign as coordinated and ongoing since August 1, 2023, while linking it to a host of rogue NuGet packages that were observed delivering a remote access trojan called

Binance's Smart Chain Exploited in New 'EtherHiding' Malware Campaign

Threat actors have been observed serving malicious code by utilizing Binance's Smart Chain (BSC) contracts in what has been described as the "next level of bulletproof hosting." The campaign, detected two months ago, has been codenamed EtherHiding by Guardio Labs. The novel twist marks the latest iteration in an ongoing malware campaign that leverages compromised WordPress sites to serve

Rogue npm Package Deploys Open-Source Rootkit in New Supply Chain Attack

A new deceptive package hidden within the npm package registry has been uncovered deploying an open-source rootkit called r77, marking the first time a rogue package has delivered rootkit functionality. The package in question is node-hide-console-windows, which mimics the legitimate npm package node-hide-console-window in what's an instance of a typosquatting campaign. It was downloaded 704

GitLab Releases Urgent Security Patches for Critical Vulnerability

GitLab has shipped security patches to resolve a critical flaw that allows an attacker to run pipelines as another user. The issue, tracked as CVE-2023-5009 (CVSS score: 9.6), impacts all versions of GitLab Enterprise Edition (EE) starting from 13.12 and prior to 16.2.7 as well as from 16.3 and before 16.3.4. "It was possible for an attacker to run pipelines as an arbitrary user via scheduled

Google Rushes to Patch Critical Chrome Vulnerability Exploited in the Wild - Update Now

Google on Monday rolled out out-of-band security patches to address a critical security flaw in its Chrome web browser that it said has been exploited in the wild. Tracked as CVE-2023-4863, the issue has been described as a case of heap buffer overflow that resides in the WebP image format that could result in arbitrary code execution or a crash. Apple Security Engineering and Architecture (SEAR

North Korean Hackers Deploy New Malicious Python Packages in PyPI Repository

Three additional rogue Python packages have been discovered in the Package Index (PyPI) repository as part of an ongoing malicious software supply chain campaign called VMConnect, with signs pointing to the involvement of North Korean state-sponsored threat actors. The findings come from ReversingLabs, which detected the packages tablediter, request-plus, and requestspro. First disclosed at the

Encryption Flaws in Popular Chinese Language App Put Users' Typed Data at Risk

A widely used Chinese language input app for Windows and Android has been found vulnerable to serious security flaws that could allow a malicious interloper to decipher the text typed by users. The findings from the University of Toronto's Citizen Lab, which carried out an analysis of the encryption mechanism used in Tencent's Sogou Input Method, an app that has over 455 million monthly active

Reptile Rootkit: Advanced Linux Malware Targeting South Korean Systems

Threat actors are using an open-source rootkit called Reptile to target Linux systems in South Korea. "Unlike other rootkit malware that typically only provide concealment capabilities, Reptile goes a step further by offering a reverse shell, allowing threat actors to easily take control of systems," the AhnLab Security Emergency Response Center (ASEC) said in a report published this week. "Port

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

Malicious PyPI Packages Using Compiled Python Code to Bypass Detection

Researchers have discovered a novel attack on the Python Package Index (PyPI) repository that employs compiled Python code to sidestep detection by application security tools. "It may be the first supply chain attack to take advantage of the fact that Python bytecode (PYC) files can be directly executed," ReversingLabs analyst Karlo Zanki said in a report shared with The Hacker News. The package

Tonto Team Uses Anti-Malware File to Launch Attacks on South Korean Institutions

South Korean education, construction, diplomatic, and political institutions are at the receiving end of new attacks perpetrated by a China-aligned threat actor known as the Tonto Team. "Recent cases have revealed that the group is using a file related to anti-malware products to ultimately execute their malicious attacks," the AhnLab Security Emergency Response Center (ASEC) said in a report

New Flaws in TPM 2.0 Library Pose Threat to Billions of IoT and Enterprise Devices

A pair of serious security defects has been disclosed in the Trusted Platform Module (TPM) 2.0 reference library specification that could potentially lead to information disclosure or privilege escalation. One of the vulnerabilities, CVE-2023-1017, concerns an out-of-bounds write, while the other, CVE-2023-1018, is described as an out-of-bounds read. Credited with discovering and reporting the

The Evolving Tactics of Vidar Stealer: From Phishing Emails to Social Media

The notorious information-stealer known as Vidar is continuing to leverage popular social media services such as TikTok, Telegram, Steam, and Mastodon as an intermediate command-and-control (C2) server. "When a user creates an account on an online platform, a unique account page that can be accessed by anyone is generated," AhnLab Security Emergency Response Center (ASEC) disclosed in a

Researchers Discover Malicious PyPI Package Posing as SentinelOne SDK to Steal Data

Cybersecurity researchers have discovered a new malicious package on the Python Package Index (PyPI) repository that impersonates a software development kit (SDK) for SentinelOne, a major cybersecurity company, as part of a campaign dubbed SentinelSneak. The package, named SentinelOne and now taken down, is said to have been published between December 8 and 11, 2022, with nearly two dozen

New IceXLoader Malware Loader Variant Infected Thousands of Victims Worldwide

An updated version of a malware loader codenamed IceXLoader is suspected of having compromised thousands of personal and enterprise Windows machines across the world. IceXLoader is a commodity malware that's sold for $118 on underground forums for a lifetime license. It's chiefly employed to download and execute additional malware on breached hosts. This past June, Fortinet FortiGuard Labs said

Critical Flaw Reported in Move Virtual Machine Powering the Aptos Blockchain Network

Researchers have disclosed details about a now-patched critical flaw in the Move virtual machine that powers the Aptos blockchain network. The vulnerability "can cause Aptos nodes to crash and cause denial of service," Singapore-based Numen Cyber Labs said in a technical write-up published earlier this month. Aptos is a new entrant to the blockchain space, which launched its mainnet on October

Emotet Botnet Distributing Self-Unlocking Password-Protected RAR Files to Drop Malware

The notorious Emotet botnet has been linked to a new wave of malspam campaigns that take advantage of password-protected archive files to drop CoinMiner and Quasar RAT on compromised systems. In an attack chain detected by Trustwave SpiderLabs researchers, an invoice-themed ZIP file lure was found to contain a nested self-extracting (SFX) archive, the first archive acting as a conduit to launch

GitLab Issues Patch for Critical Flaw in its Community and Enterprise Software

DevOps platform GitLab this week issued patches to address a critical security flaw in its software that could lead to arbitrary code execution on affected systems. Tracked as CVE-2022-2884, the issue is rated 9.9 on the CVSS vulnerability scoring system and impacts all versions of GitLab Community Edition (CE) and Enterprise Edition (EE) starting from 11.3.4 before 15.1.5, 15.2 before 15.2.3,

CISA Issues Warning on Active Exploitation of UnRAR Software for Linux Systems

The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) on Tuesday added a recently disclosed security flaw in the UnRAR utility to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog, based on evidence of active exploitation. Tracked as CVE-2022-30333 (CVSS score: 7.5), the issue concerns a path traversal vulnerability in the Unix versions of UnRAR that can be triggered upon extracting a

Researchers Warn of Increase in Phishing Attacks Using Decentralized IPFS Network

The decentralized file system solution known as IPFS is becoming the new "hotbed" for hosting phishing sites, researchers have warned. Cybersecurity firm Trustwave SpiderLabs, which disclosed specifics of the spam campaigns, said it identified no less than 3,000 emails containing IPFS phishing URLs as an attack vector in the last three months. IPFS, short for InterPlanetary File System, is a

Pegasus Spyware Used to Hack Devices of Pro-Democracy Activists in Thailand

Thai activists involved in the country's pro-democracy protests have had their smartphones infected with NSO Group's infamous Pegasus government-sponsored spyware. At least 30 individuals, spanning activists, academics, lawyers, and NGO workers, are believed to have been targeted between October 2020 and November 2021, many of whom have been previously detained, arrested and imprisoned for their

New UnRAR Vulnerability Could Let Attackers Hack Zimbra Webmail Servers

A new security vulnerability has been disclosed in RARlab's UnRAR utility that, if successfully exploited, could permit a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code on a system that relies on the binary. The flaw, assigned the identifier CVE-2022-30333, relates to a path traversal vulnerability in the Unix versions of UnRAR that can be triggered upon extracting a maliciously crafted RAR archive.

GitLab Issues Security Patch for Critical Account Takeover Vulnerability

GitLab has moved to address a critical security flaw in its service that, if successfully exploited, could result in an account takeover. Tracked as CVE-2022-1680, the issue has a CVSS severity score of 9.9 and was discovered internally by the company. The security flaw affects all versions of GitLab Enterprise Edition (EE) starting from 11.10 before 14.9.5, all versions starting from 14.10