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New Malicious PyPI Packages Caught Using Covert Side-Loading Tactics

By Newsroom
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,

PikaBot Resurfaces with Streamlined Code and Deceptive Tactics

By Newsroom
The threat actors behind the PikaBot malware have made significant changes to the malware in what has been described as a case of "devolution." "Although it appears to be in a new development cycle and testing phase, the developers have reduced the complexity of the code by removing advanced obfuscation techniques and changing the network communications," Zscaler ThreatLabz researcher Nikolaos

SystemBC Malware's C2 Server Analysis Exposes Payload Delivery Tricks

By Newsroom
Cybersecurity researchers have shed light on the command-and-control (C2) server workings of a known malware family called SystemBC. "SystemBC can be purchased on underground marketplaces and is supplied in an archive containing the implant, a command-and-control (C2) server, and a web administration portal written in PHP," Kroll said in an analysis published last week. The risk

Alert: Water Curupira Hackers Actively Distributing PikaBot Loader Malware

By Newsroom
A threat actor called Water Curupira has been observed actively distributing the PikaBot loader malware as part of spam campaigns in 2023. “PikaBot’s operators ran phishing campaigns, targeting victims via its two components — a loader and a core module — which enabled unauthorized remote access and allowed the execution of arbitrary commands through an established connection with

New Malvertising Campaign Distributing PikaBot Disguised as Popular Software

By Newsroom
The malware loader known as PikaBot is being distributed as part of a malvertising campaign targeting users searching for legitimate software like AnyDesk. "PikaBot was previously only distributed via malspam campaigns similarly to QakBot and emerged as one of the preferred payloads for a threat actor known as TA577," Malwarebytes' Jérôme Segura said. The malware family,

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

By Newsroom
A previously unknown hacker outfit called GambleForce 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

Chinese Hackers Target Semiconductor Firms in East Asia with Cobalt Strike

By Newsroom
Threat actors have been observed targeting semiconductor companies in East Asia with lures masquerading as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) that are designed to deliver Cobalt Strike beacons. The intrusion set, per EclecticIQ, leverages a backdoor called HyperBro, which is then used as a conduit to deploy the commercial attack simulation software and post-exploitation toolkit.

Threat Actors Targeting Microsoft SQL Servers to Deploy FreeWorld Ransomware

By THN
Threat actors are exploiting poorly secured Microsoft SQL (MS SQL) servers to deliver Cobalt Strike and a ransomware strain called FreeWorld. Cybersecurity firm Securonix, which has dubbed the campaign DB#JAMMER, said it stands out for the way the toolset and infrastructure is employed. “Some of these tools include enumeration software, RAT payloads, exploitation and credential stealing software

Hackers Using Golang Variant of Cobalt Strike to Target Apple macOS Systems

By Ravie Lakshmanan
A Golang implementation of Cobalt Strike called Geacon is likely to garner the attention of threat actors looking to target Apple macOS systems. That's according to findings from SentinelOne, which observed an increase in the number of Geacon payloads appearing on VirusTotal in recent months. "While some of these are likely red-team operations, others bear the characteristics of genuine

New Ransomware Strain 'CACTUS' Exploits VPN Flaws to Infiltrate Networks

By Ravie Lakshmanan
Cybersecurity researchers have shed light on a new ransomware strain called CACTUS that has been found to leverage known flaws in VPN appliances to obtain initial access to targeted networks. "Once inside the network, CACTUS actors attempt to enumerate local and network user accounts in addition to reachable endpoints before creating new user accounts and leveraging custom scripts to automate

Fortra Sheds Light on GoAnywhere MFT Zero-Day Exploit Used in Ransomware Attacks

By Ravie Lakshmanan
Fortra, the company behind Cobalt Strike, shed light on a zero-day remote code execution (RCE) vulnerability in its GoAnywhere MFT tool that has come under active exploitation by ransomware actors to steal sensitive data. The high-severity flaw, tracked as CVE-2023-0669 (CVSS score: 7.2), concerns a case of pre-authenticated command injection that could be abused to achieve code execution. The

Microsoft Takes Legal Action to Disrupt Cybercriminals' Illegal Use of Cobalt Strike Tool

By Ravie Lakshmanan
Microsoft said it teamed up with Fortra and Health Information Sharing and Analysis Center (Health-ISAC) to tackle the abuse of Cobalt Strike by cybercriminals to distribute malware, including ransomware. To that end, the tech giant's Digital Crimes Unit (DCU) revealed that it secured a court order in the U.S. to "remove illegal, legacy copies of Cobalt Strike so they can no longer be used by

Chinese and Russian Hackers Using SILKLOADER Malware to Evade Detection

By Ravie Lakshmanan
Threat activity clusters affiliated with the Chinese and Russian cybercriminal ecosystems have been observed using a new piece of malware that's designed to load Cobalt Strike onto infected machines. Dubbed SILKLOADER by Finnish cybersecurity company WithSecure, the malware leverages DLL side-loading techniques to deliver the commercial adversary simulation software. The development comes as 

Threat Actors Adopt Havoc Framework for Post-Exploitation in Targeted Attacks

By Ravie Lakshmanan
An open source command-and-control (C2) framework known as Havoc is being adopted by threat actors as an alternative to other well-known legitimate toolkits like Cobalt Strike, Sliver, and Brute Ratel. Cybersecurity firm Zscaler said it observed a new campaign in the beginning of January 2023 targeting an unnamed government organization that utilized Havoc. "While C2 frameworks are prolific, the

Gootkit Malware Adopts New Tactics to Attack Healthcare and Finance Firms

By Ravie Lakshmanan
The Gootkit malware is prominently going after healthcare and finance organizations in the U.S., U.K., and Australia, according to new findings from Cybereason. The cybersecurity firm said it investigated a Gootkit incident in December 2022 that adopted a new method of deployment, with the actors abusing the foothold to deliver Cobalt Strike and SystemBC for post-exploitation. "The threat actor

Gootkit Malware Continues to Evolve with New Components and Obfuscations

By Ravie Lakshmanan
The threat actors associated with the Gootkit malware have made "notable changes" to their toolset, adding new components and obfuscations to their infection chains. Google-owned Mandiant is monitoring the activity cluster under the moniker UNC2565, noting that the usage of the malware is "exclusive to this group." Gootkit, also called Gootloader, is spread through compromised websites that

Threat Actors Turn to Sliver as Open Source Alternative to Popular C2 Frameworks

By Ravie Lakshmanan
The legitimate command-and-control (C2) framework known as Sliver is gaining more traction from threat actors as it emerges as an open source alternative to Cobalt Strike and Metasploit. The findings come from Cybereason, which detailed its inner workings in an exhaustive analysis last week. Sliver, developed by cybersecurity company BishopFox, is a Golang-based cross-platform post-exploitation

Nighthawk Likely to Become Hackers' New Post-Exploitation Tool After Cobalt Strike

By Ravie Lakshmanan
A nascent and legitimate penetration testing framework known as Nighthawk is likely to gain threat actors' attention for its Cobalt Strike-like capabilities. Enterprise security firm Proofpoint said it detected the use of the software in mid-September 2022 by a red team with a number of test emails sent using generic subject lines such as "Just checking in" and "Hope this works2." However, there

Google Identifies 34 Cracked Versions of Popular Cobalt Strike Hacking Toolkit in the Wild

By Ravie Lakshmanan
Google Cloud last week disclosed that it identified 34 different hacked release versions of the Cobalt Strike tool in the wild, the earliest of which shipped in November 2012. The versions, spanning 1.44 to 4.7, add up to a total of 275 unique JAR files, according to findings from the Google Cloud Threat Intelligence (GCTI) team. The latest version of Cobalt Strike is version 4.7.2. Cobalt

Critical RCE Vulnerability Discovered in Popular Cobalt Strike Hacking Software

By Ravie Lakshmanan
HelpSystems, the company behind the Cobalt Strike software platform, has released an out-of-band security update to address a remote code execution vulnerability that could allow an attacker to take control of targeted systems. Cobalt Strike is a commercial red-team framework that's mainly used for adversary simulation, but cracked versions of the software have been actively abused by ransomware

Black Basta Ransomware Hackers Infiltrate Networks via Qakbot to Deploy Brute Ratel C4

By Ravie Lakshmanan
The threat actors behind the Black Basta ransomware family have been observed using the Qakbot trojan to deploy the Brute Ratel C4 framework as a second-stage payload in recent attacks. The development marks the first time the nascent adversary simulation software is being delivered via a Qakbot infection, cybersecurity firm Trend Micro said in a technical analysis released last week. The

New Malware Campaign Targeting Job Seekers with Cobalt Strike Beacons

By Ravie Lakshmanan
A social engineering campaign leveraging job-themed lures is weaponizing a years-old remote code execution flaw in Microsoft Office to deploy Cobalt Strike beacons on compromised hosts. "The payload discovered is a leaked version of a Cobalt Strike beacon," Cisco Talos researchers Chetan Raghuprasad and Vanja Svajcer said in a new analysis published Wednesday. "The beacon configuration contains

Cybercrime Groups Increasingly Adopting Sliver Command-and-Control Framework

By Ravie Lakshmanan
Nation-state threat actors are increasingly adopting and integrating the Sliver command-and-control (C2) framework in their intrusion campaigns as a replacement for Cobalt Strike. “Given Cobalt Strike’s popularity as an attack tool, defenses against it have also improved over time,” Microsoft security experts said. “Sliver thus presents an attractive alternative for actors looking for a

Chinese Hackers Using New Manjusaka Hacking Framework Similar to Cobalt Strike

By Ravie Lakshmanan
Researchers have disclosed a new offensive framework referred to as Manjusaka that they call is a "Chinese sibling of Sliver and Cobalt Strike." "A fully functional version of the command-and-control (C2), written in Golang with a User Interface in Simplified Chinese, is freely available and can generate new implants with custom configurations with ease, increasing the likelihood of wider

Researchers Warn of 'Matanbuchus' Malware Campaign Dropping Cobalt Strike Beacons

By Ravie Lakshmanan
A malware-as-a-service (Maas) dubbed Matanbuchus has been observed spreading through phishing campaigns, ultimately dropping the Cobalt Strike post-exploitation framework on compromised machines. Matanbuchus, like other malware loaders such as BazarLoader, Bumblebee, and Colibri, is engineered to download and execute second-stage executables from command-and-control (C&C) servers on infected

Malware Analysis: Trickbot

By The Hacker News
In this day and age, we are not dealing with roughly pieced together, homebrew type of viruses anymore. Malware is an industry, and professional developers are found to exchange, be it by stealing one's code or deliberate collaboration. Attacks are multi-layer these days, with diverse sophisticated software apps taking over different jobs along the attack-chain from initial compromise to
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