An ongoing campaign dubbed Earth Bogle is leveraging geopolitical-themed lures to deliver the NjRAT remote access trojan to victims across the Middle East and North Africa. “The threat actor uses public cloud storage services such as files[.]fm and failiem[.]lv to host malware,…
Category: The Hacker News
Iranian Government Entities Under Attack by New Wave of BackdoorDiplomacy Attacks
The threat actor known as BackdoorDiplomacy has been linked to a new wave of attacks targeting Iranian government entities between July and late December 2022. Palo Alto Networks Unit 42, which is tracking the activity under its constellation-themed moniker Playful Taurus, said it observed the…
Guide: How MSSPs and vCISOs can extend their services into compliance readiness without increasing cost
Compliance services are emerging as one of the hottest areas of cybersecurity. While compliance used to be mainly the province of large enterprises, times have changed, and it is now a day-to-day concern for a growing number of small and…
Git Users Urged to Update Software to Prevent Remote Code Execution Attacks
The maintainers of the Git source code version control system have released updates to remediate two critical vulnerabilities that could be exploited by a malicious actor to achieve remote code execution. The flaws, tracked as CVE-2022-23521 and CVE-2022-41903, impacts the following versions of Git: v2.30.6,…
Critical Security Vulnerabilities Discovered in Netcomm and TP-Link Routers
Security vulnerabilities have been disclosed in Netcomm and TP-Link routers, some of which could be weaponized to achieve remote code execution. The flaws, tracked as CVE-2022-4873 and CVE-2022-4874, concern a case of stack-based buffer overflow and authentication bypass and impact Netcomm router models…
CISA Warns of Flaws in Siemens, GE Digital, and Contec Industrial Control Systems
The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has published four Industrial Control Systems (ICS) advisories, calling out several security flaws affecting products from Siemens, GE Digital, and Contec. The most critical of the issues have been identified in Siemens SINEC INS…
Microsoft Azure Services Flaws Could’ve Exposed Cloud Resources to Unauthorized Access
Four different Microsoft Azure services have been found vulnerable to server-side request forgery (SSRF) attacks that could be exploited to gain unauthorized access to cloud resources. The security issues, which were discovered by Orca between October 8, 2022 and December…
Hackers Can Abuse Legitimate GitHub Codespaces Feature to Deliver Malware
New research has found that it is possible for threat actors to abuse a legitimate feature in GitHub Codespaces to deliver malware to victim systems. GitHub Codespaces is a cloud-based configurable development environment that allows users to debug, maintain, and commit…
Zoho ManageEngine PoC Exploit to be Released Soon – Patch Before It’s Too Late!
Users of Zoho ManageEngine are being urged to patch their instances against a critical security vulnerability ahead of the release of a proof-of-concept (PoC) exploit code. The issue in question is CVE-2022-47966, an unauthenticated remote code execution vulnerability affecting several products…
4 Places to Supercharge Your SOC with Automation
It’s no secret that the job of SOC teams continues to become increasingly difficult. Increased volume and sophistication of attacks are plaguing under-resourced teams with false positives and analyst burnout. However, like many other industries, cybersecurity is now beginning to…
CISA Warns of Flaws Affecting Industrial Control Systems from Major Manufacturers
The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has released several Industrial Control Systems (ICS) advisories warning of critical security flaws affecting products from Sewio, InHand Networks, Sauter Controls, and Siemens. The most severe of the flaws relate to Sewio’s RTLS Studio,…
Researchers Uncover 3 PyPI Packages Spreading Malware to Developer Systems
A threat actor by the name Lolip0p has uploaded three rogue packages to the Python Package Index (PyPI) repository that are designed to drop malware on compromised developer systems. The packages – named colorslib (versions 4.6.11 and 4.6.12), httpslib (versions 4.6.9 and 4.6.11), and libhttps (version 4.6.12) –…
Raccoon and Vidar Stealers Spreading via Massive Network of Fake Cracked Software
A “large and resilient infrastructure” comprising over 250 domains is being used to distribute information-stealing malware such as Raccoon and Vidar since early 2020. The infection chain “uses about a hundred of fake cracked software catalogue websites that redirect to several links before downloading…
CISA Warns for Flaws Affecting Industrial Control Systems from Major Manufacturers
The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has released several Industrial Control Systems (ICS) advisories warning of critical security flaws affecting products from Sewio, InHand Networks, Sauter Controls, and Siemens. The most severe of the flaws relate to Sewio’s RTLS Studio,…
A Secure User Authentication Method – Planning is More Important than Ever
When considering authentication providers, many organizations consider the ease of configuration, ubiquity of usage, and technical stability. Organizations cannot always be judged on those metrics alone. There is an increasing need to evaluate company ownership, policies and the stability, or…
New Backdoor Created Using Leaked CIA’s Hive Malware Discovered in the Wild
Unidentified threat actors have deployed a new backdoor that borrows its features from the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)’s Hive multi-platform malware suite, the source code of which was released by WikiLeaks in November 2017. “This is the first time we caught a variant of…
Cacti Servers Under Attack as Majority Fail to Patch Critical Vulnerability
A majority of internet-exposed Cacti servers have not been patched against a recently patched critical security vulnerability that has come under active exploitation in the wild. That’s according to attack surface management platform Censys, which found only 26 out of a total…
Malware Attack on CircleCI Engineer’s Laptop Leads to Recent Security Incident
DevOps platform CircleCI on Friday disclosed that unidentified threat actors compromised an employee’s laptop and leveraged malware to steal their two-factor authentication-backed credentials to breach the company’s systems and data last month. The CI/CD service CircleCI said the “sophisticated attack”…
TikTok Fined $5.4 Million by French Regulator for Violating Cookie Laws
Popular short-form video hosting service TikTok has been fined €5 million (about $5.4 million) by the French data protection watchdog for breaking cookie consent rules, making it the latest platform to face similar penalties after Amazon, Google, Meta, and Microsoft since 2020. “Users…
Cisco Issues Warning for Unpatched Vulnerabilities in EoL Business Routers
Cisco has warned of two security vulnerabilities affecting end-of-life (EoL) Small Business RV016, RV042, RV042G, and RV082 routers that it said will not be fixed, even as it acknowledged the public availability of proof-of-concept (PoC) exploit. The issues are rooted in the…
Beware: Tainted VPNs Being Used to Spread EyeSpy Surveillanceware
Tainted VPN installers are being used to deliver a piece of surveillanceware dubbed EyeSpy as part of a malware campaign that started in May 2022. It uses “components of SecondEye – a legitimate monitoring application – to spy on users of 20Speed…
Cybercriminals Using Polyglot Files in Malware Distribution to Fly Under the Radar
Remote access trojans such as StrRAT and Ratty are being distributed as a combination of polyglot and malicious Java archive (JAR) files, once again highlighting how threat actors are continuously finding new ways to fly under the radar. “Attackers now…
FortiOS Flaw Exploited as Zero-Day in Attacks on Government and Organizations
A zero-day vulnerability in FortiOS SSL-VPN that Fortinet addressed last month was exploited by unknown actors in attacks targeting the government and other large organizations. “The complexity of the exploit suggests an advanced actor and that it is highly targeted…
Get Unified Cloud and Endpoint Security: Only $1 for 1,000 Assets for all of 2023!
As the new year begins, it’s more important than ever to protect your business from the constantly evolving cyber threats that could compromise your valuable assets. But who wants to pay an arm and a leg for top-tier security? With…
Over 100 Siemens PLC Models Found Vulnerable to Firmware Takeover
Security researchers have disclosed multiple architectural vulnerabilities in Siemens SIMATIC and SIPLUS S7-1500 programmable logic controllers (PLCs) that could be exploited by a malicious actor to stealthily install firmware on affected devices and take control of them. Discovered by Red…
IcedID Malware Strikes Again: Active Directory Domain Compromised in Under 24 Hours
A recent IcedID malware attack enabled the threat actor to compromise the Active Directory domain of an unnamed target less than 24 hours after gaining initial access. “Throughout the attack, the attacker followed a routine of recon commands, credential theft,…
Patch Where it Hurts: Effective Vulnerability Management in 2023
A recently published Security Navigator report data shows that businesses are still taking 215 days to patch a reported vulnerability. Even for critical vulnerabilities, it generally takes more than 6 months to patch. Good vulnerability management is not about being fast enough…
Patch where it Hurts: Effective Vulnerability Management in 2023
A recently published Security Navigator report data shows that businesses are still taking 215 days to patch a reported vulnerability. Even for critical vulnerabilities, it generally takes more than 6 months to patch. Good vulnerability management is not about being fast enough…
Experts Detail Chromium Browser Security Flaw Putting Confidential Data at Risk
Details have emerged about a now-patched vulnerability in Google Chrome and Chromium-based browsers that, if successfully exploited, could have made it possible to siphon files containing confidential data. “The issue arose from the way the browser interacted with symlinks when processing files…
Twitter Denies Hacking Claims, Assures Leaked User Data Not from its System
Twitter on Wednesday said that its investigation found “no evidence” that users’ data sold online was obtained by exploiting any security vulnerabilities in its systems. “Based on information and intel analyzed to investigate the issue, there is no evidence that…
Alert: Hackers Actively Exploiting Critical “Control Web Panel” RCE Vulnerability
Malicious actors are actively attempting to exploit a recently patched critical vulnerability in Control Web Panel (CWP) that enables elevated privileges and unauthenticated remote code execution (RCE) on susceptible servers. Tracked as CVE-2022-44877 (CVSS score: 9.8), the bug impacts all versions of…
New Analysis Reveals Raspberry Robin Can be Repurposed by Other Threat Actors
A new analysis of Raspberry Robin’s attack infrastructure has revealed that it’s possible for other threat actors to repurpose the infections for their own malicious activities, making it an even more potent threat. Raspberry Robin (aka QNAP worm), attributed to a threat…
Australian Healthcare Sector Targeted in Latest Gootkit Malware Attacks
A wave of Gootkit malware loader attacks has targeted the Australian healthcare sector by leveraging legitimate tools like VLC Media Player. Gootkit, also called Gootloader, is known to employ search engine optimization (SEO) poisoning tactics (aka spamdexing) for initial access. It typically works by…
Unlock Your Potential: Get 9 Online Cyber Security Courses for Just $49.99
Are you looking to take your career in the information security industry to the next level? Look no further than the 2023 Certified Technology Professional Bundle! This unparalleled offer grants you lifetime access to nine comprehensive courses in information security,…
Dark Pink APT Group Targets Governments and Military in APAC Region
Government and military organizations in the Asia Pacific region are being targeted by a previously unknown advanced persistent threat (APT) actor, per the latest research. Singapore-headquartered Group-IB, in a report shared with The Hacker News, said it’s tracking the ongoing campaign under…
Microsoft Issues January 2023 Patch Tuesday Updates, Warns of Zero-Day Exploit
The first Patch Tuesday fixes shipped by Microsoft for 2023 have addressed a total of 98 security flaws, including one bug that the company said is being actively exploited in the wild. 11 of the 98 issues are rated Critical and…
StrongPity Hackers Distribute Trojanized Telegram App to Target Android Users
The advanced persistent threat (APT) group known as StrongPity has targeted Android users with a trojanized version of the Telegram app through a fake website that impersonates a video chat service called Shagle. “A copycat website, mimicking the Shagle service, is used…
Italian Users Warned of Malware Attack Targeting Sensitive Information
A new malware campaign has been observed targeting Italy with phishing emails designed to deploy an information stealer on compromised Windows systems. “The info-stealer malware steals sensitive information like system info, crypto wallet and browser histories, cookies, and credentials of…
Expert Analysis Reveals Cryptographic Weaknesses in Threema Messaging App
A comprehensive analysis of the cryptographic protocols used in the Swiss encrypted messaging application Threema has revealed a number of loopholes that could be exploited to break authentication protections and even recover users’ private keys. The seven attacks span three…
Severe Security Flaw Found in “jsonwebtoken” Library Used by 22,000+ Projects
A high-severity security flaw has been disclosed in the open source jsonwebtoken (JWT) library that, if successfully exploited, could lead to remote code execution on a target server. “By exploiting this vulnerability, attackers could achieve remote code execution (RCE) on a…
Critical Security Flaw Found in “jsonwebtoken” Library Used by 22,000+ Projects
A high-severity security flaw has been disclosed in the open source jsonwebtoken (JWT) library that, if successfully exploited, could lead to remote code execution on a target server. “By exploiting this vulnerability, attackers could achieve remote code execution (RCE) on a…
Kinsing Crypto Malware Hits Kubernetes Clusters via Misconfigured PostgreSQL
The threat actors behind the Kinsing cryptojacking operation have been spotted exploiting misconfigured and exposed PostgreSQL servers to obtain initial access to Kubernetes environments. A second initial access vector technique entails the use of vulnerable images, Sunders Bruskin, security researcher at Microsoft…
Kinsing Cryptojacking Hits Kubernetes Clusters via Misconfigured PostgreSQL
The threat actors behind the Kinsing cryptojacking operation have been spotted exploiting misconfigured and exposed PostgreSQL servers to obtain initial access to Kubernetes environments. A second initial access vector technique entails the use of vulnerable images, Sunders Bruskin, security researcher at Microsoft…
New Study Uncovers Text-to-SQL Model Vulnerabilities Allowing Data Theft and DoS Attacks
A group of academics has demonstrated novel attacks that leverage Text-to-SQL models to produce malicious code that could enable adversaries to glean sensitive information and stage denial-of-service (DoS) attacks. “To better interact with users, a wide range of database applications…
Why Do User Permissions Matter for SaaS Security?
Earlier this year, threat actors infiltrated Mailchimp, the popular SaaS email marketing platform. They viewed over 300 Mailchimp customer accounts and exported audience data from 102 of them. The breach was preceded by a successful phishing attempt and led to malicious…
Millions of Vehicles at Risk: API Vulnerabilities Uncovered in 16 Major Car Brands
Multiple bugs affecting millions of vehicles from 16 different manufacturers could be abused to unlock, start, and track cars, plus impact the privacy of car owners. The security vulnerabilities were found in the automotive APIs powering Acura, BMW, Ferrari, Ford, Genesis, Honda,…
Malicious PyPI Packages Using Cloudflare Tunnels to Sneak Through Firewalls
In yet another campaign targeting the Python Package Index (PyPI) repository, six malicious packages have been found deploying information stealers on developer systems. The now-removed packages, which were discovered by Phylum between December 22 and December 31, 2022, include pyrologin, easytimestamp, discorder,…
Top SaaS Cybersecurity Threats in 2023: Are You Ready?
Cybercriminals will be as busy as ever this year. Stay safe and protect your systems and data by focusing on these 4 key areas to secure your environment and ensure success in 2023, and make sure your business is only…
Hackers Can Abuse Visual Studio Marketplace to Target Developers with Malicious Extensions
A new attack vector targeting the Visual Studio Code extensions marketplace could be leveraged to upload rogue extensions masquerading as their legitimate counterparts with the goal of mounting supply chain attacks. The technique “could act as an entry point for…
Russian Turla Hackers Hijack Decade-Old Malware Infrastructure to Deploy New Backdoors
The Russian cyberespionage group known as Turla has been observed piggybacking on attack infrastructure used by a decade-old malware to deliver its own reconnaissance and backdoor tools to targets in Ukraine. Google-owned Mandiant, which is tracking the operation under the…
Hackers Using CAPTCHA Bypass Tactics in Freejacking Campaign on GitHub
A South Africa-based threat actor known as Automated Libra has been observed employing CAPTCHA bypass techniques to create GitHub accounts in a programmatic fashion as part of a freejacking campaign dubbed PURPLEURCHIN. The group “primarily targets cloud platforms offering limited-time…
Dridex Malware Now Attacking macOS Systems with Novel Infection Method
A variant of the infamous Dridex banking malware has set its sights on Apple’s macOS operating system using a previously undocumented infection method, according to latest research. It has “adopted a new technique to deliver documents embedded with malicious macros…
Microsoft Reveals Tactics Used by 4 Ransomware Families Targeting macOS
Microsoft has shed light on four different ransomware families – KeRanger, FileCoder, MacRansom, and EvilQuest – that are known to impact Apple macOS systems. “While these malware families are old, they exemplify the range of capabilities and malicious behavior possible on…
WhatsApp Introduces Proxy Support to Help Users Bypass Internet Censorship
Popular instant messaging service WhatsApp has launched support for proxy servers in the latest version of its Android and iOS apps, letting users circumvent government-imposed censorship and internet shutdowns. “Choosing a proxy enables you to connect to WhatsApp through servers…
Rackspace Confirms Play Ransomware Gang Responsible for Recent Breach
Cloud services provider Rackspace on Thursday confirmed that the ransomware gang known as Play was responsible for last month’s breach. The security incident, which took place on December 2, 2022, leveraged a previously unknown security exploit to gain initial access…
Blind Eagle Hackers Return with Refined Tools and Sophisticated Infection Chain
A financially motivated threat actor tracked as Blind Eagle has resurfaced with a refined toolset and an elaborate infection chain as part of its attacks targeting organizations in Colombia and Ecuador. Check Point’s latest research offers new insights into the Spanish-speaking group’s tactics and…
Bluebottle Cybercrime Group Preys on Financial Sector in French-Speaking African Nations
A cybercrime group dubbed Bluebottle has been linked to a set of targeted attacks against the financial sector in Francophone countries located in Africa from at least July 2022 to September 2022. “The group makes extensive use of living-off-the-land, dual…
Mitigate the LastPass Attack Surface in Your Environment with this Free Tool
The latest breach announced by LastPass is a major cause for concern to security stakeholders. As often occurs, we are at a security limbo – on the one hand, as LastPass has noted, users who followed LastPass best practices would…
SpyNote Strikes Again: Android Spyware Targeting Financial Institutions
Financial institutions are being targeted by a new version of Android malware called SpyNote at least since October 2022. “The reason behind this increase is that the developer of the spyware, who was previously selling it to other actors, made the source…
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…
CircleCI Urges Customers to Rotate Secrets Following Security Incident
DevOps platform CircleCI on Wednesday urged its customers to rotate all their secrets following an unspecified security incident. The company said an investigation is currently ongoing, but emphasized that “there are no unauthorized actors active in our systems.” Additional details…
Fortinet and Zoho Urge Customers to Patch Enterprise Software Vulnerabilities
Fortinet has warned of a high-severity flaw affecting multiple versions of FortiADC application delivery controller that could lead to the execution of arbitrary code. “An improper neutralization of special elements used in an OS command vulnerability in FortiADC may allow…
Irish Regulators Fine Facebook $414 Million for Forcing Users to Accept Targeted Ads
The Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC) has fined Meta Platforms €390 million (roughly $414 million) over its handling of user data for serving personalized ads in what could be a major blow to its ad-fueled business model. To that end, the privacy…
The FBI’s Perspective on Ransomware
Ransomware: contemporary threats, how to prevent them and how the FBI can help In April 2021, Dutch supermarkets faced a food shortage. The cause wasn’t a drought or a sudden surge in the demand for avocados. Rather, the reason was…
Qualcomm Chipsets and Lenovo BIOS Get Security Updates to Fix Multiple Flaws
Qualcomm on Tuesday released patches to address multiple security flaws in its chipsets, some of which could be exploited to cause information disclosure and memory corruption. The five vulnerabilities — tracked from CVE-2022-40516 through CVE-2022-40520 — also impact Lenovo ThinkPad X13s laptops,…
New shc-based Linux Malware Targeting Systems with Cryptocurrency Miner
A new Linux malware developed using the shell script compiler (shc) has been observed deploying a cryptocurrency miner on compromised systems. “It is presumed that after successful authentication through a dictionary attack on inadequately managed Linux SSH servers, various malware…
Synology Releases Patch for Critical RCE Vulnerability Affecting VPN Plus Servers
Synology has released security updates to address a critical flaw impacting VPN Plus Server that could be exploited to take over affected systems. Tracked as CVE-2022-43931, the vulnerability carries a maximum severity rating of 10 on the CVSS scale and has…
Enforcement vs. Enrollment-based Security: How to Balance Security and Employee Trust
Challenges with an enforcement-based approach An enforcement-based approach to security begins with a security policy backed by security controls, often heavy-handed and designed to prevent employees from engaging in risky behavior or inadvertently expanding the potential attack surface of an…
Hackers Using Stolen Bank Information to Trick Victims into Downloading BitRAT Malware
A new malware campaign has been observed using sensitive information stolen from a bank as a lure in phishing emails to drop a remote access trojan called BitRAT. The unknown adversary is believed to have hijacked the IT infrastructure of a…
Raspberry Robin Worm Evolves to Attack Financial and Insurance Sectors in Europe
Financial and insurance sectors in Europe have been targeted by the Raspberry Robin worm, as the malware continues to evolve its post-exploitation capabilities while remaining under the radar. “What is unique about the malware is that it is heavily obfuscated…
RedZei Chinese Scammers Targeting Chinese Students in the U.K.
Chinese international students in the U.K. have been targeted by persistent Chinese-speaking scammers for over a year as part of an activity dubbed RedZei (aka RedThief). “The RedZei fraudsters have chosen their targets carefully, researched them and realized it was a rich…
PyTorch Machine Learning Framework Compromised with Malicious Dependency
The maintainers of the PyTorch package have warned users who have installed the nightly builds of the library between December 25, 2022, and December 30, 2022, to uninstall and download the latest versions following a dependency confusion attack. “PyTorch-nightly Linux packages…
WordPress Security Alert: New Linux Malware Exploiting Over Two Dozen CMS Flaws
WordPress sites are being targeted by a previously unknown strain of Linux malware that exploits flaws in over two dozen plugins and themes to compromise vulnerable systems. “If sites use outdated versions of such add-ons, lacking crucial fixes, the targeted…
Google to Pay $29.5 Million to Settle Lawsuits Over User Location Tracking
Google has agreed to pay a total of $29.5 million to settle two different lawsuits brought by Indiana and Washington, D.C., over its “deceptive” location tracking practices. The search and advertising giant is required to pay $9.5 million to D.C. and $20 million…