Exposed: 6 year old Iranian espionage campaign using Android backdoor

By Sudais Asif Dubbed Rampant Kitten; the campaign has been going on for the last 6 years in which, among other tools and platforms, Iranian hackers have been utilizing Android backdoor apps. State-sponsored attackers happen to be one of the most dangerous threats out there due to the vast amount...

US charges APT 41 group members for hacking over 100 companies

By Deeba Ahmed Two Malaysian hackers and five Chinese hackers allegedly part of a state-sponsored hacking group APT 41 charged for hacking 100 companies worldwide. This is a post from HackRead.com Read the original post: US charges APT 41 group members for hacking over 100 companies...

Hackers actively exploiting unfixed flaws in VPNs, Microsoft servers – CISA

By Waqas CISA believes Chinese state-sponsored hackers are targeting critical cyberinfrastructure in the US by exploiting unpatched vulnerabilities. This is a post from HackRead.com Read the original post: Hackers actively exploiting unfixed flaws in VPNs, Microsoft servers - CISA...

US Government Warns of a New Strain of Chinese 'Taidoor' Virus

Intelligence agencies in the US have released information about a new variant of 12-year-old computer virus used by China's state-sponsored hackers targeting governments, corporations, and think tanks. Named "Taidoor," the malware has done an 'excellent' job of compromising systems as early as...

What to expect when you’re electing: Talos’ 2020 election security primer

By Jon Munshaw and Matt Olney. After the 2016 General Election, the talk was all around foreign meddling. Rumors swirled that some votes may have been changed or influenced by state-sponsored actors. Sanctions and accusations followed. Four years later, is the U.S. any more prepared to protect th...

This Bot Hunts Software Bugs for the Pentagon

Mayhem emerged from a 2016 government-sponsored contest at a Las Vegas casino hotel. Now it's used by the military...

Google Sees State-Sponsored Hackers Ramping Up Coronavirus Attacks

More than 12 government-backed groups are using the pandemic as cover for digital reconnaissance and espionage, according to a new report...

Hackers are exploiting critical vulnerability in Microsoft Exchange server

By Deeba Ahmed State-sponsored hackers are trying to exploit a vulnerability in Microsoft Exchange email servers, which Microsoft already patched in February. This is a post from HackRead.com Read the original post: Hackers are exploiting critical vulnerability in Microsoft Exchange server...

U.S. Charges 4 Chinese Military Hackers Over Equifax Data Breach

The United States Department of Justice today announced charges against 4 Chinese military hackers who were allegedly behind the Equifax data breach that exposed the personal and financial data of nearly 150 million Americans. In a joint press conference held today with the Attorney General Willi...

Twitter API Abused to Uncover User Identities

Twitter said that malicious actors, with potential ties to state-sponsored groups, were abusing a legitimate function on its platform to unmask the identity of users. The social media giant said that on Dec. 24, 2019, it discovered a large network of fake accounts abusing a legitimate API...

Hackers Exploited Twitter Bug to Find Linked Phone Numbers of Users

Twitter today issued a warning revealing that attackers abused a legitimate functionality on its platform to unauthorizedly determine phone numbers associated with millions of its users' accounts. According to Twitter, the vulnerability resided in one of the APIs that has been designed to make it...

UN hacked, becomes target of massive state-sponsored spying op

By Waqas The organization admits experiencing sophisticated cyberattacks after Media Leaked Details. This is a post from HackRead.com Read the original post: UN hacked, becomes target of massive state-sponsored spying op...

Threat Source newsletter (Jan. 30, 2020)

Newsletter compiled by Jon Munshaw. Welcome to this week’s Threat Source newsletter — the perfect place to get caught up on all things Talos from the past week. Be sure to pay close attention Tuesday for some changes we have coming to Snort.org. We’ll spare you the details for now, but please bea...

What the continued escalation of tensions in the Middle East means for security

Cisco Talos works with many organizations around the world, monitoring and protecting against sophisticated threats every day. As such, we are watching the current state of events in the Middle East very closely for our customers and partners who may be impacted by the ongoing situation. We are...

Billion-dollar search engine industry attracts vultures, shady advertisers, and cybercriminals

Search engines make money by showing users sponsored advertisements—a lot of money. This attracts attention, competition, and plenty who want a piece of the action without doing the actual work or considering the impact to those on the other end of the search bar. Because in the search business,...

Meet Cliff Stoll, the Mad Scientist Who Invented the Art of Hunting Hackers

Thirty years ago, Cliff Stoll published The Cuckoo's Egg, a book about his cat-and-mouse game with a KGB-sponsored hacker. Today, the internet is a far darker place—and Stoll has become a cybersecurity icon...

NCSC-NZ Releases Annual Cyber Threat Report

The New Zealand National Cyber Security Centre NCSC-NZ has released their annual report detailing cyber threats and incidents affecting New Zealand from July 2018 to June 2019. During this period, NCSC-NZ recorded an increase in the severity of cybersecurity incidents—particularly from...

Chinese Hackers Compromise Telecom Servers to Spy on SMS Messages

A group of Chinese hackers carrying out political espionage for Beijing has been found targeting telecommunications companies with a new piece of malware designed to spy on text messages sent or received by highly targeted individuals. Dubbed "MessageTap ," the backdoor malware is a 64-bit ELF da...

Russian Hackers Targeting Anti-Doping Agencies Ahead of 2020 Tokyo Olympics

As Japan gears up for the upcoming 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo for the next year, the country needs to brace itself for sophisticated cyberattacks, especially from state-sponsored hackers. Microsoft has issued a short notice, warning about a new wave of highly targeted cyberattacks by a group o...

Stealthy Microsoft SQL Server Backdoor Malware Spotted in the Wild

Cybersecurity researchers claim to have discovered a previously undocumented backdoor specifically designed for Microsoft SQL servers that could allow a remote attacker to control an already compromised system stealthily. Dubbed Skip-2.0 , the backdoor malware is a post-exploitation tool that run...