A week in security (January 9—15)

Last week on Malwarebytes Labs: Slack private code on GitHub stolen Crypto-inspired Magecart skimmer surfaces via digital crime haven Security vulnerabilities in major car brands revealed Microsoft ends extended support for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 today Pokemon NFT card game malware...

Why does technology no longer excite us? Lock and Code S04E01

When did technology last excite you? If Douglas Adams, author of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, is to be believed, your own excitement ended, simply had to end, after turning 35 years old. Decades ago, at first writing privately and later having those private writings published after his...

A week in security (December 12 - 18)

Last week on Malwarebytes Labs: Indiana sues TikTok, describes it as "Chinese Trojan Horse" Iranian hacking group uses compromised email accounts to distribute MSP remote access tool Electronic Sales Suppression Tools are cooking the books Silence is golden partner for Truebot and Cl0p ransomware...

CISA and the FBI issue alert about Cuba ransomware

In the latest StopRansomware effort of publicizing ransomware information for network defenders, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency CISA and the Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI have issued a joint Cybersecurity Advisory CSA on the ransomware known as "Cuba." Though named...

Raccoon Stealer admin will be extradited to the US, charged for computer crimes

The US Department of Justice has indicted a Ukrainian national for his involvement in Raccoon Stealer, a noteworthy password-stealing Trojan leased in the underground for criminals to use as part of a malware-as-a-service MaaS business model. According to court documents, Mark Sokolovsky, 26, is...

Healthcare site leaks personal health information via Google and Meta tracking pixels

Advocate Aurora Health has disclosed that by visiting its websites users may have shared personal information, and possibly protected health information PHI, with Google and Meta Facebook. Advocate Aurora Health is the 11th largest not-for-profit, integrated health system in the US and provides...

Gas, a positive social network for teens (no, really)

A new social network is currently in the news, billed as a positive space for teens to enjoy themselves. Im all for positive spaces online, but what is it, and will teens really be happier there than say Instagram, or even just hanging out in WhatsApp groups? Pump the gas Launched in August of th...

Android and iOS leak some data outside VPNs

Virtual Private Networks VPNs on Android and iOS are in the news. Its been discovered that in certain circumstances, some of your traffic is leaked so it ends up outside of the safety cordon created by the VPN. Mullvad, the discoverers of this Android "feature" say that it has the potential to...

Fast Company hacked to send obscene and racist messages

Yesterday, Apple News announced it had disabled the channel of Fast Company, a US-based business magazine, after surprised Twitter users reported it was tweeting offensive comments. An incredibly offensive alert was sent by Fast Company, which has been hacked. Apple News has disabled their channe...

4 times students compromised school cybersecurity

For many students school can be a tough time, and we've all heard stories about bored or frustrated kids compromising school cybersecurity to change grades. Sometimes the students are celebrated, and other times it ends in them being expelled from school, or even prosecuted. Of course, these acts...

Uber hacked

Uber informed the public on Thursday it was responding to a cybersecurity incident after somebody breached its network. From what we have been able to find out so far, the attacker managed to compromise an employees access to the chat app Slack. The intruder may also have gained access to the...

Introducing Patch Management for OneView

We're thrilled to announce our Patch Management module for OneView, which is paired alongside our Vulnerability Assessment module to help you uncover vulnerabilities, respond to threats, and keep your customers productive and safe. Vulnerability identification and system patching are critical to...

Reset your password now! Plex suffers data breach

In an email sent to its users, Plex has revealed that a cybercriminal accessed some customer data, including emails and encrypted passwords. From the email that was sent out by the Plex security team: Yesterday, we discovered suspicious activity on one of our databases. We immediately began an...

Reddit users crowdsourcing explicit images and identities

The BBC is warned of a large photograph trading ring which operated on popular group forum site Reddit. These warnings are in relation to stolen nude photographs and other content shared without permission. In this case, even non-explicit photos are being posted alongside frequently degrading and...

Can your EDR handle a ransomware attack? 6-point checklist for an anti-ransomware EDR

Most cybersecurity experts agree that having Endpoint Detection and Response software is essential to fighting ransomware today--but not every EDR is equal. Businesses, especially small-to-medium sized ones with limited budget or IT resources, need to make sure that their EDR is cost-effective,...

Have we lost the fight for data privacy? Lock and Code S03E16

At the end of 2021, Lock and Code invited the folks behind our news-driven cybersecurity and online privacy blog, Malwarebytes Labs, to discuss what upset them most about cybersecurity in the year prior. Today, we're bringing those same guests back to discuss the other, biggest topic in this spac...

Simplifying the fight against ransomware: An expert explains

Fighting against ransomware can be difficult—especially if your organization has limited IT resources to begin with. But Adam Kujawa, security evangelist and director of Malwarebytes Labs, has a few tips for overburdened IT folks looking to simplify their fight against ransomware. In this post,...

Fake streamed cricket matches knocks victims for six

An incredible scam which resembles hidden camera prank shows has been shut down by police. Four men were arrested last week in connection with the con-job involving fake cricket and online betting. It begins in Russia, takes a trip to India, and ends up back in Russia. Heres how it unfolded:...

Insider Threat: Employees indicted for stealing $88 million of license keys

Two insiders and an accomplice were indicted on Tuesday for multiple counts of fraud. According to documents unsealed by the Wester District of Oaklahoma, a grand jury charged Raymond Bradley Pearce aka Brad Pearce, a former employee of Avaya; Dusti O. Pearce, his wife; and Jason M. Hines aka Joe...

Client-side Magecart attacks still around, but more covert

This blog post was authored by Jérôme Segura We have seen and heard less buzz about Magecart during the past several months. While some marketing playbooks continue to rehash the same breaches of yesteryear, we have been wondering if some changes took place in the threat landscape. One thing we...

A week in security (May 30 – June 5)

Last week on Malwarebytes Labs: Intuit phish says "We have put a temporary hold on your account" The Quad commits to strengthening cybersecurity in software, supply chains Double-whammy attack follows fake Covid alert with a bogus bank call Microsoft Office zero-day "Follina"—its not a bug, its a...

Ransomware attack turns 2022 into 1977 for Somerset County

1977 was quite the year. Led Zeppelin! Jimmy Carter! Saturday Night Fever! We can now add "a ransomware attack" to this once static list. Somerset County, New Jersey, has been hit so hard by a network assault that theyve ended up in the direst straits imaginable, with county databases unavailable...

A week in security (May 16 – 22)

Last week on Malwarebytes Labs: Fake reCAPTCHA forms dupe users via compromised WordPress sites How COVID-19 fuelled a surge in malware Why MRG-Effitas matters to SMBs “Look what I found here” phish targets Facebook users AirTag stalking: What is it, and how can I avoid it? Long lost @ symbol get...

Why MRG-Effitas matters to SMBs

When selecting the right cybersecurity vendor to protect their operations, small- and medium-sized businesses SMBs can lean on several third-party research organizations that analyze which cybersecurity products can best prevent, detect, and clean up various types of cyberattacks today. But these...

Telling stories securely, with Runa Sandvik: Lock and Code S03E07

In 2017, a former NSA contractor named Reality Winner was arrested for allegedly leaking an internal report to the online news outlet The Intercept. To verify the report itself, a journalist for The Intercept sent an image of the report to the NSA, but upon further inspection, it was revealed tha...

Facebook sued for siphoning facial recognition data without consent

Ken Paxton, the Attorney General of Texas, recently filed a lawsuit against Facebooks parent company, Meta, for harvesting the facial recognition data of millions of Texan residents—for a decade. Paxton filed the lawsuit on Monday in the states Harrison County District Court. The suit contains...

A worrying Etsy listing reveals the stalking potential of Apple’s AirTags

In April of 2021, Apple introduced AirTags to the world, making the small tracking devices—similar to a Tile— available for purchase at the end of that month. The circular, coin-like product is designed to be attached to or placed in objects that are commonly lost, such as keychains, wallets,...

[updated]Cyberattack on fuel supplier causes supply chain disruption

A cyberattack has disrupted the activities in Germany of fuel supplier Oiltanking Deutschland GmbH & Co. KG. The supplier is, among others, responsible for deliveries to the thousands of Shell and Aral gas stations in Germany. The Oiltanking division of Hamburg-based Marquard & Bahls owns and...

ICO challenges adtech to step up privacy protection

The UK Information Commissioners Office ICO wants the advertising industry to come up with new initiatives that address the risks of adtech, and take account of data protection requirements from the outset. The ICO is an independent body set up to uphold information rights. The technology that is...

What is Twitch?

Twitch is primarily a site dedicated to live streaming content. It also offers the ability to chat with others in the Stream you happen to be in via text. The primary draw of Twitch streams is video games and e-sports, leading to the rise of many big name streamers and content creators. Is Twitch...

How social media mistakes can impact cybersecurity

We talked to members of our Malware Removal Support team and asked them what kind of problems they get asked to solve for our customers. To understand why they get to handle these questions, it is also necessary to know that the Malwarebytes software is unable to resolve the problems users are...

Ransom Disclosure Act would mandate ransomware payment reporting

In an effort to better understand and clamp down on the ransomware economy and its related use of cryptocurrencies, US Senator and past presidential hopeful Elizabeth Warren and US House Representative Deborah Ross introduced a new bill last week that would require companies and organizations to...

The many tentacles of Magecart Group 8

This blog post was authored by Jérôme Segura During the past couple of years online shopping has continued to increase at a rapid pace. In a recent survey done by Qubit, 70.7% of shoppers said they increased their online shopping frequency compared to before COVID-19. Criminals gravitate towards...

How to stay secure from ransomware attacks this Labor Day weekend

Labor Day weekend is just around the corner and, believe it or not, cybercriminals are likely just as excited as you are! Ransomware gangs have nurtured a nasty habit of starting their attacks at the least convenient times: When computers are idle, when employees who might notice a problem are ou...

Mice “taking over the world!”, one Windows machine at a time

Famously, Pinky and the Brain were a pair of animated mice that wanted to take over the world. Of course they never succeed, but maybe they just set their sights too high. Because while mice may not be taking over the world yet, they are taking over computers. In the last week, security researche...

Google to start automatically enrolling users in two-step verification “soon”

If you use a Google account, it may soon be mandatory to sign up to Googles two-step verification program. As recently as 2017, a tiny amount of GMail users made use of its two-step options. Maybe the uptake is still slow, and Google has decided enough is enough. With so much valuable data stuffe...

5G slicing vulnerability could be used in DoS attacks

The IT security researchers at AdaptiveMobile have called out what looks like an important vulnerability in the architecture of 5G network slicing and virtualized network functions. They warn that the risks, if this fundamental vulnerability in the design of 5G standards had gone undiscovered, ar...

The value of cybersecurity integration for MSPs

For modern Managed Service Providers MSPs, gone are the days of disparate workflows, and that’s really for the best. Imagine trying to run a successful MSP business today—finding potential customers, procuring new clients, developing purchase orders, managing endpoints, and sending invoices—all...

Amazon Prime Day—8 tips for safer shopping

Avid Amazon Prime Day shoppers may have been worried theyd missed it this year—thanks coronavirus. Fear not, last month Amazon announced Prime Day will take place three months after its original annual date, beginning today. And this year, itll take place over two days, rather than one. This coul...

Stalkerware advertising ban by Google a welcome, if incomplete, step

On Friday, July 10, Google announced it would no longer allow advertising for spyware and similar surveillance technology—often referred to as “stalkerware”—on its platform. The change is a welcome step by one of the largest, most powerful companies in online advertising, but a close read of the...

Do Chromebooks need antivirus protection?

The supervisor handed Jim a Chromebook and said: “Take this home with you and use it to send me updates. We want to minimize the number of visits to the office—anything you can do from home helps keep this place safer. When the pandemic is over, I’d like to have it back in one piece, if possible....

VPNs: should you use them?

We are going to talk today about something you’ve likely heard of before: VPNs, or Virtual Private Networks. We at Malwarebytes have delved into these tools in greater depth, and we’ve literally discussed them on the digital airwaves. But we want to answer a question we’ve been getting more and...

Teaching from home might become part of every teachers’ job description

“Hey Joe, I wanted to remind you that starting next Monday you will be expected to teach from home. The lesson material is in your inbox along with the list of pupils that are expected to follow them. We are sure it will take some adjustments, but we trust that by working together we can make the...

A week in security (April 27 – May 3)

Last week on Malwarebytes Labs, we looked at how secure the cloud is, understood why unexpected demand can influence an organization to consider their “just in time” JIT system, speculated on why the threat actors behind the Troldesh ransomware suddenly released thousands of decryption keys,...

PSA: Recruitment portals and job sites at risk

Readers of Malwarebytes Labs aren't new to the social engineering tactics of malcontents to get users to respond to fake job offers via email. In 2014, we wrote about spam claiming to be from the recipient's supposed work application to a "Career Services Department," only to be redirected to a...

Twitter security snafu: change your passwords

If you're logging into Twitter after having been AWOL for a day or two, you'll likely be seeing one of these pop-ups talking about account security: Click to enlarge Don't panic, it's nothing that can't be fixed. The message reads as follows: Keeping your account secure When you set a password fo...

A week in security (January 15 – January 21)

Last week on Labs, we gave you some background information about cookies, specifically which ones to worry about and why. We also warned you about scams surrounding the Mega Millions winner, who promised to donate his money to good causes. We analyzed a cryptocurrency miner using a very old...

Mobile Menace Monday: upping the ante on Adups

Adups is back on our radar. The same China-based company caught collecting an abundance of user data and creating a backdoor on mobile devices in 2016 has another malicious card to throw down. This time, it's an auto installer we detect as Android/PUP.Riskware.Autoins.Fota. We thought they cleane...

A week in security (July 20 – July 26)

Last week on Malwarebytes Labs: Don’t get fooled by TikTok resin art scams Call of Duty Mobile scam uses fake free points to steal player accounts OpenAI’s agent escaped its sandbox during a security test Google wants to store a selfie video of your face Beyond the Play Store: How Android threats...

Trusting your kids online isn’t enough (Lock and Code S07E14)

This week on the Lock and Code podcast … There is a lot going on right now regarding the safety of kids online. In the United States, the majority of state legislatures have passed age verification laws requiring a variety of websites to more rigorously verify the age of their visitors. In the...