A week in security (Oct 11 – Oct 17)

Last week on Malwarebytes Labs Google warns some users that FancyBear’s been prowling around Inside Apple: How macOS attacks are evolving The joy of phishing your employees ExpressVPN made a choice, and so did I: Lock and Code S02E19 Update now! Apple patches another privilege escalation bug in i...

Malwarebytes research shows an unequal, unsafe Internet

If the Internet was as safe and as private as it is essential for everyday life—increasingly required for job applications, bank transfers, doctor’s appointments, and filing taxes—then we’d likely have fewer online scams, better privacy protections, smaller data breaches, and a lower overall risk...

Facebook puts on Ray-Bans, struts into the privacy minefield of smart glasses

Facebook, neck-deep in virtual / augmented reality with the Oculus headset, continues to move things up a gear. Its announced “Ray-Ban stories”, smart glasses which take video and photos. The company may yet go one step further and incorporate these features into Augmented Reality AR specs which ...

Twitter takes aim at the chaos, clutter and trolls with new feature concepts

Twitter is potentially looking to add some new features to combat specific forms of abuse and / or aggravation on the platform. They’re still at the design stage, but they’re asking for feedback and it seems this will happen down the line. With that in mind, let’s take a look at what they’re up t...

800 arrests after police dupe crime groups into using backdoored phones

An international operation that monitored an encrypted device company under control of the Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI and the Australian Federal Police AFP has led to a massive, coordinated string by law enforcement in several countries. The setup Law enforcement agencies around the worl...

A deep dive into Saint Bot, a new downloader

This post was authored by Hasherezade with contributions from Hossein Jazi and Erika Noerenberg In late March 2021, Malwarebytes analysts discovered a phishing email with an attached zip file containing unfamiliar malware. Contained within the zip file was a PowerShell script masquerading as a li...

Cyberpunk 2077 developer hit by ransomware

CD PROJEKT RED, the game developer behind Cyberpunk 2077, announced earlier on Twitter that it has fallen victim to a targeted ransomware attack. The company says it has backups for the affected systems and does not intend to pay the ransom. In their ransom note the attackers boast that they have...

RegTech explained: a crucial toolset for the financial industry

Every organization in the financial industry needs to meet certain regulatory obligations, even if it’s just filing a tax return or submitting an annual report. In certain industries, such as financial services, theyve added their own additional sets of rules that must be adhered to. For example,...

Hospital ransomware: Gangs are back to target healthcare

Healthcare is not in a good place right now. With some countries and states deciding to go back in to lockdown due to the continued rise of reported COVID-19 infections—and several garnering record-high numbers compared to when almost every country initially went into lockdown—it seems horrible...

Risky business: survey shows majority of people use work devices for personal use

There’s no denying the coronavirus pandemic is having a significant impact on the way we use technology. Some changes feel like a subtle acceleration of behavioral shifts that were already well underway i.e. more online shopping and more streaming TV/movies. Other changes are more extreme and we’...

Fintech industry developments, differences between Europe and the US

“Put your money in the bank and you can watch it grow.” If there is a statement that shows us how much the financial world has changed it’s this one. With the introduction of negative interest, companies and consumers with a large amount of liquid assets are looking for a different way to handle...

A week in security (August 3 – 9)

Last week on Malwarebytes Labs, on our Lock and Code podcast, we talked about identity and access management technology. We also wrote about business email compromises to score big, discussed how the Data Accountability and Transparency Act of 2020 looks beyond consent, and we analyzed how the...

Cloud workload security: Should you worry about it?

Due to the increasing use of the cloud, organizations find themselves dealing with hybrid environments and nebulous workloads to secure. Containerization and cloud-stored data have provided the industry with a new challenge. And while you can try to make the provider of cloud data storage...

End of line: supporting IoT in the home

Trouble is potentially brewing in Internet of Things IoT land, even if the consequences may still be a little way off. System updates and issues surrounding expiring certificates will pose problems for manufacturers and headaches for consumers. System updates for fun and profit One of the first...

The seven most colossal data breaches of 2017

By Logan Strain If it seems like the words “leak,” “compromised data,” and “breach” are constantly in the news, it’s not just you. The frequency of major data breaches is increasing. According to the Identity Theft Resource Center, the number of breaches is expected to top 1,500 in 2017. That’s a...

Use TeamViewer? Fix this dangerous permissions bug with an update

TeamViewer, the remote control/web conference program used to share files and desktops, is suffering from a case of "patch it now." Issued yesterday, the fix addresses an issue where one user can gain control of another's PC without permission. Windows, Mac, and LinuxOS are all apparently affecte...

Breaking the attack chain

The attack chain. It’s a term used often in infosecurity. Also known as the kill chain, it was originally used as a military concept to describe the structure of an attack. It serves the same function in cybersecurity, where various methods of malware infiltration, deployment, and execution are...

Fake crypto gift card sites are getting harder to spot

You want to turn some crypto into a gift card. You search, click a promising result, and land on a site that looks polished and legitimate: a dark theme, trust badges, and promises of instant delivery and no ID checks. You wouldn't think to question it. But a professional-looking website isn't...

Turn off this Meta setting before someone generates AI images of you

Every consumer app has a settings menu that lets you make decisions about things like notifications or dark mode. Meta has just decided that anyone can generate AI images of you from your public Instagram account by typing your Instagram handle into a prompt. On July 7, Meta launched its AI image...

Fake Netflix, Coca-Cola, and FIFA job scams target marketers

Attackers are impersonating major companies and recruiters to target marketing professionals, using trusted services and browser tricks to make the scam look legitimate. A BleepingComputer article detailing the campaign found at least 34 domains impersonating high-value companies, including...

Rokarolla Android malware can take over your phone and steal banking logins

Researchers have analyzed a new Android banking Trojan called Rokarolla. It can effectively take over a device, steal banking and crypto login details from more than 200 apps, and quietly monitor much of what you do on your phone. On an infected device, Rokarolla steals banking and crypto login...

Fake LinkedIn emails abuse Adobe to track victims

Cybercriminals are abusing Adobe infrastructure in a LinkedIn phishing campaign that steals passwords and redirects victims to the legitimate LinkedIn site afterward. The phishing email masquerades as a business inquiry designed to look like it's come via LinkedIn and includes a fake “contract”...

Massive AI investment scam network spans 15,500 domains

Researchers tracked a large AI‑themed investment scam campaign involving more than 15,000 domains. It uses cloaking and deepfakes to hide from security tools while targeting ordinary users. Criminals abused the Keitaro ad-tracking platform as part of a cloaking system so real victims see scam...

3 easy-to-miss cybersecurity risks for small businesses

There’s a lot to security that isn’t necessarily “cyber.” It’s not all hackers or complex network attacks. Alongside traditional cyberattacks that deploy malware or exploit known software vulnerabilities, there are also less technical—yet equally devastating—forms of theft. This doesn’t mean that...

Facebook ads spread fake Windows 11 downloads that steal passwords and crypto wallets

Attackers are running paid Facebook ads that look like official Microsoft promotions, then directing users to near-perfect clones of the Windows 11 download page. Click Download Now and instead of a Windows update, you get a malicious installer—one that silently steals saved passwords, browser...

WhatsApp rolls out new protections against advanced exploits and spyware

WhatsApp is quietly rolling out a new safety layer for photos, videos, and documents, and it lives entirely under the hood. It won't change how you chat, but it will change what happens to the files that move through your chats—especially the kind that can hide malware. The new feature, called...

“Reprompt” attack lets attackers steal data from Microsoft Copilot

Researchers found a method to steal data which bypasses Microsoft Copilot's built-in safety mechanisms. The attack flow, called Reprompt , abuses how Microsoft Copilot handled URL parameters in order to hijack a user’s existing Copilot Personal session. Copilot is an AI assistant which connects t...

Google patches 107 Android flaws, including two being actively exploited

Google has patched 107 vulnerabilities in Android in its December 2025 Android Security Bulletin, including two high-severity flaws that are being actively exploited. The December updates are available for Android 13, 14, 15, and 16. Android vendors are notified of all issues at least a month...

Fake PayPal invoice from Geek Squad is a tech support scam

One of our employees received this suspicious email and showed it to me. Although it's a pretty straightforward attempt to lure targets into calling the scammers, it's worth writing up because it looks like it was sent out in bulk. Let's look at the red flags. Firstly, the sender address : PayPal...

How to set up two-factor authentication (2FA) on your Facebook account

While two-factor authentication 2FA is not completely fool-proof, it is one of the best ways to protect your accounts from hackers. It adds an extra step when logging in, which is a small extra effort for you, but it dramatically boosts your security. With 2FA, you’ll be asked for a special login...

The Pall Mall Pact and why it matters

The US State Department reportedly plans to sign an international agreement designed to govern the use of commercial spyware known as the Pall Mall Pact. The Pall Mall Pact, formally known as the Pall Mall Process, was initiated by France and the United Kingdom in February 2024. The goal of the...

Apple fixes zero-day vulnerability used in “extremely sophisticated attack”

Apple has released an emergency security update for a vulnerability which it says may have been exploited in an "extremely sophisticated attack against specific targeted individuals.” The update is available for: iOS 18.3.1 and iPadOS 18.3.1 - iPhone XS and later, iPad Pro 13-inch, iPad Pro...

Update now! Apple releases new security patches for vulnerabilities in iPhones, Macs, and more

Apple has released security patches for most of its operating systems, including iOS, Mac, iPadOS, Safari, and visionOS. To check if you’re using the latest software version, go to Settings or System Settings General Software Update. It’s also worth turning on Automatic Updates if you haven’t...

San Francisco’s fight against deepfake porn, with City Attorney David Chiu (Lock and Code S05E20)

This week on the Lock and Code podcast … On August 15, the city of San Francisco launched an entirely new fight against the world of deepfake porn—it sued the websites that make the abusive material so easy to create. “Deepfakes,” as they’re often called, are fake images and videos that utilize...

The Ticketmaster “breach”—what you need to know

Earlier this week, a cybercriminal group posted an alleged database up for sale online which, it says, contains customer and card details of 560 million Live Nation/Ticketmaster users. The data was offered for sale on one forum under the name "Shiny Hunters". ShinyHunters is the online handle for...

How AI will change your credit card behind the scenes

Many companies are starting to implement Artificial Intelligence AI within their services. Whenever there are large amounts of data involved, AI offers a way to turn that pile of data into actionable insights. And theres a big chance that our data are somewhere in that pile, whether they can be...

Ring agrees to pay $5.6 million after cameras were used to spy on customers

Amazons Ring has settled with the Federal Trade Commission FTC over charges that the company allowed employees and contractors to access customers private videos, and failed to implement security protections which enabled hackers to take control of customers’ accounts, cameras, and videos. The FT...

Cookie consent choices are just being ignored by some websites

In news that is, sadly, unlikely to shock you, new research indicates that many websites ignore visitors choices to refuse cookies and collect their data anyway. Researchers at the University of Amsterdam UvA analyzed 85,000 European websites and came to the conclusion that 90% of them violated a...

Bing ad for NordVPN leads to SecTopRAT

Most of the malicious search ads we have seen have originated from Google, but threat actors are also abusing other search engines. Microsoft Bing is probably the second best target due to its close ties to the Windows ecosystem and Edge browser. In this blog post, we look at a very recent...

How to back up your Mac

Backing up your Mac computer doesn’t need to be intimidating. By taking advantage of a user-friendly feature released by Apple several years ago, the entire backup process can be handled almost automatically, preserving your most important files, photos, applications, and emails from cyberthreats...

How to back up your iPhone to iCloud

They say the only backup you ever regret is the one you didnt make. iPhone backups can be used to easily move your apps and data to a new phone, to recover things youve lost, or to fix things that have failed. The most convenient way to backup your iPhone is to have it backup to iCloud. Backups a...

Powering the future of ThreatDown with AI

Nobody can deny the influence of AI today. In just a few years, we have observed AIs capacity to be as transformative as the internet and smartphones, especially for cybersecurity. Indeed, the potential of AI to radically simplify complex security environments is unmistakable, and aligns closely...

ALPHV is singling out healthcare sector, say FBI and CISA

In an updated StopRansomware security advisory, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency CISA, the Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI, and the Department of Health and Human Services HHS has warned the healthcare industry about the danger of the ALPHV ransomware group, also known as...

Why keeping track of user accounts is important

CISA the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency has issued a cybersecurity advisory after the discovery of documents containing host and user information of a state government organization’s network environment—including metadata—on a dark web brokerage site. An attacker managed to...

How ransomware changed in 2023

In 2023, the CL0P ransomware gang broke the scalability barrier and shook the security world with a series of short, automated campaigns, hitting hundreds of unsuspecting targets simultaneously with attacks based on zero-day exploits. The gangs novel approach challenged a bottleneck that makes it...

Malwarebytes crushes malware all the time

About a month ago, The PC Security Channel TPSC ran a test to check out the detection capabilities of Malwarebytes. They tested Malwarebytes by executing a repository of 2015 “malicious” files to see how many Malwarebytes would detect. This YouTube video shows how a script executes the files and...

Warzone RAT infrastructure seized

On February 9, 2024, the Justice Department announced that an international operation had seized internet domains that were selling information-stealing malware. Federal authorities in Boston seized www.warzone.ws and three related domains, which sold the Warzone RAT malware. The Warzone RAT...

Facebook introduces another way to track you – Link History

In what seems like yet another attempt to adapt its platform to prepare for new regulations, Facebook has started rolling out a new feature called Link History. Link History allows users to view and re-visit links they have visited with their Facebook browsing activity. Obviously Facebook will te...

23andMe blames “negligent” breach victims, says it’s their own fault

In a surprising move, in a letter to legal representatives of victims of the recent 23andMe data breach, the company has laid the blame at the feet of victims themselves. 23andMe even goes as far as to claim that this wasn’t a data breach at 23andMe at all. The reasoning: “… unauthorized actors...

DNA data deserves better, with Suzanne Bernstein: Lock and Code S05E01

This week on the Lock and Code podcast… Hackers want to know everything about you: Your credit card number, your ID and passport info, and now, your DNA. On October 1 2023, on a hacking website called BreachForums, a group of cybercriminals claimed that they had stolen—and would soon...