Operation ForumTroll continues: Russian political scientists targeted using plagiarism reports

Introduction In March 2025, we discovered Operation ForumTroll, a series of sophisticated cyberattacks exploiting the CVE-2025-2783 vulnerability in Google Chrome. We previously detailed the malicious implants used in the operation: the LeetAgent backdoor and the complex spyware Dante, developed ...

God Mode On: how we attacked a vehicle’s head unit modem

Introduction Imagine you're cruising down the highway in your brand-new electric car. All of a sudden, the massive multimedia display fills with Doom, the iconic 3D shooter game. It completely replaces the navigation map or the controls menu, and you realize someone is playing it remotely right...

ToddyCat: your hidden email assistant. Part 1

Introduction Email remains the main means of business correspondence at organizations. It can be set up either using on-premises infrastructure for example, by deploying Microsoft Exchange Server or through cloud mail services such as Microsoft 365 or Gmail. However, some organizations do not...

IT threat evolution in Q3 2025. Mobile statistics

IT threat evolution in Q3 2025. Mobile statistics IT threat evolution in Q3 2025. Non-mobile statistics The quarter at a glance In the third quarter of 2025, we updated the methodology for calculating statistical indicators based on the Kaspersky Security Network. These changes affected all...

Maverick: a new banking Trojan abusing WhatsApp in a mass-scale distribution

A malware campaign was recently detected in Brazil, distributing a malicious LNK file using WhatsApp. It targets mainly Brazilians and uses Portuguese-named URLs. To evade detection, the command-and-control C2 server verifies each download to ensure it originates from the malware itself. The whol...

New trends in phishing and scams: how AI and social media are changing the game

Introduction Phishing and scams are dynamic types of online fraud that primarily target individuals, with cybercriminals constantly adapting their tactics to deceive people. Scammers invent new methods and improve old ones, adjusting them to fit current news, trends, and major world events:...

Batavia spyware steals data from Russian organizations

Introduction Since early March 2025, our systems have recorded an increase in detections of similar files with names like договор-2025-5.vbe, приложение.vbe, and dogovor.vbe translation: contract, attachment among employees at various Russian organizations. The targeted attack begins with bait...

Lumma/Amadey: fake CAPTCHAs want to know if you’re human

Attackers are increasingly distributing malware through a rather unusual method: a fake CAPTCHA as the initial infection vector. Researchers from various companies reported this campaign in August and September. The attackers, primarily targeting gamers, initially delivered the Lumma stealer to...

Threat landscape for industrial automation systems, Q2 2024

Statistics across all threats In the second quarter of 2024, the percentage of ICS computers on which malicious objects were blocked decreased by 0.9 pp from the previous quarter to 23.5%. The percentage has decreased by 3.3 pp compared to the second quarter of 2023, when the indicator reached it...

IT threat evolution in Q2 2024. Mobile statistics

Quarterly figures According to Kaspersky Security Network, in Q2 2024: 7 million attacks using malware, adware or unwanted mobile software were blocked. The most common threat to mobile devices was RiskTool software – 41% of all detected threats. A total of 367,418 malicious installation packages...

The long road to your crypto: ClipBanker and its marathon infection chain

At the start of the year, a certain Trojan caught our eye due to its incredibly long infection chain. In most cases, it kicks off with a web search for "Proxifier". Proxifiers are speciaized software designed to tunnel traffic for programs that do not natively support proxy servers. They are a...

BeatBanker: A dual‑mode Android Trojan

Recently, we uncovered BeatBanker, an Android‑based malware campaign targeting Brazil. It spreads primarily through phishing attacks via a website disguised as the Google Play Store. To achieve their goals, the malicious APKs carry multiple components, including a cryptocurrency miner and a banki...

Mobile malware evolution in 2025

Starting from the third quarter of 2025, we have updated our statistical methodology based on the Kaspersky Security Network. These changes affect all sections of the report except for the installation package statistics, which remain unchanged. To illustrate trends between reporting periods, we...

Arkanix Stealer: a C++ & Python infostealer

Introduction In October 2025, we discovered a series of forum posts advertising a previously unknown stealer, dubbed "Arkanix Stealer" by its authors. It operated under a MaaS malware-as-a-service model, providing users not only with the implant but also with access to a control panel featuring...

The game is over: when “free” comes at too high a price. What we know about RenEngine

We often describe cases of malware distribution under the guise of game cheats and pirated software. Sometimes such methods are used to spread complex malware that employs advanced techniques and sophisticated infection chains. In February 2026, researchers from Howler Cell announced the discover...

Supply chain attack on eScan antivirus: detecting and remediating malicious updates

UPD 30.01.2026: Added technical details about the attack chain and more IoCs. On January 20, a supply chain attack has occurred, with the infected software being the eScan antivirus developed by the Indian company MicroWorld Technologies. The previously unknown malware was distributed through the...

HoneyMyte updates CoolClient and deploys multiple stealers in recent campaigns

Over the past few years, we've been observing and monitoring the espionage activities of HoneyMyte aka Mustang Panda or Bronze President within Asia and Europe, with the Southeast Asia region being the most affected. The primary targets of most of the group's campaigns were government entities. A...

Goodbye, dark Telegram: Blocks are pushing the underground out

Telegram has won over users worldwide, and cybercriminals are no exception. While the average user chooses a messaging app based on convenience, user experience and stability and perhaps, cool stickers, cybercriminals evaluate platforms through a different lens. When it comes to anonymity, privac...

SEO spam and hidden links: how to protect your website and your reputation

When analyzing the content of websites in an attempt to determine what category it belongs to, we sometimes get an utterly unexpected result. It could be the official page of a metal structures manufacturer or online flower shop, or, say, a law firm website, with completely neutral content, but o...

Cobalt Strike Beacon delivered via GitHub and social media

Introduction In the latter half of 2024, the Russian IT industry, alongside a number of entities in other countries, experienced a notable cyberattack. The attackers employed a range of malicious techniques to trick security systems and remain undetected. To bypass detection, they delivered...

AI and collaboration tools: how cyberattackers are targeting SMBs in 2025

Cyberattackers often view small and medium-sized businesses SMBs as easier targets, assuming their security measures are less robust than those of larger enterprises. In fact, attacks through contractors, also known as trusted relationship attacks, remain one of the top three methods used to brea...

State of ransomware in 2026

With International Anti-Ransomware Day taking place on May 12, Kaspersky presents its annual report on the evolving global and regional ransomware cyberthreat landscape. Ransomware remains one of the most persistent and adaptive cyberthreats. In 2026: New families continue to emerge, adopting...

“Legitimate” phishing: how attackers weaponize Amazon SES to bypass email security

Introduction The primary goal for attackers in a phishing campaign is to bypass email security and trick the potential victim into revealing their data. To achieve this, scammers employ a wide range of tactics, from redirect links to QR codes. Additionally, they heavily rely on legitimate sources...

Threat landscape for industrial automation systems in Q4 2025

Statistics across all threats The percentage of ICS computers on which malicious objects were blocked has been decreasing since the beginning of 2024. In Q4 2025, it was 19.7%. Over the past three years, the percentage has decreased by 1.36 times, and by 1.25 times since Q4 2023. Percentage of IC...

JanelaRAT: a financial threat targeting users in Latin America

Background JanelaRAT is a malware family that takes its name from the Portuguese word "janela" which means "window". JanelaRAT looks for financial and cryptocurrency data from specific banks and financial institutions in the Latin America region. JanelaRAT is a modified variant of BX RAT that has...

Coruna: the framework used in Operation Triangulation

Introduction On March 4, 2026, Google and iVerify published reports about a highly sophisticated exploit kit targeting Apple iPhone devices. According to Google, the exploit kit was first discovered in targeted attacks conducted by a customer of an unnamed surveillance vendor. It was later used b...

Anatomy of a Cyber World Global Report 2026

Kaspersky Security Services provide a comprehensive cybersecurity ecosystem, taking enterprise threat protection to another level. Services like Kaspersky Managed Detection and Response and Compromise Assessment allow for timely detection of threats and cyberattacks. SOC Consulting provides a...

Spam and phishing in 2025

The year in figures 44.99% of all emails sent worldwide and 43.27% of all emails sent in the Russian web segment were spam 32.50% of all spam emails were sent from Russia Kaspersky Mail Anti-Virus blocked 144,722,674 malicious email attachments Our Anti-Phishing system thwarted 554,002,207 attemp...

Assessing SIEM effectiveness

A SIEM is a complex system offering broad and flexible threat detection capabilities. Due to its complexity, its effectiveness heavily depends on how it is configured and what data sources are connected to it. A one-time SIEM setup during implementation is not enough: both the organization's...

Following the digital trail: what happens to data stolen in a phishing attack

Introduction A typical phishing attack involves a user clicking a fraudulent link and entering their credentials on a scam website. However, the attack is far from over at that point. The moment the confidential information falls into the hands of cybercriminals, it immediately transforms into a...

The evolving landscape of email phishing attacks: how threat actors are reusing and refining established techniques

Introduction Cyberthreats are constantly evolving, and email phishing is no exception. Threat actors keep coming up with new methods to bypass security filters and circumvent user vigilance. At the same time, established – and even long-forgotten – tactics have not gone anywhere; in fact, some ar...

Signal in the noise: what hashtags reveal about hacktivism in 2025

What do hacktivist campaigns look like in 2025? To answer this question, we analyzed more than 11,000 posts produced by over 120 hacktivist groups circulating across both the surface web and the dark web, with a particular focus on groups targeting MENA countries. The primary goal of our research...

The king is dead, long live the king! Windows 10 EOL and Windows 11 forensic artifacts

Introduction Windows 11 was released a few years ago, yet it has seen relatively weak enterprise adoption. According to statistics from our Global Emergency Response Team GERT investigations, as recently as early 2025, we found that Windows 7, which reached end of support in 2020, was encountered...

Modern vehicle cybersecurity trends

Modern vehicles are transforming into full-fledged digital devices that offer a multitude of features, from common smartphone-like conveniences to complex intelligent systems and services designed to keep everyone on the road safe. However, this digitalization, while aimed at improving comfort an...

Scammers mass-mailing the Efimer Trojan to steal crypto

Introduction In June, we encountered a mass mailing campaign impersonating lawyers from a major company. These emails falsely claimed the recipient's domain name infringed on the sender's rights. The messages contained the Efimer malicious script, designed to steal cryptocurrency. This script als...

Code highlighting with Cursor AI for $500,000

Attacks that leverage malicious open-source packages are becoming a major and growing threat. This type of attacks currently seems commonplace, with reports of infected packages in repositories like PyPI or npm appearing almost daily. It would seem that increased scrutiny from researchers on thes...

SparkKitty, SparkCat’s little brother: A new Trojan spy found in the App Store and Google Play

Update 25.06.2025: Apple removed the malicious app from the App Store. In January 2025, we uncovered the SparkCat spyware campaign, which was aimed at gaining access to victims' crypto wallets. The threat actor distributed apps containing a malicious SDK/framework. This component would wait for a...

OceanLotus suspected of using PyPI to deliver ZiChatBot malware

Introduction Through our daily threat hunting, we noticed that, beginning in July 2025, a series of malicious wheel packages were uploaded to PyPI the Python Package Index. We shared this information with the public security community, and the malware was removed from the repository. We submitted...

Websites with an undefined trust level: avoiding the trap

Executive summary A suspicious website is a web resource that cannot be definitively classified as phishing, but whose activities are unsafe. Such sites manipulate users, tricking them into voluntarily transferring money for non-existent services, signing up for hidden subscriptions, or disclosin...

PhantomRPC: A new privilege escalation technique in Windows RPC

Intro Windows Interprocess Communication IPC is one of the most complex technologies within the Windows operating system. At the core of this ecosystem is the Remote Procedure Call RPC mechanism, which can function as a standalone communication channel or as the underlying transport layer for mor...

The SOC Files: Time to “Sapecar”. Unpacking a new Horabot campaign in Mexico

Introduction In this installment of our SOC Files series, we will walk you through a targeted campaign that our MDR team identified and hunted down a few months ago. It involves a threat known as Horabot , a bundle consisting of an infamous banking Trojan, an email spreader, and a notably complex...

Free real estate: GoPix, the banking Trojan living off your memory

Introduction GoPix is an advanced persistent threat targeting Brazilian financial institutions' customers and cryptocurrency users. It represents an evolved threat targeting internet banking users through memory-only implants and obfuscated PowerShell scripts. It evolved from the RAT and Automate...

To buy or not to buy: How cybercriminals capitalize on Black Friday

The global e‑commerce market is accelerating faster than ever before, driven by expanding online retail, and rising consumer adoption worldwide. According to McKinsey Global Institute, global e‑commerce is projected to grow by 7–9% annually through 2040. At Kaspersky, we track how this surge in...

Inside the dark web job market

In 2022, we published our research examining how IT specialists look for work on the dark web. Since then, the job market has shifted, along with the expectations and requirements placed on professionals. However, recruitment and headhunting on the dark web remain active. So, what does this job...

Blockchain and Node.js abused by Tsundere: an emerging botnet

Introduction Tsundere is a new botnet, discovered by our Kaspersky GReAT around mid-2025. We have correlated this threat with previous reports from October 2024 that reveal code similarities, as well as the use of the same C2 retrieval method and wallet. In that instance, the threat actor created...

Deep analysis of the flaw in BetterBank reward logic

Executive summary From August 26 to 27, 2025, BetterBank, a decentralized finance DeFi protocol operating on the PulseChain network, fell victim to a sophisticated exploit involving liquidity manipulation and reward minting. The attack resulted in an initial loss of approximately $5 million in...

PassiveNeuron: a sophisticated campaign targeting servers of high-profile organizations

Introduction Back in 2024, we gave a brief description of a complex cyberespionage campaign that we dubbed "PassiveNeuron". This campaign involved compromising the servers of government organizations with previously unknown APT implants, named "Neursite" and "NeuralExecutor". However, since its...

Detecting DLL hijacking with machine learning: real-world cases

Introduction Our colleagues from the AI expertise center recently developed a machine-learning model that detects DLL-hijacking attacks. We then integrated this model into the Kaspersky Unified Monitoring and Analysis Platform SIEM system. In a separate article, our colleagues shared how the mode...

Forensic journey: hunting evil within AmCache

Introduction When it comes to digital forensics, AmCache plays a vital role in identifying malicious activities in Windows systems. This artifact allows the identification of the execution of both benign and malicious software on a machine. It is managed by the operating system, and at the time o...

Threat landscape for industrial automation systems in Q2 2025

Statistics across all threats In Q2 2025, the percentage of ICS computers on which malicious objects were blocked decreased by 1.4 pp from the previous quarter to 20.5%. Percentage of ICS computers on which malicious objects were blocked, Q2 2022–Q2 2025 Compared to Q2 2024, the rate decreased by...