NetTraveler Espionage Malware Campaign Ties to Gh0st RAT

A new cyberespionage malware campaign with ties to China going back to the Titan Rain and Gh0stNet attacks has been targeting diplomats, military contractors and government agencies in 40 countries. Researchers at Kaspersky Lab today unveiled details on NetTraveler, a data exfiltration tool, whic...

MoleRats APT Flaunts New Trojan in Latest Cyberespionage Campaign

Known Palestinian threat actor MoleRats is likely behind a recent malicious email campaign targeting Middle Eastern governments, foreign-policy think tanks and a state-affiliated airline with a new intelligence-gathering trojan dubbed NimbleMamba, researchers said. Researchers from Proofpoint sai...

Cybercriminals Batter Automakers With Ransomware, IP Theft Cyberattacks

Cybercriminals are recognizing that the data that automotive companies have to offer – from customer and employee personal identifiable information PII to financial data – is invaluable. Recently, one attacker installed a keystroke logger on the workstation of a car dealership’s finance specialis...

GandCrab Ransomware Shutters Its Operations

The GandCrab ransomware group is shutting down, according to posts on the Dark Web. Researchers David Montenegro and Damian spotted the announcements over the weekend. Start of GandCrab Ransomware : 28-1-2018 .. 🦀🦀🦀 Close of GandCrab Ransomware : 1-6-2019 .. ☠️☠️☠️@RajSamani @ValthekOn @JohnFokker...

Spycams Secretly Live-Streamed 1,600 Motel Guests

Four people have been arrested for taking secret videos of guests at motels and live-streaming them to paying audiences. According to Seoul police, the perps filmed about 1,600 motel guests in the past year in various states of undress and having sex. They did so with tiny wireless spy cameras se...

Lenovo Patches Intel Firmware Flaws in Multiple Product Lines

Lenovo has patched several several high-severity vulnerabilities tied to Intel flaws that could enable escalation of privilege, information disclosure, or even denial of service. Overall the device maker patched flaws tied to 16 high-severity CVEs on Thursday. Those include five related to Intel...

The Dark Sides of Modern Cars: Hacking and Data Collection

Like an unstoppable incoming tide, connectivity has quietly inundated the automobiles we so love to drive. In less than a decade, amazing driver-assist mechanisms and must-have infotainment systems have swept into the dashboards of many popular car models for sale today. And we’re just at the sta...

Microsoft Releases New Regex Fuzzer

Microsoft has released a new fuzzing tool designed specifically to find mistakes in regular expressions in application code that could be vulnerable to attack. The SDL Regex Fuzzer identifies problematic lines that might cause an application to be susceptible to attacks that consume huge amounts ...

Bugs in NVIDIA’s Jetson Chipset Opens Door to DoS Attacks, Data Theft

Flaws impacting millions of internet of things IoT devices running NVIDIA’s Jetson chips open the door for a variety of hacks, including denial-of-service DoS attacks or the siphoning of data. NVIDIA released patches addressing nine high-severity vulnerabilities including eight additional bugs of...

10K Microsoft Email Users Hit in FedEx Phishing Attack

Researchers are warning of recent phishing attacks targeting at least 10,000 Microsoft email users, pretending to be from popular mail couriers – including FedEx and DHL Express. Click to Register Both scams have targeted Microsoft email users and aim to swipe their work email account credentials...

Intel Squashes High-Severity Graphics Driver Flaws

Intel has issued fixes for five high-severity vulnerabilities in its graphics drivers. Attackers can exploit these flaws to launch an array of malicious attacks – such as escalating their privileges, stealing sensitive data or launching denial-of-service attacks. The graphics driver is software...

Apple iOS 14 Thwarts iMessage Attacks With BlastDoor System

In an effort to prevent attacks from being launched via its iMessage feature, Apple has debuted a security service called BlastDoor in iOS 14, its current mobile operating system version. First detailed in an analysis this week by Google Project Zero’s Samuel Groß, BlastDoor acts as a “tightly...

Critical Bugs in Utilities VPNs Could Cause Physical Damage

Remote code-execution vulnerabilities in virtual private network VPN products could impact the physical functioning of critical infrastructure in the oil and gas, water and electric utilities space, according to researchers. Researchers at Claroty found that VPNs used to provide remote access to...

Meet ‘TajMahal,’ A New and Highly Advanced APT Framework

SINGAPORE – Researchers at Kaspersky Lab have discovered a new, highly sophisticated advanced persistent threat APT framework targeting a single Central Asian diplomatic agency. Malware samples associated with the APT reveal a complex never-before-seen code base, making it extremely hard to detec...

PyRoMine Uses NSA Exploit for Monero Mining and Backdoors

The ShadowBrokers’ release of a trove of National Security Agency exploits last year appears to be the gift that keeps on giving, to the hacker community at least: A fresh malware that uses the EternalRomance tool has hit the scene, with Monero-mining as the stated goal. However, more damaging...

SMBv1 to be Disabled in Windows Fall Creators Update

The crusty SMBv1 file-sharing protocol, abused by a NSA exploit last month that spread WannaCry, will be removed from Windows 10 starting with the upcoming Redstone 3 update. “We can confirm that SMBv1 is being removed for Redstone 3,” a Microsoft representative told Threatpost. Redstone 3, a...

Dennis Fisher and Mike Mimoso on VENOM, Marketing Bugs, and More

Dennis Fisher and Mike Mimoso talk about the VENOM vulnerability, the idea of marketing bugs, Microsoft’s new Edge browser security features and the awesome CSI: Cyber finale. Download: digitalunderground203.mp3 Music by Chris Gonsalves...

Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 spear phishing emails spotted

Hold off on the notion that watering hole attacks may supplant phishing as the initial means of compromise in advanced attacks. A number of recent targeted campaigns have used the crash of Malaysia Airlines 370 as a lure to infect government officials in the U.S. and Asia-Pacific. FireEye today...

Critical Libgcrypt Crypto Bug Opens Machines to Arbitrary Code

The Libgcrypt project has rushed out a fix for a critical bug in version 1.9.0 of the free-source cryptographic library. An exploit would allow an attacker to write arbitrary data to a target machine and execute code. The security vulnerability is a heap-buffer overflow bug in Libgcrypt 1.9.0...

Billions of Devices Open to Wi-Fi Eavesdropping Attacks

SAN FRANCISCO — A serious vulnerability in Wi-Fi chips has been discovered that affects billions of devices worldwide, according to researchers. It allows attackers to eavesdrop on Wi-Fi communications. The bug CVE-2019-15126 stems from the use of an all-zero encryption key in chips made by...

Apple Security Updates Tackle iOS Device Tracking, RCE Flaws

Apple’s latest security fixes, released Tuesday, tackle a wide range of bugs, including several patches for high-risk flaws that could allow for remote code execution RCE. Of particular interest to privacy-minded iPhone 11 users is an iOS 13.3.1 update that allows users to turn off U1...

Amazon Kindle, Embedded Devices Open to Code-Execution

Multiple vulnerabilities have been found in Das U-Boot, a universal bootloader commonly used in embedded devices like Amazon Kindles, ARM Chromebooks and networking hardware. The bugs could allow attackers to gain full control of an impacted device’s CPU and modify anything they choose. Researche...

Mozilla and Google Browsers Get Security, Anti-Tracking Boosts

Browsers Firefox and Chrome received updates this week, both adding security and privacy tools that help with password management and help block sites that track users. Mozilla’s Firefox browser introduced an “Enhanced Tracking Protection” feature that blocks over 1,000 third-party companies that...

Hackers Take Over IoT Devices to 'Click' on Ads

By 2025 there will be 25 billion internet of things IoT connections, according to GSMA Intelligence. And if hackers have it their way, many of those IoT devices will be hijacked and recruited into online pay-per-click advertising scams. At the Security Analyst Summit 2019, Threatpost sat down wit...

Microsoft plugs gaping holes in IE, Excel, Windows

Microsoft today released its April batch of security patches: 8 bulletins with patches for at least 20 documented holes in popular software products. The most serious of the flaws could lead to remote code execution attacks that give a malicious hacker complete ownership of a vulnerable machine...

TrickBot Spruces Up Its Banking Trojan Module

The TrickBot trojan is adding man-in-the-browser MitB capabilities for stealing online banking credentials that resemble Zeus, the early banking trojan, researchers said — potentially signaling a coming onslaught of fraud attacks. TrickBot is a sophisticated and common modular threat known for...

50k Servers Infected with Cryptomining Malware in Nansh0u Campaign

Up to 50,000 servers were infected over the past four months as part of a high-profile cryptojacking campaign, believed to orchestrated by Chinese-language adversaries. Researchers with Guardicore Labs, who disclosed the campaign Wednesday, said that the Nansh0u​ campaign named due to a text file...

HCL Exposes Customer, Personnel Info in Wide-Ranging Data Leak

IT services provider HCL Technologies has inadvertently exposed passwords, sensitive project reports and other private data of thousands of customers and internal employees on various public HCL subdomains. HCL, an $8 billion conglomerate with more than 100,000 employees, specializes in...

Microsoft Releases Attack Surface Analyzer Tool

Microsoft has released a public version of its internal Attack Surface Analyzer tool, which helps organizations identify changes to a system’s attack surface as new applications are added. The tool has been in beta for a few months, but this is the first official release. The Attack Surface...

Hackers Actively Exploit F5 BIG-IP Bug

Threat actors have started exploiting a critical bug in the application service provider F5’s BIG-IP modules after a working exploit of the vulnerability was publicly made available. The critical vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2020-1388, allows unauthenticated attackers to launch “arbitrary system...

Cyberattacks Against Israeli Government Sites: ‘Largest in the Country’s History’

Israel’s Nation Cyber Directorate confirmed in a tweet on Monday that a denial-of-service DDoS attack against a telecommunications provider took down several government sites, as well as others not affiliated with the government. The incident led to the Directorate to briefly declare a state of...

Mozilla Patches Bugs in Firefox, Now Blocks Cross-Site Cookie Tracking

The Mozilla Foundation has released its latest version of the Firefox browser, which comes with new privacy protections to squash cross-site cookie tracking, as well as a slew of security vulnerability fixes. Firefox 86, released on Tuesday, includes what it touts as a privacy-bolstering feature...

CDRThief Malware Targets VoIP Gear in Carrier Networks

A malware dubbed CDRThief is targeting voice over IP VoIP softswitches inside the networks of large telecom carriers. According to ESET researchers, the malware was custom-developed to attack the Linknat VOS2009 and VOS3000 softswitches, which run on standard Linux servers. The code is capable of...

ASUS Home Router Bugs Open Consumers to Snooping Attacks

A pair of flaws in ASUS routers for the home could allow an attacker to compromise the devices – and eavesdrop on all of the traffic and data that flows through them. The bugs are specifically found in the RT-AC1900P whole-home Wi-Fi model, within the router’s firmware update functionality...

Android Users Hit with 'Undeletable' Adware

UPDATE A healthy percentage of Android users targeted by mobile malware or mobile adware last year suffered a system partition infection, making the malicious files virtually undeletable. That’s according to research from Kaspersky, which found that 14.8 percent of its users who suffered such...

Iran Targeting U.S. With Destructive Wipers, Warns DHS

The Department of Homeland Security is warning that Iranian hackers are targeting U.S. agencies with destructive “wiper” malware. The statement comes as tensions continue to build between the U.S. and Iran. Christopher Krebs, the director of the Department of Homeland Security DHS Cybersecurity a...

News Wrap: Facebook Regulation, Verizon DBIR, Hidden Airbnb Cameras

From a massive data-breach report that showed surprising – and disturbing – cybercrime trends, to an op-ed in the New York Times that took aim at Facebook and CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Threatpost editors Lindsey O’Donnell and Tom Spring break down this week’s biggest news. This weeks topics include:...

Podcast: The High-Risk Threats Behind the Norsk Hydro Cyberattack

Norway-based Norsk Hydro announced on Tuesday morning it was victim to a ransomware attack, which forced the global aluminum producer to shut down or isolate several plants and send several more into manual mode, the company said on Tuesday morning. The cyberattack, first detected by the company’...

Despite Ringleader’s Arrest, Cobalt Group Still Active

Evidence has surfaced that the Cobalt Group – the threat actors behind widespread attacks on banks and ATM jackpotting campaigns across Europe – is continuing to operate, despite the arrest of its accused ringleader in March. The Cobalt Group, first burst on the scene in 2016: in a single night,...

Word Attachment Delivers FormBook Malware, No Macros Required

A new wave of document attacks targeting inboxes do not require enabling macros in order for adversaries to trigger an infection chain that ultimately delivers FormBook malware. Researchers at Menlo Security are reporting a wave of attacks that began last month that are targeting financial and...

SquirrelWaffle Adds a Twist of Fraud to Exchange Server Malspamming

SquirrelWaffle – the newish malware loader that first showed up in September – once again got its scrabbly little claws into an unpatched Microsoft Exchange server to spread malspam with its tried-and-true trick of hijacking email threads. That’s the same-old, same-old, as in, a SquirrelWaffle...

The Log4j Vulnerability Puts Pressure on the Security World

It’s not my intention to be alarmist about the Log4j vulnerability CVE-2021-44228, known as Log4Shell, but this one is pretty bad. First of all, Log4j is a ubiquitous logging library that is very widely used by millions of computers. Second, the director of the U.S. Cybersecurity & Infrastructure...

Defeating Ransomware-as-a-Service? Think Intel-Sharing

The Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack put a glaring spotlight on the ransomware scourge – and, in particular, on the rise of ransomware-as-a-service RaaS. That attack was perpetrated by DarkSide, a RaaS platform that purportedly first surfaced last August. While the group now claims they’re don...

Adobe Fixes Critical ColdFusion Flaw in Emergency Update

In an unscheduled security update, Adobe is warning of a critical security flaw in its ColdFusion platform, used for building web applications. The security alert comes two weeks after Adobe’s regularly-scheduled updates. During these updates, the tech company issued patches for a slew of critica...

Microsoft Fixes RCE Flaws in Out-of-Band Windows Update

Microsoft has issued out-of-band patches for two “important” severity vulnerabilities, which if exploited could allow for remote code execution. One flaw CVE-2020-17023 exists in Microsoft’s Visual Studio Code is a free source-code editor made by Microsoft for Windows, Linux and macOS. The other...

Advertising Plugin for WordPress Threatens Full Site Takeovers

The Adning Advertising plugin for WordPress, a premium plugin with over 8,000 customers, contains a critical remote code-execution vulnerability with the potential to be exploited by unauthenticated attackers. The plugin’s author, Tunafish, has rolled out a patched version v.1.5.6, which site...

Microsoft Sway Abused in Office 365 Phishing Attack

A highly targeted phishing campaign, with a Microsoft file platform twist, has successfully siphoned the Office 365 credentials of more than 150 executives since mid-2019. Researchers attribute the campaign’s success to two parts: First, it leverages multiple Microsoft file-sharing services to...

WordPress Plugin Bug in Popup Builder Threatens 100K Websites

Two vulnerabilities – including a high-severity flaw – have been patched in a popular WordPress plugin called Popup Builder. The more severe flaw could enable an unauthenticated attacker to infect malicious JavaScript into a popup – potentially opening up more than 100,000 websites to takeover...

WP Live Chat WordPress Plugin Re-Patches File Upload Flaw

A WordPress plugin vulnerability found in WP Live Chat could allow an attacker to upload arbitrary malicious files to vulnerable systems, according to researchers. WP Live Chat is a plugin for WordPress that equips websites with a small pop-up chat support window that site owners can use to...

Microsoft Warns Customers Away From RC4, SHA-1

The RC4 and SHA-1 algorithms have taken a lot of hits in recent years, with new attacks popping up on a regular basis. Many security experts and cryptographers have been recommending that vendors begin phasing the two out, and Microsoft on Tuesday said that is now recommending to developers that...