Microsoft Office Users Face Malware-Protection Bypass

Legacy users of Microsoft Excel are being targeted in a malware campaign that uses a novel malware-obfuscation technique to disable Office defenses and deliver the Zloader trojan. The attack, according to research published Thursday by McAfee, marries functions in Microsoft Office Word and Excel ...

Akamai’s DDoS Mitigation Service Triggers Outages

UPDATE Major financial institutions, airlines and the Hong Kong stock exchange were knocked offline by a backfiring distributed denial-of-service DDoS mitigation service Thursday. The hour-long outage, which was triggered at approximately 1 a.m. EST Thursday, is tied to Akamai Technology’s...

iOS Kids Game Morphs into Underground Crypto Casino

A kids’ game called “Jungle Run” that, until recently, was available in the Apple App store, was secretly a cryptocurrency-funded casino set up to scam people out of money. Join experts from Digital Shadows Austin Merritt, Malwarebytes Adam Kujawa and Sift Kevin Lee to find out how cybercrime...

Adware Spreads via Fake TikTok App, Laptop Offers

Malicious Android apps disguised as TikTok and offers for free Lenovo laptops are being used in ad-stuffing attacks underway against devices on the Jio telecom network in India, security researchers warn. Researchers from Zscaler report this threat actor has been operating various phishing scams...

North Korean APT Gears Up to Target Security Researchers

The same North Korean threat actors that targeted security researchers in January appear to be readying a new campaign using a fake company and associated social-media accounts that aim to lure security professionals into another cyber-espionage trap. Google discovered the site as well as Twitter...

Critics Blast Google’s Aim to Replace Browser Cookie with ‘FLoC’

This month Google begins a public test of a technology it says will eventually replace browser cookies in an effort to boost Chrome browser user privacy. However, critics say the switch is a half-measure and does not protect the web movements of Chrome users adequately. The Google solution–called...

2020 Work-for-Home Shift: What We Learned

Goodbye, 2020 — and good riddance, right? Most of us don’t want to take too much from this year into the next — but let’s make an exception for what we learned about security in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021 after all, more enterprises will permanently downsize their physical spaces...

Spearphishing Attack Spoofs Microsoft.com to Target 200M Office 365 Users

A spearphishing attack is spoofing Microsoft.com to target 200 million Microsoft Office 365 users in a number of key vertical markets, including financial services, healthcare, manufacturing and utility providers. Researchers at Ironscales discovered the campaign targeting several thousand...

Amazon Sues Instagram, TikTok Influencers Over Knockoff Scam

Instagram and TikTok social-media influencers Kelly Fitzpatrick and Sabrina Kelly-Krejci are among 13 defendants in a lawsuit filed by Amazon, which alleges that they participated in an an online scam to sell counterfeit luxury goods. Counterfeit goods are strictly forbidden in the Amazon...

Black Hat 2020: Open-Source AI to Spur Wave of 'Synthetic Media' Attacks

An abundance of deep-learning and open-source technologies are making it easy for cybercriminals to generate fake images, text and audio called “synthetic media”. This type of media can be easily leveraged on Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms to launch disinformation campaigns wi...

Microsoft Releases Emergency Security Updates for Windows 10, Server

Microsoft has quietly pushed out two emergency security updates to fix remote code execution bugs in Microsoft Windows Codecs Library. Windows Codecs Library handles how the OS compresses large multimedia files such as photos and videos, and then decodes them for playback within applications. The...

WhatsApp Phone Numbers Pop Up in Google Search Results — But is it a Bug?

UPDATE A researcher is warning that a WhatsApp feature called “Click to Chat” puts users’ mobile phone numbers at risk — by allowing Google Search to index them for anyone to find. But WhatsApp owner Facebook says it is no big deal and that the search results only reveal what the users have chose...

BEC Gang Exploits G Suite, Long Domain Names in Cyberattacks

Business email compromise BEC attacks continue to be a thorn in companies’ sides, with the FBI in its IC3 annual cybercrime report saying that the attacks cost victims $1.7 billion in 2019. Making matters worse, BEC cybergangs are turning to new tactics and tricks to avoid detection and capitaliz...

REvil Ransomware Attack Hits A-List Celeb Law Firm

A popular law firm that works with several A-list celebrities, including Lady Gaga, Drake and Madonna, has been hit by a ransomware attack. Hackers are now threatening to release the 756 gigabytes of data allegedly stolen – including non-disclosure agreements, client contracts and personal...

EFF: Google, Apple's Contact-Tracing System Open to Cyberattacks

Privacy advocates are urging developers to proceed with caution as they use technology released by Apple and Google to build COVID-19 contact-tracing apps — and are warning against the potential for cybercriminal use. On the latter point, the system is meant to help people know if they have come...

Millions of Guests Impacted in Marriott Data Breach, Again

For the second time in two years, the Marriott hotel empire has suffered a major data breach. This time, approximately 5.2 million guests have been affected. The attack was carried out via third-party software that Marriott’s hotel properties use to provide guest services, according to an online...

Hackers Actively Exploit 0-Day in CCTV Camera Hardware

Multiple zero-day vulnerabilities were actively being exploited in CCTV security cameras manufactured by Taiwan-based LILIN, researchers found. The company, an IP video solution provider, was being targeted by hackers hijacking the company’s DVR hardware. Once commandeered, hackers then planted...

Iran-Backed APTs Collaborate on 3-Year 'Fox Kitten' Global Spy Campaign

Two Iran-backed APTs could be working together on a sprawling, three-year campaign to compromise high-value organizations from the IT, telecom, oil and gas, aviation, government and security sectors in Israel and around the world, according to a report by researchers at ClearSky. They maintain,...

FBI: $3.5B Lost in 2019 to Known Cyberscams, Ransomware

Cybercriminals are focusing on previously successful internet scams to defraud businesses and individuals in the United States out of more money than ever before, according to the FBI’s annual report on cybercrime. Meanwhile, ransomware continues to take a big financial toll on victims. Businesse...

Feds Cut Off Access to Billions of Breached Records with Site Takedown

The feds and international law enforcement have taken down a website that was selling access to billions of stolen personal records. The FBI and the Department of Justice said on Thursday that they, in conjunction with the Dutch police, the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency and Germany’s...

Oil-and-Gas APT Pivots to U.S. Power Plants.

A known APT group with ties to the Iran-linked APT33, dubbed Magnallium, has expanded its targeting from the global oil-and-gas industry to specifically include electric companies in North America. That’s according to a report from Dragos, released Thursday, which noted that the discovery is part...

Understanding the Risk of Zero-Day Exploits

To protect your home from thieves, the easiest thing you can do is lock your windows and doors every time you leave the house. Similarly, in cybersecurity, the easiest way to protect your network is to keep your hardware and applications up to date with the latest security patches. But how do you...

TrickBot Evolves to Go After SSH Keys

The TrickBot info-stealing malware has updated its password grabber to target data from OpenSSH and OpenVPN applications. OpenSSH is a connectivity tool for remote login with the SSH protocol; it encrypts all traffic to eliminate eavesdropping. OpenVPN meanwhile is used for secure private...

Global Crime Ring Bilks U.S. Military Members, Vets Out of Millions

Operators of a widespread identity-theft and fraud scheme have bilked thousands of U.S. servicemembers and veterans out of millions of dollars in stolen funds and Veterans Affairs VA benefits payments. Fredrick Brown pled guilty this week, revealing that in his role as a civilian medical records...

Murky Details Surround Bed, Bath and Beyond Breach

Housewares and home furnishings purveyor Bed, Bath and Beyond has disclosed a data-thieving cyber attack that allowed the adversaries to access customers’ online accounts. According to a Tuesday SEC filing, the company “discovered that a third party acquired email and password information from a...

MSP or System Integrator? Add Incident Response to Your Portfolio at No Cost

As breaches and cyberattacks grow in a steady upward trajectory, organizations are increasingly looking for ways to protect their assets, outsourcing critical Incident Response IR services to third-party providers. Cynet is now providing its IR services at no cost in a market-first offering which...

Researchers Bypass Apple FaceID Using Biometrics 'Achilles Heel'

LAS VEGAS – Vulnerabilities have been uncovered in the authentication process of biometrics technology that could allow bad actors to bypass various facial recognition applications – including Apple’s FaceID. But there is a catch. Doing so requires the victim to be out cold. Researchers on...

Black Hat 2019: Ethical Hackers Must Protect Digital Human Rights

LAS VEGAS – At a time when technology is being utilized for human-rights abuses, the security space needs to turn its focus to public interest defense technology, security stalwarts urged during Black Hat USA 2019. Security has long focused on protecting company data and providing cyber-defense f...

Malvertising Campaigns Skirt Ad Blockers, Serve Up Mac Malware

Two fresh malvertising campaigns are making the scene that are abusing the convoluted underpinnings of the internet economy to find malware victims. One is a large-scale exploit kit EK campaign designed to circumvent traditional safeguards, such as ad blockers, and the other uses web redirects to...

Black Hat USA 2019 Preview

Las Vegas – Despite bizarre reports of a grasshopper infestation, Black Hat USA 2019 and DEF CON are set to kick off next week in Las Vegas, bringing on a wave of sessions, keynotes and security-themed villages. The Threatpost team, which will be on the frontlines of next week’s shows, discuss wh...

Cloud Security Concerns Loom for 93% of Businesses Adopting Apps and BYOD

With the increasing popularity of bring-your-own-device BYOD policies and public cloud offerings, enterprises are moving from on-premises applications to cloud apps – but they still lack faith in cloud security. A recent July Bitglass study found that 67 percent of respondents believe cloud apps...

March Madness Scams Give Attackers Fast Break

With the 2019 NCAA tournament’s Final Four around the corner, researchers are urging viewers to be wary of a slew of March Madness-related phishing attacks, adware installers and other security threats. While security concerns regarding popular sporting events – from the World Cup to the Super Bo...

Smart Ski Helmet Headphone Flaws Leak Personal, GPS Data

Researchers have found a slew of vulnerabilities in a pair of smart headphones designed to fit under ski helmets. The flaws could allow a bad actor to view victims’ personal information, track them and even listen to their private conversations via the headphones’ walkie-talkie function, which us...

Password Manager Firms Blast Back at ‘Leaky Password’ Revelations

Secure password firms 1Password, Dashlane, KeePass and LastPass are blasting a research report that highlights how a local adversary can crack open and steal passwords stored by the utilities. The uproar began Tuesday when lead researcher, Adrian Bednarek with Independent Security Evaluators ISE,...

Modern Cybercrime: It Takes a Village

LAS VEGAS – Contrary to the pop-culture image of the hoodie-clad lone hacker with mad keyboard “skillz” siphoning off funds and making people’s lives miserable with a few lines of brilliant code, increasingly cybercrime “takes a village”. The true face of cybercrime today is a more democratic one...

Monero: Cybercrime's Top Choice for Mining Malware

An academic analysis of cryptomining malware has determined that the Monero virtual currency XMR is “by far” the most popular cryptocurrency to mine among cybercriminals. And, it would appear that cryptomining as a criminal enterprise is unlikely to wane anytime soon. After examining approximatel...

XBash Malware Packs Double Punch: Destroys Data and Mines for Crypto Coins

Researchers have discovered a new sophisticated malware family in the wild, which wrecks havoc on Windows and Linux systems with a combination of data destructive ransomware and malicious cryptomining. The malware, dubbed by Palo Alto Networks’ Unit 42 researchers who discovered it as Xbash, has...

Experts Weigh In On Spectre Patch Challenges

The race to patch against the Meltdown and Spectre processor vulnerabilities disclosed last week is on. As of today, there are no known exploits in the wild impacting vulnerable Intel, AMD and ARM devices. Currently, vendors are focused on three main mitigation efforts. Patches that address the...

Netgear Router Update Removes Hardcoded Crypto Keys

Netgear has released firmware updates for two of its router products lines, patching vulnerabilities that were reported in January. Users should update to firmware version 1.0.0.59, which includes fixes for an authentication bypass vulnerability and also addresses a hard-coded cryptographic key...

APT Groups Exploiting Patch Microsoft Office Flaw CVE-2015-2545

A Microsoft Office vulnerability patched six months ago continues to be a valuable tool for APT gangs operating primarily in Southeast Asia and the Far East. Researchers at Kaspersky Lab today published a report describing how attackers continue to flourish exploiting CVE-2015-2545, a remote code...

Badlock Windows, Samba Man-in-the-Middle Vulnerability

Weeks of anxiety and concern over the Badlock vulnerability ended today with an anticlimactic thud. Badlock was the security boogeyman since the appearance three weeks ago of a website and logo branding the bug as something serious in Samba, an open source implementation of the server message blo...

Russian APT28 Group Linked to NATO, Political Attacks

A Russian APT group tied to ongoing attacks against military and political targets in Eastern Europe and against NATO could also have ties to the MiniDuke espionage campaign uncovered more than a year ago. Dubbed APT28 by FireEye in a report published last night, the Russian hackers have targeted...

Patching Bash Vulnerability a Challenge for ICS, SCADA

While the most urgent focus where the Bash vulnerability is concerned is around Internet-facing web servers, embedded systems and industrial control systems are not exempt from worry. Experts are concerned about Linux-based industrial control systems and SCADA equipment, in particular, that may b...

Android Root Access Vulnerability Affecting Most Devices

A recently disclosed vulnerability in version 3.14.5 of the Linux kernel is also present in most versions of Android and could give attackers the ability to acquire root access on affected devices. Researchers at Lacoon Mobile Security are calling the bug “TowelRoot,” because it is the very same...

The Java Zero-Day Procession Continues

After a glorious 72-hour stretch without one, security researchers confirmed yesterday that they found yet another zero-day vulnerability in Oracle’s thoroughly troubled Java platform. With a little help from Hermes Bojaxhi and his team at Cyber Engineering Services, researchers from the security...

PHP Group Releases New Versions, But Patch Doesn't Fix CVE-2012-1823 Bug

UPDATE–The developers of PHP have released new versions of the scripting language to fix a remotely exploitable vulnerability announced earlier this week that enables an attacker to pass command-line arguments to the PHP binary. The flaw has been in the code for more than eight years and The PHP...

Week in Security: More Wikileaks Fallout, Cybersecurity Buzz and Browser Updates

The words “cyber war” were in the headlines this week, as controversy and debate about the leak of confidential diplomatic cables by Wikileaks reached a fever pitch. As speculation turned to the fallout from the ongoing publication of documents, the U.S. government laid the groundwork to prevent...

Microsoft to Give Security Guidelines for Agile

Microsoft will release on Tuesday guidelines for developers building online applications and for those using the Agile code-development process. The Agile guidelines apply principles from Microsoft’s Security Development Lifecycle SDL to Agile, an umbrella term for a development model frequently...

Stephen Toulouse on the MSRC, the Evolution of Security at Microsoft and Securing Xbox Live

Dennis Fisher talks with Stephen Toulouse, director of policy and enforcement for Xbox Live at Microsoft, about his years at the Microsoft Security Response Center, the evolution of security at Microsoft and the joy and pain of being the bad guy on Xbox Live. Download Subscribe to the Digital...

Microsoft Takes the Lead in Security

From InfoWorld Roger Grimes Talk about a turnaround. It’s always hard to recognize the larger, slow-moving paradigm shifts as they happen. But after a decade of bad press regarding its commitment to software security, Microsoft seems to have turned the tide. Redmond is getting consistent security...