Neutrino EK Spotted Leveraging Patched IE Zero Day

Attackers behind the Neutrino Exploit Kit didn’t take long to co-op a recently patched Internet Explorer zero-day into its arsenal. Researchers claim the kit has been pushing CVE-2016-0189, a vulnerability that was reportedly used in targeted attacks on South Korean organizations earlier this yea...

Broken 2013 Java Patch Leads to Sandbox Bypass

Java’s miserable 2013 just will not go away. One of the endless parade of bugs found in the platform throughout 2013—many of which were zero-day vulnerabilities exploited in targeted attacks—apparently wasn’t closed off completely by an October 2013 patch released by Oracle. Researchers at Polish...

glibc Linux remote code execution vulnerability

Glibc, the GNU C library at the core of last year’s GHOST vulnerability, is vulnerable to another critical flaw affecting nearly all Linux machines, as well as API web services and major web frameworks where the code runs. The vulnerability, discovered independently by researchers at Google and R...

Majority of 4G USB Modems, SIM Cards Exploitable

Researchers say 4G USB modems contain exploitable vulnerabilities through which attackers could, and researchers have, managed to gain full control of the machines to which the devices are connected. Researchers from Positive Technologies presented a briefing detailing how to compromise USB modem...

Emergency Adobe Flash Player Security Update Patches 0Day

Adobe today released an out-of-band security update for Flash Player that patches a vulnerability the company said is currently being exploited. Adobe Flash Player version 12.0.0.43 and earlier for Windows and Mac are affected as is 11.2.202.335 and earlier on Linux. The vulnerability,...

Three Vulnerabilities Exist in HP's Insight Diagnostics

There are multiple vulnerabilities in HP’s Insight Diagnostics server management tool that could be exploited by an attacker to run code and let them take over an infected computer. There is currently no fix available for the problem. According to an alert from the CERT Coordination Center,...

Microsoft: Uninstall Faulty Patch Tuesday Security Update

Microsoft announced last night that it has stopped pushing a security update originally released on Patch Tuesday because the fix is causing some PCs to blue screen. Microsoft recommends users uninstall the patch, which is also causing compatibility with some endpoint security software. “We’ve...

Trojan Mimics Chrome Installer to Steal Banking Information

Malware impersonating a Google Chrome Installer is actually stealing data while stripping software used to protect online banking transactions. The Trojan at present appears to target users in Brazil and Peru. Trend Micro researchers report in a blog post that they have discovered a malicious fil...

Mystery of Duqu Deepens As Researchers Ponder Unknown Programming Language

Segments of code within the mysterious information stealing trojan, Duqu, seem to have been written in an unknown programming language according to a new report from Securelist. Kaspersky Lab Expert, Igor Soumenkov claims that Duqu’s payload DLL initially looked like standard Windows executable,...

Attorney General: Massachusetts Won't Investigate iTunes Fraud

It looks as if Apple iTunes users who have been the victim of identity theft will have to look for a new knight in shining armor to wring answers from the notoriously close-lipped Cupertino technology giant. The Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office said on Monday that it isn’t planning to...

Gamification of Ethical Hacking and Hacking Esports

While ethical hacking is by no means a new or groundbreaking practice, the scale at which organizations and individuals are undertaking such initiatives continues to intensify, especially considering recent events such as the log4j vulnerability. Traditionally, ethical hacking is undertaken by...

Baby Golang-Based Botnet Already Pulling in $3K/Month for Operators

There’s a new, still-under-development, Golang-based botnet called Kraken with a level of brawn that belies its youth: It’s using the SmokeLoader malware loader to spread like wildfire and is already raking in a tidy USD $3,000/month for its operators, researchers report. Though its name may soun...

MoleRats APT Launches Spy Campaign on Bankers, Politicians, Journalists

Malicious files doctored up to look like legitimate content related to the Israeli-Palestine conflict are being used to target prominent Palestinians, as well as activists and journalists in Turkey, with spyware. That’s according to a disclosure from Zscaler, which attributes the cyberattacks to...

Rooting Malware Is Back. Here’s What to Look Out For.

Over the last several years, as the Android ecosystem matured, widely-distributed malware with rooting capabilities has become rare. But its rarity doesn’t mean it’s not still a threat. By definition, rooting malware is extremely dangerous because it can gain privileged access to the Android...

4 Key Questions for Zero-Trust Success

Historically, securing remote access was primarily done using VPNs. However, as enterprises have begun to understand the principles of zero trust, which states that no user may access any data source without first being authenticated, VPNs are proving to be insufficient. The demand for secure...

F5 Bug Could Lead to Complete System Takeover

Application delivery and networking firm F5 released a baker’s dozen of 13 fixes for high-severity bugs, including one that could lead to complete system takeover and hence is boosted to “critical” for customers that run BIG-IP in Appliance Mode, given that an attacker that holds valid credential...

Black Hat: New CISA Head Woos Crowd With Public-Private Task Force

LAS VEGAS – Just weeks after the U.S. Senate confirmed Jen Easterly to lead the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency CISA, the new director spoke at Black Hat USA 2021 on Thursday, albeit virtually, announcing a major public-private partnership to fight cybercrime. Called the Joint...

‘Battle for the Galaxy’ Mobile Game Leaks 6M Gamer Profiles

An Elasticsearch server holding personal data of 6 million players of the popular mobile game Battle for the Galaxy was discovered insecure and containing over 1 terabyte of unencrypted data, meaning anyone with a link could access data stored on the repository. Ethical hackers WizCase found the...

Podcast: The State of Ransomware

Last month, ransomware group DarkSide targeted operator Colonial Pipeline Co., disrupting fuel supply in the Eastern part of the U.S. The attack on a major U.S. oil pipeline had widespread ripples: it prompted President Joe Biden to declare a state of emergency and caused substantial pain at gas...

4 Ways Cyberattackers Hunt for Security Bugs

Blue teamers are in constant battle against hackers — faceless adversaries whose persistence can seem unending. But these actors have processes just like corporate operations, even if theirs are bootlegged. Attackers seek the path of least resistance: Gain access with as little effort as possible...

Clubhouse Conversations Recorded, Researchers Warn

At nearly a year old, the invitation-only, audio-based social-media platform ClubHouse is grappling with security issues on multiple fronts, but the consensus among researchers is coming into focus: Assume your ClubHouse conversations are being recorded. The company confirmed to Bloomberg that ov...

SQL Server Malware Tied to Iranian Software Firm, Researchers Allege

Researchers have made new discoveries surrounding the source of a previously-uncovered cryptomining operation that has targeted internet-facing database servers. The campaign, dubbed MrbMiner, was discovered in September 2020 downloading and installing a cryptominer on thousands of SQL servers...

Ransomware in 2020: A Banner Year for Extortion

Remote learning platforms shut down. Hospital chemotherapy appointments cancelled. Ransomware attacks in 2020 dominated as a top threat vector this past year. Couple that with the COVID-19 pandemic, putting strains on the healthcare sector, and we witnessed ransomware exact a particularly cruel...

Twitter Fixes High-Severity Flaw Affecting Android Users

Twitter has fixed a vulnerability in its Android app, which could have enabled attackers to access private Twitter data, like direct messages DMs on Android devices. The flaw is related to an underlying Android operating system OS security issue CVE-2018-9492, which affects operating system...

Octopus Scanner Sinks Tentacles into GitHub Repositories

The Octopus Scanner malware, which targets the Apache NetBeans Java integrated development environment IDE, has been nesting in at least 26 GitHub source-code repositories, according to researchers – waiting to take over developer machines. A team from GitHub Security Labs, acting on a tip from a...

Astaroth’s New Evasion Tactics Make It 'Painful to Analyze'

The operators of the Astaroth infostealer have implemented several new tactics aimed at evading detection, which researchers say have made the malware “painful to analyze.” Astaroth first emerged in 2017, but has steadily been used over the years in increasingly sophisticated campaigns aimed at...

Hackers Breach 3.5 Million MobiFriends Dating App Credentials

The credentials of 3.5 million users of MobiFriends, a popular dating app, have surfaced on a prominent deep web hacking forum, according to researchers. MobiFriends is an online service and Android app designed to help users worldwide meet new people online. The Barcelona-based developer of...

Google Android RCE Bug Allows Attacker Full Device Access

Google has patched a vulnerability in its Android OS that could allow attackers to completely take over someone’s device to install programs, steal or change data, or create new accounts with full privileges. The flaw CVE-2020-0103 was one of 39 vulnerabilities affecting Android OS builds that us...

GE Employees Lit Up with Sensitive Doc Breach

A phisher’s treasure chest of personally identifiable information PII for General Electric employees has been exposed – thanks to the compromise of one of the company’s partners, Canon Business Process Services. In a data-breach notice filed with the State of California, General Electric GE noted...

Researchers Warn of Novel PXJ Ransomware Strain

Researchers have discovered a new strain of ransomware, dubbed “PXJ,” which emerged in the wild in early 2020. While PXJ performs functions similar to other ransomware variants, it does not appear to share the same underlying code with most known ransomware families, researchers said. They first...

Cybergang Favors G Suite and Physical Checks For BEC Attacks

Researchers have uncovered a new business email compromise BEC threat actor, which they call Exaggerated Lion, targeting thousands of U.S. companies with money pilfering scams. The cybercrime ring is unique in its leveraging of Google’s cloud-based productivity suite, G Suite, and for its use of...

U.S. Gov Agency Targeted With Malware-Laced Emails

A U.S. government agency was targeted with spear phishing emails harboring several malware strains – including a never-before-seen malware downloader that researchers call “Carrotball.” The campaign, which researchers observed occurring from July to October and code-named “Fractured Statue,”...

Download The Ultimate ‘Security for Management’ Presentation Template

There is a person in every organization that is the direct owner of breach protection. His or her task is to oversee and govern the process of design, build, maintain and continuously enhance the security level of the organization. Title-wise, this person is most often either the CIO, CISO or...

On-Board 'Mystery Boxes' Threaten Global Shipping Vessels

Commercial shipping environments are rife with vulnerabilities, according to researchers – up to and including unpatched “mystery boxes” that no one knows anything about. “In every single nautical pen test to date we have unearthed a system or device, that of the few crew that were aware, no one...

JetBlue Bomb Scare Set Off with Apple AirDrop

The feature in Apple mobile devices that allows people to send photos to nearby phones via Bluetooth is at the heart of a terrorism scare on a JetBlue flight over the weekend. According to the New York Daily News, a prankster sent a photo of a suicide vest to everyone who had an Apple device on t...

Yahoo Offers $117.5M Settlement in Data Breach Lawsuit

Yahoo is offering to cough up $117.5 million to settle a lawsuit regarding its massive data breaches that compromised the personal information of three billion users. The new $117.5 million settlement, filed Tuesday in the U.S. District Court in San Jose, comes after the internet company’s first...

Coinhive to Mine Its Last Monero in March

Coinhive, the company behind an eponymous browser-based cryptocurrency miner, is closing its doors. As of March 8, the 18-month-old company will discontinue its service, because, it announced, the model “isn’t economically viable anymore.” Coinhive bills itself as a legitimate service for website...

Popular Web-Hosting Platform Bluehost Riddled with Flaws

UPDATE A researcher has uncovered several one-click client-side vulnerabilities in the popular Bluehost web hosting platform. These would allow cybercriminals to easily carry out complete account takeover, according to the analysis. Bluehost has acknowledged the issue, and told Threatpost, “We ar...

Innovative Phishing Tactic Makes Inroads Using Azure Blob

A fresh tactic for phishing Office 365 users employs credential-harvesting forms hosted on Azure Blob storage – signed with legitimate Microsoft SSL certificates to lend an air of legitimacy. Azure Blob Storage is a cloud storage solution for hosting unstructured data such as images, video or tex...

Security Camera Found Riddled With Bugs

CANCUN, Mexico – Tech firm Hanwha Techwin is racing to fix 13 critical security holes found in its popular line of SmartCam security cameras. The patch rollout is part of public disclosure of the vulnerabilities set for today by researchers who discovered the bugs. Flaws range from the use of an...

Huawei Router Vulnerability Used to Spread Mirai Variant

Researchers have identified a vulnerability in a Huawei home router model that is being exploited by an adversary to spread a variant of the Mirai malware called Mirai Okiru, also known as Satori. Researchers at Check Point published a report Thursday, and said the flaw is in Huawei’s router mode...

Microsoft Patches 17-Year-Old Office Bug

Microsoft on Tuesday patched a 17-year-old remote code execution bug found in an Office executable called Microsoft Equation Editor. The vulnerability CVE-2017-11882 was patched as part of Microsoft’s November Patch Tuesday release of 53 fixes. While Microsoft rates the vulnerability only as...

Apple Patches KRACK Vulnerability in iOS 11.1

Apple has patched iOS, macOS and other products to protect against the KRACK vulnerability recently disclosed in the WPA2 Wi-Fi security protocol. KRACK, short for key re-installation attack, allows an attacker within range of a victim’s Wi-Fi network to read encrypted traffic with varying degree...

Oracle Fixes 253 Vulnerabilities in Last CPU of 2016

Oracle fixed 253 vulnerabilities across 76 product lines on Tuesday as part of its quarterly Critical Patch Update. Many of the fixes addressed by Oracle tackled vulnerabilities tied to securing critical enterprise data. Vulnerabilities in Oracle Fusion Middleware, a family of infrastructure...

Intel Patches Local EoP Vulnerability Impacting Windows 7

Intel issued an important security patch Monday for a vulnerability that could allow hackers to execute arbitrary code on targeted systems running Windows 7. The bug, located in Intel’s HD graphics Windows kernel driver, leaves affected systems open to a local privilege escalation attacks that...

Microsoft Security Intelligence Report: Top Takeaways

Microsoft’s Security Intelligence Report painted a bleak picture when it comes to malware, fraudulent login attempts and the staying power of really old exploits. Key findings in the 198-page biannual report run the gamut illustrating how old threats die hard and what new threats are on the...

OpenSSL Patches Five Flaws, Adds Protection Against Logjam Attack

The OpenSSL project has patched several moderate- and low-severity security vulnerabilities and also has added protection against the Logjam attack in new releases of the software. Most of the vulnerabilities fixed in the new releases are denial-of-service bugs, but one of them can potentially...

New APT Campaign Dubbed The Mask Called Most Sophisticated Seen to Date

PUNTA CANA–A group of high-level, nation-state attackers has been targeting government agencies, embassies, diplomatic offices and energy companies with a cyber-espionage campaign for more than five years that researchers say is the most sophisticated APT operation they’ve seen to date. The attac...

IE 8 0Day in Sunshop Targeted Espionage Malware Campaign

Lady Boyle seems to have an admirer. Malware named after a character in the Dishonored video game continues to pop up in targeted attacks against a number of high profile military and socially motivated websites. The latest surfaced about 10 days ago in an attack researchers at FireEye are callin...

USAID a Target of DoL Watering Hole Attackers

One of the nine sites serving malware tied to the recent watering hole attack on the U.S. Department of Labor was located in Cambodia and has ties to the United States Agency for International Development USAID. Speculation has it that the DoL attack was targeting downstream employees at the...