News Items

  • news

    Visible to the public "Hackers Increasingly Abuse Cloudflare Tunnels for Stealthy Connections"

    There has been a rise in the abuse of the legitimate Cloudflare Tunnels feature by hackers to establish stealthy HTTPS connections from compromised devices, circumvent firewalls, and maintain long-term persistence. In January 2023, Phylum reported that threat actors had created malicious PyPI packages that used Cloudflare Tunnels to stealthily steal data or remotely access devices. GuidePoint's DFIR and GRIT teams recently reported increased activity, suggesting more threat actors are using this technique. CloudFlare Tunnels is a popular feature offered by Cloudflare that enables users to create secure, outbound-only connections to the Cloudflare network for web servers or applications. Users can deploy a tunnel by installing one of the available clients for Linux, Windows, macOS, and Docker. The service is then exposed to the Internet on a user-specified hostname to facilitate legitimate use-case scenarios such as resource sharing, testing, and more. This article continues to discuss hackers increasingly abusing the legitimate Cloudflare Tunnels feature.

    Bleeping Computer reports "Hackers Increasingly Abuse Cloudflare Tunnels for Stealthy Connections"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Managing Human Cyber Risks Matters Now More Than Ever"

    As Artificial Intelligence (AI) increases the sophistication and scope of phishing, vishing, and smishing attacks, understanding and managing human cyber risks have become increasingly important, according to a report by the SANS Institute. The report highlights the escalating stakes associated with human cyber risks. The study discovered that mature security programs with strong teams and leadership support have at least three full-time employees on their security awareness teams. As in previous years, most organizations continue to view security awareness as a part-time commitment. Seventy percent of security awareness practitioners reported devoting less than half of their time to it this year. This insight highlights the ongoing difficulty of elevating the importance of continuous cybersecurity awareness in organizations' day-to-day operations. This article continues to discuss key findings from the SANS 2023 Security Awareness Report.

    Help Net Security reports "Managing Human Cyber Risks Matters Now More Than Ever"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Mallox Ransomware Group Revamps Malware Variants, Evasion Tactics"

    The Mallox ransomware group is intensifying its targeted attacks on organizations with vulnerable SQL servers. It has recently emerged with a new variant and various additional malware tools to achieve persistence and circumvent detection. In June 2021, Mallox, also known as TargetCompany, Fargo, and Tohnichi, surfaced. Researchers from TrendMicro recently disclosed that in its most recent attacks, the group combined its custom ransomware with two proven malware products, the Remcos RAT and the BatCloak obfuscator. However, the group's strategy for gaining access to the networks of targeted organizations remains unchanged in the most recent campaign. The group still exploits vulnerable SQL servers to persistently deploy its first stage. Mallox, which claims to have infected hundreds of organizations worldwide in manufacturing, retail, wholesale, legal, and professional services, exploits the SQL Remote Code Execution (RCE) vulnerabilities, tracked as CVE-2020-0618 and CVE-2019-1068. Researchers discovered that in later phases of the attack, the group began to alter its tactics to maintain a hidden presence on targeted networks and hide its malicious activity. This article continues to discuss the Mallox ransomware group stepping up its game in targeted attacks against organizations with vulnerable SQL servers.

    Dark Reading reports "Mallox Ransomware Group Revamps Malware Variants, Evasion Tactics"

  • news

    Visible to the public "How an 8-Character Password Could Be Cracked in Just a Few Minutes"

    Security experts continue to encourage using strong and complex passwords to protect online accounts and data from cybercriminals. "Complex" passwords typically require lowercase and uppercase letters, numbers, and special symbols. However, according to research by the security company Hive Systems, complexity alone can still leave a password vulnerable to cracking if it does not contain enough characters. Hive discovered that an eight-character complex password could be cracked in only five minutes using the most advanced graphics processing technology and Artificial Intelligence (AI). In addition, a complex seven-character password could be cracked in four seconds, whereas a password with six or fewer characters could be cracked instantly. Shorter passwords with only one or two character types, such as only numbers or lowercase letters, or only numbers and letters, could be cracked in an instant. According to Hive's research, even simple passwords with more characters are less vulnerable to cracking in a short time. An 18-character password only containing numbers would require six days to crack, but one with the same number of characters using lowercase letters would take 481,000 years to crack. This article continues to discuss advancements in graphics processing technology and AI slashing the time required to crack a password using brute-force techniques.

    TechRepublic reports "How an 8-Character Password Could Be Cracked in Just a Few Minutes"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Smart Devices: Putting a Premium on Peace of Mind"

    At least one smart device vulnerable to cyberattacks, such as smart TVs, robot vacuums, and more, is present in two out of every five homes worldwide. Such devices will soon come with a label that helps consumers determine whether the device is secure and protected against malicious actors attempting to eavesdrop on users or sell victims' data. In July, the White House announced plans to implement a voluntary labeling program for Internet-connected devices such as refrigerators, thermostats, and baby monitors that satisfy certain cybersecurity requirements, including data de-identification and automatic security updates. A recent survey of American consumers reveals that they are willing to pay a significant premium to know beforehand which devices respect their privacy and are secure against security attacks. However, the authors of the study caution that more than voluntary product labels may be required if the program is to protect consumers in the long term. Pardis Emami-Naeini, an assistant professor of computer science at Duke University who conducted the survey with colleagues from Carnegie Mellon University, noted that device manufacturers who do not care about security and privacy may decide not to disclose at all. This article continues to discuss cybersecurity labeling for smart devices.

    Duke University reports "Smart Devices: Putting a Premium on Peace of Mind"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Hackers Exploit Vulnerability to Target Johns Hopkins"

    Baltimore-based Johns Hopkins University and Health System are notifying patients that some of their protected health information may have been compromised due to hackers targeting a software vulnerability in MOVEit Transfer. According to a breach notification letter sent out by Johns Hopkins on June 14, the investigation into the incident is ongoing, and they are working with law enforcement and its cybersecurity teams to determine what kinds of information were compromised. The organization stated that its initial evaluation shows the attack may have impacted the information of Johns Hopkins employees, students, and/or patients. Johns Hopkins noted that all affected individuals will receive updates as they become available and will be contacted if they were affected by the breach.

    Becker's Hospital Review reports: "Hackers Exploit Vulnerability to Target Johns Hopkins"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Spyware Maker LetMeSpy Shuts Down After Hacker Deletes Server Data"

    The Poland-based spyware called LetMeSpy is no longer operational. It has announced that it will cease operations after a data breach in June wiped out its servers, including a massive cache of data taken from thousands of victims' phones. In a statement posted on its website in both English and Polish, LetMeSpy announced the spyware service's "permanent shutdown" and stated that it would end operations by the end of August. According to the notice, LetMeSpy is preventing users from logging in or creating new accounts. A separate notice on the LetMeSpy login page confirmed earlier allegations that the hacker who compromised the spyware operation also deleted the data from its servers. TechCrunch's network traffic analysis reveals that the LetMeSpy app no longer functions, and the spyware developer's website no longer offers the app for download. LetMeSpy was an Android phone monitoring app designed to remain hidden on the victim's home screen, making it difficult to detect and remove. Apps such as LetMeSpy continuously steal a target's text messages, call logs, and real-time location data after being installed on their phone, typically by someone with access to their passcode. This article continues to discuss the shutdown of the spyware maker LetMeSpy.

    TechCrunch reports "Spyware Maker LetMeSpy Shuts Down After Hacker Deletes Server Data"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Once The Domain of Pirated Games, 'Infostealers' Have Racked Up Hundreds of Thousands of Employee Logins"

    Titan, Redline, and other infostealers target Internet users searching for pirated copies of games and software. However, according to a new report from Flare.io, they are increasingly making their way into corporate environments, possibly due to the blurring between personal and work devices. The report reveals that about 400,000 employee logins are available for sale on the dark web and illegal Telegram channels. Once installed, infostealers normally compromise user web browsers and capture various login information. Anything saved in a web browser or entered into a field is vulnerable to interception, which includes passwords and files uploaded or downloaded. Many infostealers can secretly take screenshots. The malware embeds itself into target systems for long-term file exfiltration, using different techniques to avoid detection. The primary focus of infostealers has been "carding," or the theft of credit card numbers and cryptocurrency wallet logins. However, Flare's analysis of nearly 20 million stealer logs revealed that the presence of employee logins and other corporate network credentials is rising. This article continues to discuss infostealers becoming more common on company networks.

    CPO Magazine reports "Once The Domain of Pirated Games, 'Infostealers' Have Racked Up Hundreds of Thousands of Employee Logins"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Russian Hacktivists Overwhelm Spanish Sites With DDoS"

    A leading Spanish research institute has become the latest organization in the country to come under cyberattack from Russia after a weeks-long DDoS campaign that appears to be geopolitically motivated. It has been claimed that the prolific hacktivist group NoName057 is responsible for the DDoS blitz, which impacted at least 72 websites between July 19 and 30. Banks, telecoms providers, media, and tourism companies are thought to have been affected by the attacks, which followed a trip by Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez to Kyiv in which he expressed his government's support for Ukraine. Victim websites included La Moncloa, the official residence of the PM, the Constitutional Court, the ministries of justice and territorial policy, and Ministry of Defence agency Isdefe. NoName057 has been linked to previous attacks on organizations in Ukraine, allies Poland and Lithuania, and presidential candidates competing in the Czech Republic. Separately, the Spanish National Research Council was hit by a ransomware attack on July 16-17. The Spanish National Research Council claimed that no sensitive data was exfiltrated as part of the attacks, which have been attributed to the same actor that compromised NASA and Germany's Max Planck Institute.

    Infosecurity reports: "Russian Hacktivists Overwhelm Spanish Sites With DDoS"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Administration Launches New Efforts to Strengthen America's K-12 Schools' Cybersecurity"

    In recent years, the US has seen a rise in cyberattacks aimed at the nation's schools. During the 2022-2023 academic year, at least eight US K-12 school districts were affected by cyberattacks, four of which required schools to cancel classes or close entirely. In addition to disrupting school operations, these attacks have affected students, their families, teachers, and administrators. Sensitive personal information, including grades, medical records, documented home issues, behavioral information, and financial information, have been stolen and leaked by cybercriminals. Therefore, Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas joined First Lady Jill Biden in convening school administrators, educators, and private sector companies to discuss best practices and new resources available to improve school cybersecurity, protect American families and schools, and prevent cyberattacks from disrupting US classrooms. According to a report published by the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) in 2022, the loss of learning following a cyberattack can be from three days to three weeks, and the recovery period can range from two to nine months. Furthermore, the financial losses faced by school districts as a result of a cyber incident ranged from $50,000 to $1 million. This article continues to discuss the new efforts to strengthen America's K-12 schools' cybersecurity.

    HSToday reports "Administration Launches New Efforts to Strengthen America's K-12 Schools' Cybersecurity"

  • news

    Visible to the public "A New Sophisticated SkidMap Variant Targets Unsecured Redis Servers"

    A malicious campaign is targeting Redis servers with a new variant of the SkidMap malware. SkidMap is a piece of cryptocurrency mining malware discovered by Trend Micro in September 2019 as it targeted Linux machines. The malicious code evaded detection by using kernel-mode rootkits. It differs from similar cryptocurrency miners in that it loads malicious kernel modules. Researchers at Trustwave discovered a new, enhanced, and dangerous SkidMap variant that was designed to target a variety of Linux distributions, including Alibaba, Anolis, openEuler, EulerOS, Steam, CentOS, RedHat, and Rock. This variant was observed to target only open Redis instances (so-called 'NO AUTH'). The researchers did not observe brute-force attacks. This article continues to discuss the new sophisticated SkidMap variant involved in a campaign targeting Redis servers.

    Security Affairs reports "A New Sophisticated SkidMap Variant Targets Unsecured Redis Servers"

  • news

    Visible to the public "US Govt Contractor Serco Discloses Data Breach After MoveIT Attacks"

    Serco Inc, the Americas division of multinational outsourcing company Serco Group, has recently disclosed a data breach after attackers stole the personal information of over 10,000 individuals from a third-party vendor's MoveIT managed file transfer (MFT) server. Serco said that the information was exfiltrated from the file transfer platform of CBIZ, its benefits administration provider. Serco noted that on June 30, 2023, they were informed that their third-party benefits administration provider, CBIZ, experienced a ransomware attack and data breach. Serco stated that according to CBIZ, the incident began in May 2023, and CBIZ took steps to mitigate the incident on June 5, 2023. To be clear, the breach of CBIZ's systems did not affect the safety and security of Serco's systems. The personal information compromised in the attack includes any combination of the following: name, U.S. Social Security Number, date of birth, home mailing address, Serco and/or personal e-mail address, and selected health benefits for the year. Serco is currently collaborating with CBIZ to investigate the breach and assess the full extent of the incident, focusing on ensuring that the third-party vendor has implemented security measures to prevent future incidents. Serco's client roster includes a long list of U.S. federal agencies, including the Departments of Homeland Security, Justice, and State, as well as U.S. Intelligence Agencies and multiple U.S. Armed Forces branches (e.g., Navy, Army, Marine Corps, Air Force). Serco is also a contractor for U.S. state and local governments and the Canadian government, and it also provides services to high-profile commercial customers such as Pfizer, Capital One, and Wells Fargo. The company employs over 50,000 people across 35 countries and has an annual revenue of over $5.7 billion in 2022.

    BleepingComputer reports: "US Govt Contractor Serco Discloses Data Breach After MoveIT Attacks"

  • news

    Visible to the public "EU Late to the Quantum Party, Report Warns"

    A new report by the European Policy Center, a think center for European Union affairs, calls on companies and governments to act quickly to develop a comprehensive strategy for quantum readiness. Given the current rate of quantum computing research, a quantum computer capable of breaking modern cryptography is expected to be developed within the next two decades. According to the report's author Andrea G. Rodrguez, policymakers must plan and implement the technical and logistical actions necessary to be prepared for a world with quantum computers. Quantum computers could cause significant problems in digital communications by breaking public key cryptography algorithms widely used to securely send digital messages. When users visit a secure website, public key cryptography facilitates the exchange of a secret key for encrypting all communications between the user and the website. A quantum computer could reveal the secret key, enabling attackers to view all communications and potentially impersonate the user and the website. This article continues to discuss the need to develop strategies for quantum readiness.

    IEEE Spectrum reports "EU Late to the Quantum Party, Report Warns"

  • news

    Visible to the public "What Are 'Drainer Smart Contracts' and Why Is the FBI Warning of Them?"

    The FBI urges potential Non-Fungible Token (NFT) buyers to look out for malicious websites that use "drainer smart contracts" to secretly steal from cryptocurrency wallets. The websites pose as outlets for legitimate NFT projects with new offerings. They are promoted by compromised social media accounts belonging to known NFT developers or accounts designed to appear as if they belong to such developers. Posts attempt to provoke a sense of urgency by using phrases such as "limited supply" or referring to the promotion as a "surprise." FBI officials noted in an advisory that the spoofed websites invite victims to connect their cryptocurrency wallets and purchase the NFT. The victims connect their cryptocurrency wallets unknowingly to a drainer smart contract, transferring their cryptocurrency and NFTs to wallets operated by criminals. From there, the criminals typically launder the stolen assets through a series of cryptocurrency exchanges or other services that mix them with others' assets to cover the path and destination of the stolen NFTs. Smart contracts are a form of computer code that executes a transaction or agreement, typically involving the transfer of digital assets. Criminals often use smart contracts with flaws or loopholes that allow them to transfer millions of dollars in assets from one or more parties entering the agreement. This article continues to discuss the FBI's warning about drainer smart contracts.

    Ars Technica reports "What Are 'Drainer Smart Contracts' and Why Is the FBI Warning of Them?"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Colorado Department of Higher Education Discloses Ransomware Attack, Data Breach"

    The Colorado Department of Higher Education (CDHE) recently has been targeted in a ransomware attack that resulted in a data breach impacting many students and teachers. The organization said it became aware of a cyberattack involving ransomware on June 19. The CDHE noted that the investigation is ongoing, but it appears that cybercriminals had access to CDHE systems between June 11 and June 19, obtaining names, social security numbers, student identification numbers, and other education records. The CDHE stated that impacted individuals include "those that attended a public institution of higher education in Colorado between 2007-2020, attended a Colorado public high school between 2004-2020, individuals with a Colorado K-12 public school educator license between 2010-2014, participated in the Dependent Tuition Assistance Program from 2009-2013, participated in Colorado Department of Education's Adult Education Initiatives programs between 2013-2017, or obtained a GED between 2007-2011 may be impacted by this incident." Those affected by the breach are being offered free credit monitoring and identity theft protection services.

    SecurityWeek reports: "Colorado Department of Higher Education Discloses Ransomware Attack, Data Breach"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Lazarus Hack Russian Missile Maker as Moscow Pleas for Shells"

    According to technical evidence reviewed by Reuters and an analysis conducted by security researchers, an elite group of North Korean (DPRK) hackers infiltrated the computer networks of a Russian missile developer for at least five months in 2022. Reuters discovered that cyber espionage teams with ties to the North Korean government, known as ScarCruft and Lazarus among security researchers, secretly installed stealthy digital backdoors into the systems of NPO Mashinostroyeniya, a rocket design bureau based in Reutov, which is a small town on the outskirts of Moscow. Reuters could not confirm whether any data was taken or what information may have been viewed during the breach. In the months following the digital break-in, Pyongyang announced several developments in its banned ballistic missile program, but it is unclear if this was linked to the breach. According to experts, the incident demonstrates that the isolated country will even target its allies, such as Russia, to acquire critical technologies. This article continues to discuss the breach of a major Russian missile developer by the Lazarus hacking group.

    Cybernews reports "Lazarus Hack Russian Missile Maker as Moscow Pleas for Shells"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Clop Ransomware Now Uses Torrents to Leak Data and Evade Takedowns"

    The Clop ransomware gang has modified its extortion tactics, now using torrents to distribute data stolen in MOVEit attacks. The group launched a wave of data theft attacks beginning on May 27, exploiting a zero-day vulnerability in the MOVEit Transfer secure file transfer platform. The threat actors stole data from nearly 600 organizations by exploiting this zero-day vulnerability. On June 14, the ransomware gang began extorting its victims, gradually adding their names to their Tor data leak site and eventually releasing the files to the public. However, leaking data through a Tor site has drawbacks, as the slow download speed makes the leak, in some cases, less damaging than it could be if the data was easier to access. To overcome this, Clop created clearweb sites to leak stolen data for some MOVEit data theft victims, but these domains are easier for law enforcement and businesses to shut down. Therefore, Clop has begun leaking stolen data via torrents as a new remedy to these issues. This article continues to discuss the Clop ransomware gang moving to torrents.

    Bleeping Computer reports "Clop Ransomware Now Uses Torrents to Leak Data and Evade Takedowns"

  • news

    Visible to the public "PaperCut Fixes Bug That Can Lead To RCE"

    Researchers at Horizon3.ai have published information about CVE-2023-39143, two vulnerabilities in PaperCut application servers that unauthenticated attackers could exploit to execute code remotely. It is not a "one-shot" Remote Code Execution (RCE) bug, unlike the PaperCut vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2023-27350, recently exploited by Clop and LockBit ransomware affiliates. Researchers noted that CVE-2023-39143 is more difficult to exploit because multiple vulnerabilities must be chained together to compromise a server. PaperCut NG and MF are popular print management server software solutions. PaperCut NG and MF versions released before v22.1.3 contain the path traversal vulnerabilities (CVE-2023-39143) that could be exploited to read, delete, and upload arbitrary files to a vulnerable application server. This article continues to discuss the bug fixed by PaperCut.

    Help Net Security reports "PaperCut Fixes Bug That Can Lead To RCE"

  • news

    Visible to the public "How To Deal With the Vagueness in New Cyber Regulations"

    This year, regulatory bodies at all levels of government have issued stricter privacy and disclosure requirements and penalties, crafted with ambiguous language and vague guidelines, leaving cybersecurity teams buried in liability and without a clear path to compliance. Recent Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) guidelines on cyber incident disclosure are an example of the confusion that can be caused by vague regulatory language. Adam Shostack, a cybersecurity expert, observes that the rules are widely misinterpreted. Shostack considers the requirement for transparency to be generally positive, but it is essential to note that it is within four days of determining it is a material breach, not within four days of discovering a breach. As Shostack emphasizes, many people fail to recognize this distinction. This article continues to discuss the vagueness of new cyber regulations.

    Dark Reading reports "How To Deal With the Vagueness in New Cyber Regulations"

  • news

    Visible to the public "New 'Deep Learning Attack' Deciphers Laptop Keystrokes with 95% Accuracy"

    A group of researchers has developed a "deep learning-based acoustic side-channel attack" that is 95 percent accurate in classifying laptop keystrokes recorded by a nearby phone. According to the researchers Joshua Harrison, Ehsan Toreini, and Maryam Mehrnezhad, when trained on keystrokes recorded with the video conferencing software Zoom, an accuracy of 93 percent was reached, a new record for the medium. Side-channel attacks are a class of security exploits aimed at gaining information from a system by monitoring and measuring its physical effects while processing sensitive data. Typical observable effects include runtime behavior, power consumption, electromagnetic radiation, acoustics, and cache accesses. To execute the attack, the researchers first conducted experiments with 36 of the Apple MacBook Pro's keys (0-9, a-z), pressing each key 25 times in a row, varying in pressure and finger. The next step involved isolating the individual keystrokes and converting them into a mel-spectrogram, on which a deep learning model called CoAtNet was run to classify the keystroke images. This article continues to discuss the deep learning-based acoustic side-channel attack.

    THN reports "New 'Deep Learning Attack' Deciphers Laptop Keystrokes with 95% Accuracy"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Vanderbilt Computer Scientists Develop Community-Based App for Managing Mobile Privacy and Security"

    Mamtaj Akter, a graduate student in computer science at Vanderbilt University working in the lab of Pamela Wisniewski, Flowers Family Fellow in Engineering and associate professor of computer science, co-authored a study evaluating how technology can help people in managing mobile privacy and security as a community. The Community Oversight of Privacy and Security (CO-oPS) app was developed in 2022 by Akter, Wisniewski, and their collaborators from the University of North Carolina-Charlotte and the University of Cincinnati to evaluate the role of community oversight in fostering collective efficacy for groups managing their mobile privacy and security together. Their initial research focused on its use by parents and teens. The current research, conducted within the Socio-Technical Interaction Research lab led by Wisniewski, Akter, and her co-authors, was a four-week field study with 22 communities of friends, families, and/or coworkers who installed the CO-oPS app on their mobile devices. Individual and community participation in mobile privacy and security co-management, as well as transparency, trust, and awareness of one another's mobile privacy and security behaviors, were measured. After using the app, individual and collective capacity for managing mobile privacy and security increased, with some concerns regarding collaborative management of mobile privacy and security. This article continues to discuss the research and findings behind the CO-oPS app.

    Vanderbilt University reports "Vanderbilt Computer Scientists Develop Community-Based App for Managing Mobile Privacy and Security"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Decommissioned Medical Infusion Pumps Sold on Secondary Market Could Reveal Wi-Fi Configuration Settings"

    Rapid7 researchers warn that the secondary market sale of decommissioned medical infusion pumps may result in the exposure of Wi-Fi configuration settings. Most medical infusion pumps purchased from secondary market services such as eBay contained wireless authentication data from the initial medical organization that deployed the devices. The researchers analyzed three different infusion pump models: the Alaris PC 8015, the Baxter Sigma Spectrum model 35700BAX2, and the Hospira Abbott PLUM A+ with MedNet. They analyzed 13 infusion pumps that are still in use in many medical facilities worldwide despite no longer being manufactured. Sensitive data was gathered by analyzing the content of compact flash cards, capturing serial communication while using the product's maintenance software serial communication, and physically removing and extracting data from the flash memory chip on the main circuit boards. Researchers retrieved hostnames with domain information, AES keys for encryption, SSIDs, Wi-Fi Pre Shared Keys (PSK) passphrases in clear text, Microsoft Active Directory authentication credentials, and Wi-Fi configuration settings. This article continues to discuss the security risks posed by decommissioned medical infusion pumps sold via the secondary market.

    Security Affairs reports "Decommissioned Medical Infusion Pumps Sold on Secondary Market Could Reveal Wi-Fi Configuration Settings"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Hackers Could Have Scored Unlimited Airline Miles by Targeting One Platform"

    Travel rewards programs, such as those offered by airlines and hotels, highlight the benefits of joining their club as opposed to others. The digital infrastructure of many of these programs, including Delta SkyMiles, United MileagePlus, Hilton Honors, and Marriott Bonvoy, is built on the same platform. The infrastructure is provided by Points and its suite of services, which includes an expansive Application Programming Interface (API). However, new research published by a group of security researchers reveals vulnerabilities in the Points[.]com API that could have been exploited to expose customer data, steal customers' "loyalty currency" (miles), or even compromise Points global administration accounts in order to take control of entire loyalty programs. This article continues to discuss the potential exploitation and impact of the flaws found in the Points platform.

    Wired reports "Hackers Could Have Scored Unlimited Airline Miles by Targeting One Platform"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Many Tech Experts Fail a Test of Their Cybersecurity Knowledge"

    A survey of over 2,300 self-identified technologists from 90 countries reveals a lack of cybersecurity knowledge. In April and May, on behalf of RSA Security, a series of fact-based questions were posed, such as the most common cause of data breaches and how to implement a zero-trust strategy. The results were recently released as part of the RSA ID IQ report, as most of the questions dealt with identity-related issues. Fewer than 10 percent of respondents answered the majority of questions correctly, while nearly 50 percent answered at least half of the questions incorrectly. Two-thirds of the self-proclaimed experts in identity management did not choose the best practices for phishing prevention. This article continues to discuss key findings from the survey on cybersecurity knowledge.

    SiliconANGLE reports "Many Tech Experts Fail a Test of Their Cybersecurity Knowledge"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Google, Microsoft Take Refuge in Rust Language's Better Security"

    When Fortanix launched in 2016, the company decided to commit to the one-year-old Rust's programming language to benefit from its security strengths and performance. Seven years later, Fortanix's commitment to Rust has proved to be a success. Eight years after its 1.0 release, the Rust language and development platforms continue to gain popularity among developers and companies focused on secure code. Currently, Rust has a far lower TIOBE rating than C or C++. However, the language is seeing significant additional users year over year. Rust also has a committed following. According to the Stack Overflow 2023 Developer Survey, while only 12% of programmers used the technology in the past year, nearly 85% of those developers want to continue using the language, making it the "most admired" programming language. Mircosoft is now also turning to using Rust as part of an effort to eliminate classes of bugs. The company has created DWriteCore in Rust to turn font parsing into a memory safety feature and is currently working on experimenting with writing parts of the graphics driver interface (GDI) in Rust. The company has seen performance increase by 5% to 15% in early versions of the code. Google is also a major supporter of Rust. The company attributes a drop in the share of memory-safety vulnerabilities in Android to the transition to Rust, Kotlin (a functional programming language), and Java from C and C++.

    Dark Reading reports: "Google, Microsoft Take Refuge in Rust Language's Better Security"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Russia-Based Hackers Building New Attack Infrastructure to Stay Ahead of Public Reporting"

    Due to increased public reporting by security researchers and technology companies such as Microsoft and Google, a Russia-based hacking group connected to previous attacks on governments is shifting tactics. According to a report from Recorded Future, since March 2023, the group tracked as BlueCharlie, has established new infrastructure to launch attacks against various targets. BlueCharlie aims to collect information, steal credentials, and conduct hack-and-leak operations against Ukraine and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) nations. Several companies track the group as Calisto, COLDRIVER, or Star Blizzard/SEABORGIUM. It has previously targeted different government, higher education, defense, and political sector organizations, as well as non-governmental organizations (NGOs), activists, journalists, think tanks, and national laboratories. Recorded Future's Insikt Group could not determine who was targeted in this campaign but said they have observed it register 94 new domains as part of its new infrastructure building. According to the researchers, several tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) observed in BlueCharlie's current operation deviate from previous activity, suggesting that the group is evolving its operations in response to public disclosures of its activities. This article continues to discuss recent findings and observations regarding BlueCharlie.

    The Record reports "Russia-Based Hackers Building New Attack Infrastructure to Stay Ahead of Public Reporting"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Threat of Cyber Attacks to National Security Compared to That of Chemical Weapons"

    According to the UK government's latest National Risk Register (NRR) report for 2023, the risk of cyberattacks is now considered to be more severe than that posed by small-scale chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear (CBRN) attacks, such as the Salisbury poisoning. The NRR report assigns severity scores to various scenarios that could significantly impact the national safety and security of the UK. Cyberattacks on infrastructure were given a 3 out of 5 impact rating, or 'moderate,' alongside risks such as climate change-induced severe storms and terrorist attacks on transportation. In comparison, small-scale CBRN attacks were rated a 2 or 'limited.' In the 2020 NRR, cyberattacks were classified as a 'minor' risk that would disrupt critical services for less than 12 hours and cause tens of millions of pounds in damage. This article continues to discuss the UK government raising the threat level posed by cyberattacks.

    ITPro reports "Threat of Cyber Attacks to National Security Compared to That of Chemical Weapons"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Report Reveals 'Sudden Surge' in Cyberattacks Targeting Government Agencies"

    According to a new report, cyberattacks against government agencies and the public sector have increased alarmingly over the past few months, as threat actors deployed various novel malware campaigns targeting financial institutions, healthcare services, and critical infrastructure industries. Blackberry's quarterly Global Threat Intelligence report reveals a 40 percent rise in attacks against government agencies and the public sector between March and May, as well as a 13 percent increase in novel malware samples. Blackberry's vice president of threat research and intelligence, Ismael Valenzuela, noted that these organizations struggle to defend against the threat posed by nation-states and cybercriminals due to limited resources and immature cyber defense programs. The report described the increase in attacks against the public sector as a "sudden surge" partly attributed to "extremely active" state-sponsored threat actors linked to Russia and North Korea. These actors primarily target government agencies, military organizations, businesses, and financial institutions in the US, Europe, and South Korea. In addition, they frequently modify their methods to make their attacks more difficult to detect and defend against. The growth in cyberattacks against US institutions coincides with recent high-profile breaches affecting multiple federal agencies. This article continues to discuss the rise in cyberattacks targeting government agencies and the public sector.

    NextGov reports "Report Reveals 'Sudden Surge' in Cyberattacks Targeting Government Agencies"

  • news

    Visible to the public "A Cyberattack Has Disrupted Hospitals and Health Care in Five States"

    A recent cyberattack has disrupted hospital computer systems in several states, forcing some emergency rooms to close and ambulances to be diverted, and many primary care services remained closed on Friday as security experts worked to determine the extent of the problem and resolve it. The "data security incident" began Thursday at facilities operated by Prospect Medical Holdings, which is based in California and has hospitals and clinics there and in Texas, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Pennsylvania. Prospect Medical Holdings stated that upon learning of the data security incident, they took their systems offline to protect them and launched an investigation with the help of third-party cybersecurity specialists. The company noted that while the investigation continues, they are focused on addressing the pressing needs of their patients as they work diligently to return to normal operations as quickly as possible.

    SecurityWeek reports: "A Cyberattack Has Disrupted Hospitals and Health Care in Five States"

  • news

    Visible to the public "CISA Cybersecurity Strategic Plan: Shifting the Arc of National Risk to Create a Safer Future"

    President Biden issued the National Cybersecurity Strategy in March, outlining a clear and imperative path for the US. As the nation's Cyber Defense Agency, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) plays a pivotal role in advancing toward a future in which robust collaboration is the norm and the responsibility for more effective and equitable cybersecurity is rebalanced. CISA has released its Cybersecurity Strategic Plan for FY2024-2026 to assure accelerated progress toward this vision. The plan is centered on three goals: addressing immediate threats, hardening the environment, and driving security at scale. CISA will collaborate with partners to gain visibility into the breadth of intrusions targeting the US, enable the disruption of threat actor campaigns, ensure adversaries are quickly evicted when intrusions occur, and expedite the mitigation of exploitable conditions that adversaries repeatedly exploit. This article continues to discuss the CISA Cybersecurity Strategic Plan.

    CISA reports "CISA Cybersecurity Strategic Plan: Shifting the Arc of National Risk to Create a Safer Future"

  • news

    Visible to the public "New York Couple Plead Guilty to Bitcoin Laundering"

    A married couple from New York dubbed "Bitcoin Bonnie and Crypto Clyde" recently pleaded guilty to laundering billions of dollars in stolen bitcoin. Ilya Lichtenstein, 35, and Heather Morgan, 33, were arrested in February last year after the US government seized 95,000 bitcoin, then valued at $3.6 billion. Prosecutors said the pair stole the bitcoin in 2016 using "advanced hacking tools." Authorities recovered the funds from wallets controlled by the duo. The Southern District of New York stated that since their arrests, the government has seized another approximately $475 million tied to the hack. In total, the couple admitted to laundering conspiracies arising from the theft of approximately 120,000 bitcoin from Bitfinex, a global cryptocurrency exchange. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Prosecutors noted that Lichtenstein, at times with Morgan's help, "employed numerous sophisticated laundering techniques." That included using fictitious identities to set up online accounts and utilizing computer programs to automate transactions. They deposited the stolen funds into accounts in various darknet markets and cryptocurrency exchanges and then withdrew the money, which confuses the transaction history. The couple also converted bitcoin to other forms of cryptocurrency and even exchanged a portion of the stolen funds into gold coins, which Morgan then concealed by burying them.

    SecurityWeek reports: "New York Couple Plead Guilty to Bitcoin Laundering"

  • news

    Visible to the public "CPU Security Loophole: Analysis of Energy Consumption Allows Data Theft"

    Central Processing Units (CPUs) are designed to run multiple applications simultaneously, which is advantageous for productivity, but poses a security risk. By analyzing the processor's energy consumption, researchers at TU Graz and the Helmholtz Center for Information Security have discovered a novel technique named "Collide+Power" that enables attackers to read data from the memory of CPUs. The adversary stores a data package on a CPU segment in this attack. In the second phase, malicious code causes the attacker's data to be overwritten with the targeted data. This overwriting consumes power, and the greater the difference between the two data packages, the more power is consumed. The process is repeated thousands of times, each time with minimally different attacker data packages to be overwritten. The targeted data package can be derived from the variations in power consumption that occur throughout this process. This article continues to discuss the novel security gap in all common CPUs that is difficult to mitigate.

    Graz University of Technology reports "CPU Security Loophole: Analysis of Energy Consumption Allows Data Theft"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Credentials Account For Over Half of Cloud Compromises"

    Google recently discovered that over half (55%) of public cloud compromises in the first three months of the year were down to a missing or weak password. Google noted that the second most common compromise factor in the period was misconfiguration, which accounted for 19% of incidents. Google said misconfigurations could also be linked to other compromise factors, such as exposure of sensitive UIs or APIs, which accounted for 12% of incidents. Google noted that the top risk action leading to compromise in Google Cloud environments was overwhelmingly cross-project abuse of access token generation permission (75%). Google stated that this can be associated with the MITRE ATT&CK tactic of privilege escalation and the technique of "valid accounts: cloud accounts." In second place came replacement of existing compute disks or snapshots, which accounted for 12% of alerts detected by Google.

    Infosecurity reports: "Credentials Account For Over Half of Cloud Compromises"

  • news

    Visible to the public "U-M Researchers Play Role in Creating New California Privacy Choice Icon"

    California has enacted a new online privacy icon designed to give users greater authority over their personal information. Researchers from the University of Michigan's School of Information (UMSI) led the research to create the icon, simplifying consumers' privacy choices. According to Florian Schaub, associate professor of information at the University of Michigan, consolidation was found to be the most important aspect of the design when testing different styles of icons to get consumers' reactions. One link is the most effective and easy-to-understand alternative to multiple links for different aspects of a privacy policy. Implementing clear opt-out options and concrete privacy choices will benefit consumers by easing their control over their personal data. Schaub, Yixin Zou, a former doctoral candidate at UMSI, as well as researchers from Carnegie Mellon University and Fordham University collaborated with the California attorney general's office to research the misconceptions some users had about different privacy icons. They conducted multiple rounds of research and testing to eliminate misconceptions and ensure that the icon effectively conveys the essence of privacy options. This article continues to discuss the new California privacy choice icon.

    The University of Michigan reports "U-M Researchers Play Role in Creating New California Privacy Choice Icon"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Malicious npm Packages Found Exfiltrating Sensitive Data from Developers"

    Researchers have found a new set of malicious packages on the npm package registry that are designed to steal sensitive developer information. On July 31, 2023, the software supply chain company Phylum discovered the "test" packages, which showed increasing capability and refinement before being removed and re-uploaded under new, legitimate-sounding package names. While the campaign's ultimate goal remains unclear, it is believed to be a highly focused effort directed at the cryptocurrency sector based on references to modules such as "rocketrefer" and "binarium." Malikrukd4732, a npm user, published all of the packages. A feature shared by all the modules is the ability to execute JavaScript ("index.js") capable of exfiltrating sensitive information to a remote server. This article continues to discuss findings regarding the new set of malicious npm packages.

    THN reports "Malicious npm Packages Found Exfiltrating Sensitive Data from Developers"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Hacktivists Fund Their Operations Using Common Cybercrime Tactics"

    Hacktivist groups that operate for political or ideological reasons use various strategies to finance their operations. Although hacktivism appears to be about inflicting service disruption through Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks or reputational damage through data leaks, the modus operandi of these threat groups spans a larger array of operations, including common cybercrime strategies, according to the cyber intelligence company KELA. These tactics include stealing and selling data, selling malware and botnet licenses, demanding ransom from victims, and even offering hack-for-hire services that target non-political entities. For example, the pro-Russia hacktivist group KillNet promoted a botnet-for-hire in November 2021, but their monetization methods grew significantly in 2023. KillNet introduced a hack-for-hire service in March 2023, a new DDoS-for-hire service in July 2023, and a 'Dark School' training program in May 2023, selling nine hacking courses to hackers. This article continues to discuss the different ways in which hacktivists fund their operations.

    Bleeping Computer reports "Hacktivists Fund Their Operations Using Common Cybercrime Tactics"

  • news

    Visible to the public "VPNs Remain a Risky Gamble for Remote Access"

    According to a new Zscaler report, organizations are concerned about network security because of the threats posed by Virtual Private Networks (VPNs). Due to the increased threat of cybercriminals exploiting VPN vulnerabilities, the report emphasizes the need for organizations to reevaluate their security posture and shift to a zero-trust architecture. According to the report, 92 percent of survey respondents understand the importance of implementing a zero-trust architecture. However, many organizations continue to use VPNs for remote employee and third-party access, unknowingly creating a major attack surface for threat actors. Eighty-eight percent of organizations are concerned about potential breaches caused by VPN vulnerabilities. Organizations are particularly concerned about possible phishing attacks (49 percent) and ransomware attacks (40 percent) as a result of regular VPN usage. Nearly half of the companies reported being targeted by attackers who were able to exploit a VPN flaw, such as outdated protocols or data leaks. This article continues to discuss key findings and points from Zscaler's report on VPNs.

    Help Net Security reports "VPNs Remain a Risky Gamble for Remote Access"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Exclusive: CISA Sounds the Alarm on UEFI Security"

    The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) is calling for improved security for Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) update mechanisms in the wake of the debacle that has been mitigating the BlackLotus bootkit. CISA urges the computer industry to adopt a secure-by-design approach to improve the overall security of UEFI, which is the firmware responsible for a system's boot-up routine. It comprises several components: security and platform initializers, drivers, bootloaders, and a power management interface. According to Jonathan Spring, senior technical advisor at CISA, secure-by-design is about having the companies that create the software take responsibility for the security, which includes the update pathways. Threat actors can gain a high level of persistence on a device if UEFI is loaded with malicious code. That code will launch before the operating system or any security software, making it invisible to most incident response strategies and operating system-level defenses, as well as resistant to system reboots. This article continues to discuss the importance of improving UEFI security.

    Dark Reading reports "Exclusive: CISA Sounds the Alarm on UEFI Security"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Researcher Explores Effect of Hospital Mergers on Data Breaches"

    According to research conducted by a University of Texas at Dallas doctoral student, patient data is especially vulnerable during and after hospital mergers and acquisitions, when the likelihood of a cybersecurity breach more than doubles. Nan Clement, a Ph.D. candidate in economics at the School of Economic, Political, and Policy Sciences, noted that the announcement of a merger is enough to cause an increase in data breaches. Clement analyzed hospital merger records and archived data breach reporting from the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) from 2010 to 2022. She discovered that in a two-year window around hospital consolidation (one year before a deal is closed and one year after), the probability of data breaches in merger targets, buyers, and sellers increased significantly. The probability of a data breach during the two-year window was 6 percent. In comparison, it was a 3 percent probability of a data breach for hospitals that merged over the course of the data set, but were not within the two-year window. This article continues to discuss the study on the impact of hospital mergers on data breaches.

    The University of Texas at Dallas reports "Researcher Explores Effect of Hospital Mergers on Data Breaches"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Researchers Strengthen Defenses Against Common Cyberattack"

    Scientists have developed a method that improves the detection of a common Internet attack by 90 percent compared to current methods. The new technique developed by computer scientists at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) of the US Department of Energy (DOE) monitors the Internet's ever-changing traffic patterns. PNNL scientist Omer Subasi presented the findings on August 2 at the IEEE International Conference on Cyber Security and Resilience, where the manuscript was deemed the best research paper presented at the conference. The scientists modified the standard playbook for detecting Denial-of-Service (DoS) attacks, in which attackers attempt to bring down a website by bombarding it with requests. In order to increase detection accuracy, the PNNL team sidestepped thresholds and instead focused on the evolution of entropy, a measure of system disorder. This article continues to discuss the new method PNNL researchers developed to recognize a common Internet attack.

    Pacific Northwest National Laboratory reports "Researchers Strengthen Defenses Against Common Cyberattack"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Satellites Easier to Hack Than a Windows Device"

    According to a new paper by a team of researchers from Ruhr University Bochum and the CISPA Helmholtz Center for Information Security in Saarbrucken, satellites are vulnerable to cyberattacks and do not even use basic cryptography. The research team analyzed two smallsats and one medium-sized device. One of the satellites is used commercially and orbits the planet in order to monitor Earth. Rarely do commercial companies disclose information about their software. However, with the help of the European Space Agency (ESA), several universities engaged in the building of satellites, and a commercial company, researchers were able to gain access to sensitive information. Johannes Willbold, a Ph.D. student from Bochum and one of the leaders of the paper's research team, told Cybernews that his group discovered several exploitable flaws in satellites. According to Willbold, malicious hackers could hack them using off-the-shelf equipment. This article continues to discuss Willbold's insights and research on satellite security and why a hacker would target a satellite.

    Cybernews reports "Satellites Easier to Hack Than a Windows Device"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Microsoft Teams Targeted in Midnight Blizzard Phishing Attacks"

    Microsoft Threat Intelligence has recently announced that it detected a series of highly targeted social engineering attacks employing credential theft phishing lures delivered as Microsoft Teams chats. Microsoft stated that these attacks have been traced back to the threat actor known as Midnight Blizzard, previously identified as Nobelium. The method used by the Russia-based threat actor involves exploiting previously compromised Microsoft 365 tenants owned by small businesses to create seemingly legitimate technical support entities. Using these domains from compromised tenants, Midnight Blizzard sends messages through Microsoft Teams to steal credentials by persuading users to approve multi-factor authentication (MFA) prompts. Microsoft's investigation revealed that roughly 40 global organizations have been affected by this campaign. Microsoft noted that the targeted sectors indicate specific espionage objectives by Midnight Blizzard, including government, non-government organizations (NGOs), IT services, technology, discrete manufacturing, and media entities. CEO of My1Login, Mike Newman, stated that this is a highly sophisticated phishing scam that would be almost impossible to detect to the untrained eye. To protect against such attacks, Microsoft advised organizations to implement phishing-resistant authentication methods, use conditional access authentication strength for critical applications, and educate users about social engineering and credential phishing threats.

    Infosecurity reports: "Microsoft Teams Targeted in Midnight Blizzard Phishing Attacks"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Google Awards Over $60,000 for V8 Vulnerabilities Patched With Chrome 115 Update"

    Google recently announced a Chrome 115 update that patches 17 vulnerabilities, including 11 flaws reported by external researchers. Google noted that the browser update resolves three high-severity type confusion bugs in the V8 JavaScript and WebAssembly engine that earned the reporting researchers over $60,000 in bug bounties. The company stated that it handed out $43,000 in rewards to a security researcher named "Jerry," who reported two of these V8 issues, tracked as CVE-2023-4068 and CVE-2023-4070. A $21,000 bug bounty was awarded to Man Yue Mo of GitHub Security Lab for reporting the third type of confusion bug, tracked as CVE-2023-4069. The latest Chrome update also resolves six other high-severity vulnerabilities. Based on the paid bug bounties, the most severe of these is CVE-2023-4071, a heap buffer overflow bug in Visuals. Next in line is an out-of-bounds read and write issue in WebGL (CVE-2023-4072), followed by an out-of-bounds memory access flaw in the ANGLE graphics engine abstraction layer (CVE-2023-4073). The remaining three high-severity security defects that were externally reported are use-after-free vulnerabilities in Blink Task Scheduling, Cast, and WebRTC. Google noted that the latest Chrome iteration also resolves two medium-severity bugs in Extensions: an insufficient data validation and an inappropriate implementation issue. Google says it handed out a total of $123,000 in bug bounty rewards to the reporting researchers. The latest Chrome release is currently rolling out as version 115.0.5790.170 for Mac and Linux and as versions 115.0.5790.170/.171 for Windows. Google makes no mention of any of these vulnerabilities being exploited in attacks.

    SecurityWeek reports: "Google Awards Over $60,000 for V8 Vulnerabilities Patched With Chrome 115 Update"

  • news

    Visible to the public "U.S. and International Cybersecurity Partners Warn Organizations of Routinely Exploited Vulnerabilities"

    The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the National Security Agency (NSA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and international cybersecurity partners have published an advisory on the Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs), to include associated Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE), that were routinely and frequently exploited by malicious actors in 2022. The joint Cybersecurity Advisory, titled "2022 Top Routinely Exploited Vulnerabilities," provides technical background information on the 12 most exploited vulnerabilities and an overview of an additional 30 vulnerabilities frequently used to compromise organizations, as well as specific information that organizations can use to identify and mitigate their exposure. This advisory describes the CWEs associated with these vulnerabilities for the first time, reflecting the underlying root causes that lead to the exploitable vulnerability. To reduce the prevalence of common classes of vulnerabilities, this advisory suggests technology vendors implement specific secure-by-design principles and ensure that all published CVEs contain the correct CWE identifying the vulnerability's root cause. This article continues to discuss the new joint advisory urging organizations to implement secure-by-design practices and prioritize patching known exploited vulnerabilities.

    CISA reports "U.S. and International Cybersecurity Partners Warn Organizations of Routinely Exploited Vulnerabilities"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Python Versions of Stealer Malware Discovered Targeting Facebook Business Accounts"

    Researchers have discovered a previously unknown phishing campaign that targets Facebook business accounts and distributes two variants of a Python-written infostealer. Palo Alto Networks Unit 42 reported finding Python variants of the NodeStealer malware while exploring the trend of threat actors targeting Facebook business accounts with phishing lures involving business tools such as spreadsheet templates. Meta described NodeStealer in May, noting that the JavaScript-written malware allowed threat actors to steal browser cookies and hijack accounts. The Python versions of the malware are an improvement over the original by adding cryptocurrency theft capabilities, downloader capabilities, and the ability to take over Facebook business accounts. In addition to the direct impact on Facebook business accounts, which is primarily financial, the malware also steals browser credentials that can be used for future attacks. According to Unit 42 researchers, the campaign ran until December 2022 and is no longer active. However, the researchers believe that the threat actors behind the attacks will continue to develop NodeStealer or use similar techniques to continue targeting Facebook business accounts. This article continues to discuss the Python versions of the NodeStealer malware targeting Facebook business accounts.

    SC Magazine reports "Python Versions of Stealer Malware Discovered Targeting Facebook Business Accounts"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Salesforce Email Service Zero-Day Exploited in Phishing Campaign"

    According to security researchers at Guardio, threat actors have exploited a Salesforce zero-day vulnerability and abused Meta features in a sophisticated phishing campaign. Attackers sent out legitimate-looking emails designed to lure targeted users to a phishing page where they were instructed to hand over their Facebook account information, including their name, account name, email address, phone number, and password. The researchers noted that the emails mentioned the targeted user's real name, appeared to come from "Meta Platforms," and were sent from an @salesforce[.]com address. A button included in the email led users to a legitimate Facebook domain, "apps.facebook[.]com", where they were informed about violating Facebook's terms of service. When users clicked on a button to resolve the issue, they were taken to a phishing page that instructed them to provide their information. The researchers stated that the fact that the email came from an @salesforce[.]com address and the link it included pointed to facebook[.]com helped the phishing emails bypass traditional security mechanisms. The analysis revealed that the attackers had targeted the Email Gateway component in the Salesforce CRM, specifically an "Email-To-Case" feature designed to convert customer inbound emails into actionable tickets in Salesforce. By abusing this feature, the attacker managed to receive verification emails that gave them control over a genuine Salesforce email address that they could use to send out the phishing emails. As for Facebook, the phishing page was hosted on a legacy web games platform offered by Facebook until 2021. The researchers noted that while the platform has been discontinued, games developed prior to this date can still receive support, and it appears that the attackers gained access to an account associated with such a game. They used that account to host their phishing page. The researchers notified Salesforce on June 28, and a fix was rolled out to all impacted services and instances within a month, preventing the use of an address from the Salesforce domain to send emails. Salesforce said it had no evidence of impact to customer data.

    SecurityWeek reports: "Salesforce Email Service Zero-Day Exploited in Phishing Campaign"

  • news

    Visible to the public "OWASP Top 10 for LLM (Large Language Model) Applications"

    The Open Worldwide Application Security Project (OWASP) has released the "OWASP Top 10 for Large Language Model (LLM) Applications" list, which highlights the most critical vulnerabilities impacting LLM applications. The project aims to educate developers, designers, architects, managers, and organizations on the security issues associated with the deployment of LLMs. The organization notes that developers and security experts who design and implement LLM applications are the primary audiences for its Top 10. However, other stakeholders in the LLM ecosystem, such as academics, legal professionals, compliance officers, and end users, may be interested in this list. Nearly 500 security specialists, Artificial Intelligence (AI) researchers, developers, industry leaders, and academics contributed to the compilation of this list. This article continues to discuss the goals of the OWASP Top 10 for LLM Applications project and the most critical vulnerabilities included on the list.

    Security Affairs reports "OWASP Top 10 for LLM (Large Language Model) Applications"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Humans Unable to Reliably Detect Deepfake Speech"

    Researchers from the University College London (UCL) have discovered that humans cannot detect deepfake speech 27% of the time. During the study, the researchers presented 529 individuals with genuine and deepfake audio samples and asked them to identify the deepfakes. Participants could only identify the fake audio 73% of the time, although detection accuracy improved by 3.84% on average after they received training to recognize aspects of deepfake speech. The researchers noted that they used a text-to-speech (TTS) algorithm trained on two publicly available datasets to produce the deepfake speech samples. These were run in English and Mandarin to understand if language can affect detection performance and decision-making rationale. The researchers stated that their findings confirm that humans are unable to reliably detect deepfake speech, whether or not they have received training to help them spot artificial content. The researchers noted that the samples that they used in this study were created with algorithms that are relatively old, which raises the question of whether humans would be less able to detect deepfake speech created using the most sophisticated technology available now and in the future. The researchers are now planning to develop better automated speech detectors as part of efforts to create detection capabilities for deepfake audio and imagery.

    Infosecurity reports: "Humans Unable to Reliably Detect Deepfake Speech"

  • news

    Visible to the public "NSA Releases Guide to Harden Cisco Next Generation Firewalls"

    The National Security Agency (NSA) has issued a new Cybersecurity Technical Report (CTR) titled "Cisco Firepower Hardening Guide" to help network and system administrators configure these next generation firewalls (NGFWs). The CTR covers properly configuring NGFWs and provides best practices for configuring and hardening Cisco Firepower Threat Defense (FTD), now known as Cisco Secure Firewall, systems beyond default security features and traditional firewall capabilities. The report notes that Cisco FTD systems are NGFWs that incorporate application and network layer security features. In addition to traditional features, NGFWs offer application visibility and controls (AVC), URL filtering, user identity and authentication, malware protection, and intrusion prevention. This article continues to discuss NSA's CTR on strengthening the security of Cisco NGFWs.

    NSA reports "NSA Releases Guide to Harden Cisco Next Generation Firewalls"

  • news

    Visible to the public "Tesla Jailbreak Unlocks Theft of In-Car Paid Features"

    Tesla cars are vulnerable to a nearly irreversible jailbreak of their onboard infotainment systems, which would enable owners to gain access to a variety of paid in-car features for free. According to a team of researchers, the stolen benefits can range from better bandwidth to faster acceleration and heated seats. The researchers also discovered that it is possible to escape the infotainment system and switch to the internal Tesla network for authenticating cars, which opens the door to more advanced modding, including breaking geolocation restrictions on navigation and self-driving and the ability to transfer the Tesla's "user profile" to another vehicle. Teslas have been at the forefront of enabling "smart" features, notably autonomous driving, for quite some time. All recent Tesla models feature an AMD-based infotainment system called MCU-Z, allowing an innovative in-car purchase scheme for advanced features enabled over-the-air (OTA) upon purchase. This was the target of a group of doctoral students in the Technical University of Berlin graduate program and independent researcher Oleg Drokin. This article continues to discuss the researchers' demonstrated jailbreaking of Tesla cars.

    Dark Reading reports "Tesla Jailbreak Unlocks Theft of In-Car Paid Features"