Cookie Settings

This website uses cookies and similar technologies to provide essential functionality and improve your experience. Some features, such as demo scheduling and chat support, require marketing cookies to function. By clicking "Accept All", you consent to all cookies. Alternatively, you can customize your preferences, but note that declining marketing cookies will limit certain website features.

Cyware Weekly Cyber Threat Intelligence August 27 - 31, 2018

Cyware Weekly Cyber Threat Intelligence August 27 - 31, 2018 - Featured Image

Weekly Threat Briefing Sep 3, 2018

The Good

Friday is here once again and that means it’s time for the weekly roundup of the biggest and most important cyber stories that came out over the past week. Before we dive into the latest malware, vulnerabilities and threat actors that cropped up, let’s take a look at all the positive advancements that took place in cyberspace this week. The US government charged a man over his connections to the Satori botnet. Instagram boosted its security and transparency and Germany set up a DARPA-like cybersecurity agency.

  • Instagram introduced three primary features this week, aimed at boosting its security and transparency. The features will allow users to better verify the authenticity of accounts that have a large following, use third-party apps such as Google Authenticator for two-factor authentication and apply to obtain the coveted blue tick for their accounts.

  • The US government charged 20-year-old Kenneth Schuchman over his alleged involvement with the Satori botnet. Schuchman has been charged with two counts of violating the U.S. Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and is believed to be the online persona Nexus Zeta who is believed to have operated Satori.

  • Germany has announced the creation of a new DARPA-like federal agency that will be tasked with creating cutting-edge technologies. The new agency will be responsible for creating new tech that will advance the nation’s cyber defensive capabilities.

  • A hacker that stole and leaked personal photos of Jennifer Lawrence and other Hollywood A-listers, has been sentenced to eight months in prison. George Garofano, 26, was accused of illegally hacking the private Apple iCloud accounts of 240 people.

The Bad

The past week saw several major data breaches emerge. Brazilian cryptocurrency investment platform Atlas Quantum was hit by hackers. A Chinese hotel chain suffered a breach that resulted in the personal data of 130 million of its customers ending up on the dark web.

  • Brazilian cryptocurrency investment platform Atlas Quantum was hit by hackers that affected 261,000 customers. The attackers stole information such as included customers names, phone numbers, email addresses, and account balances.

  • Chinese hotel chain - Huazhu Hotels Group Ltd. - suffered a breach earlier this month. The breach resulted in the personal data of 130 million of its customers ending up on the dark web. The stolen data was found being peddled on a Chinese dark web forum for 8 bitcoins.

  • ABBYY, the optical character recognition software provider, inadvertently exposed over 200,000 highly sensitive corporate documents. The breach was caused by an unprotected MongoDB database that contained over 142GB of sensitive data.

  • Air Canada suffered a data breach that may have compromised the personal data of around 20,000 of the airline’s mobile app users. The exposed data likely included users’ names, email addresses and phone numbers. The airline said that it discovered the breach between August 22 to 24 after the company noticed unusual login behavior on its mobile app.

New Threats

The past week saw numerous new malware, scams and vulnerabilities pop up. Security researchers discovered a new Android spyware called BusyGasper. A new triple threat malware called Android.Banking.L was uncovered which contains keylogging, banking malware and ransomware capabilities.

  • BusyGasper is a newly discovered Android spyware that comes with features such as the ability to detect motion, keylog and steal data. Although BusyGasper is not considered to be all that sophisticated, the spyware has around 100 commands. It is also capable of exfiltrating data from messaging apps like Facebook, WhatsApp and Viber.
  • A new version of the CEIDPageLock rootkit was found being distributed via the Rig exploit kit. The latest version of the rootkit is capable of hijacking browser sessions as well as monitoring browsing activities, replacing websites with fraud pages and redirecting victims to these fake pages.
  • A new triple threat malware called Android.Banker.L has been discovered. The malware contained keylogging, banking malware and ransomware capabilities. It can also forward calls and record audio.
  • The Asacub malware, which first appeared in 2015, has been updated to include additional features. The malware has infected over 250,000 users in Russia. Asacab’s increasing infections helped it rise rapidly last year, even outperforming other banking malware variants such as Svpeng and Faketoken.

Related Threat Briefings

Feb 7, 2025

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, February 03–07, 2025

PyPI is taking a "dead but not gone" approach to abandoned software with Project Archival, a new system that flags inactive projects while keeping them accessible. Developers will see warnings about outdated dependencies, helping them make smarter security choices and avoid relying on unmaintained code. The U.K is bringing earthquake-style metrics to cybersecurity with its new Cyber Monitoring Centre, designed to track digital disasters as precisely as natural ones. Inspired by the Richter scale, the CMC will quantify cyber incidents based on financial impact and affected users, offering clearer insights for national security planning. Kimsuky is back with another phishing trick, this time using fake Office and PDF files to sneak forceCopy malware onto victims' systems. Its latest campaign delivers PEBBLEDASH and RDP Wrapper by disguising malware as harmless shortcuts, ultimately hijacking browser credentials and sensitive data. Hackers have found a new way to skim credit card data - by hiding malware inside Google Tag Manager scripts. CISA is flagging major security holes in Microsoft Outlook and Sophos XG Firewall, urging agencies to patch them before February 27. One flaw allows remote code execution in Outlook, while another exposes firewall users to serious risks. Bitcoin scammers are switching tactics, swapping static images for video attachments in MMS to make their schemes more convincing. A recent case involved a tiny .3gp video luring victims into WhatsApp groups where scammers apply pressure to extract money or personal data. XE Group has shifted from credit card skimming to zero-day exploitation, now targeting manufacturing and distribution companies. A new version of ValleyRAT is making the rounds, using stealthy techniques to infiltrate systems. Morphisec found the malware being spread through fake Chrome downloads from a fraudulent Chinese telecom site.

Jan 10, 2025

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, January 06–10, 2025

The U.K is fortifying its digital defenses with the launch of Cyber Local, a £1.9 million initiative to bridge cyber skills gaps and secure the digital economy. Spanning 30 projects across England and Northern Ireland, the scheme emphasizes local business resilience, neurodiverse talent, and cybersecurity careers for youth. Across the Atlantic, the White House introduced the U.S. Cyber Trust Mark, a consumer-friendly cybersecurity labeling program for smart devices. Overseen by the FCC, the initiative tests products like baby monitors and security systems for compliance with rigorous cybersecurity standards, ensuring Americans can make safer choices for their connected homes. China-linked threat actor RedDelta has ramped up its cyber-espionage activities across Asia, targeting nations such as Mongolia, Taiwan, Myanmar, and Vietnam with a modified PlugX backdoor. Cybercriminals have weaponized trust by deploying a fake PoC exploit tied to a patched Microsoft Windows LDAP vulnerability. CrowdStrike reported a phishing operation impersonating the company, using fake job offers to lure victims into downloading a fraudulent CRM application. Once installed, the malware deploys a Monero cryptocurrency miner. A new Mirai-based botnet, dubbed Gayfemboy, has emerged as a formidable threat, leveraging zero-day exploits in industrial routers and smart home devices. With 15,000 active bot nodes daily across China, the U.S., and Russia, the botnet executes high-intensity DDoS attacks exceeding 100 Gbps. In the Middle East, fraudsters are posing as government officials in a social engineering scheme targeting disgruntled customers. Cybercriminals have weaponized WordPress with a malicious plugin named PhishWP to create realistic fake payment pages mimicking services like Stripe. The plugin not only captures payment details in real time but also sends fake confirmation emails to delay detection.

Dec 20, 2024

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, December 16–20, 2024

In a digital age where borders are blurred, governments are sharpening their strategies to outpace cyber adversaries. The draft update to the National Cyber Incident Response Plan (NCIRP) introduces a comprehensive framework for managing nationwide cyberattacks that impact critical infrastructure and the economy. Meanwhile, the fiscal year 2025 defense policy bill, recently approved by the Senate, emphasizes strengthening cybersecurity measures both at home and abroad. A deceptive health app on the Amazon Appstore turned out to be a Trojan horse for spyware. Masquerading as BMI CalculationVsn, the app recorded device screens, intercepted SMS messages, and scanned for installed apps to steal sensitive data. Malicious extensions targeting developers and cryptocurrency projects have infiltrated the VSCode marketplace and NPM. Disguised as productivity tools, these extensions employed downloader functionality to deliver obfuscated PowerShell payloads. The BADBOX botnet has resurfaced, compromising over 192,000 Android devices, including high-end smartphones and smart TVs, directly from the supply chain. Industrial control systems are facing heightened risks as malware like Ramnit and Chaya_003 targets engineering workstations from Mitsubishi and Siemens. Both malware families exploit legitimate services, complicating detection and mitigation efforts in ICS environments. The Chinese hacking group Winnti has been leveraging a PHP backdoor called Glutton, targeting organizations in China and the U.S. This modular ELF-based malware facilitates tailored attacks across industries and even embeds itself into software packages to compromise other cybercriminals. A tax-themed phishing campaign, dubbed FLUX#CONSOLE, is deploying backdoor payloads to compromise systems in Pakistan. Threat actors employ phishing emails with double-extension files masquerading as PDFs.

Dec 13, 2024

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, December 09–13, 2024

Cybercrime’s web of deception unraveled in South Korea as authorities dismantled a fraud network responsible for extorting $6.3 million through fake online trading platforms. Dubbed Operation Midas, the effort led to the arrest of 32 individuals and the seizure of 20 servers. In a significant move to combat surveillance abuses, the U.S. defense policy bill for 2025 introduced measures to shield military and diplomatic personnel from commercial spyware threats. The legislation calls for stringent cybersecurity standards, a review of spyware incidents, and regular reporting to Congress. The subtle art of deception found a new stage with a Microsoft Teams call, as attackers used social engineering to manipulate victims into granting remote access. By convincing users to install AnyDesk, they gained control of systems, executing commands to download the DarkGate malware. Russian APT Secret Blizzard has resurfaced and used the Amadey bot to infiltrate Ukrainian military devices and deploy their Tavdig backdoor. In a phishing spree dubbed "Aggressive Inventory Zombies (AIZ)," scammers impersonated brands like Etsy, Amazon, and Binance to target retail and crypto audiences. Surveillance has reached unsettling new depths with the discovery of BoneSpy and PlainGnome, two spyware families linked to the Russian group Gamaredon. Designed for extensive espionage, these Android malware tools track GPS, capture audio, and harvest data. A new Android banking trojan has already caused havoc among Indian users, masquerading as utility and banking apps to steal sensitive financial information. With 419 devices compromised, the malware intercepts SMS messages, exfiltrates personal data via Supabase, and even tricks victims into entering details under the pretense of bill payment. Iranian threat actors have set their sights on critical infrastructure, deploying IOCONTROL malware to infiltrate IoT and OT/SCADA systems in Israel and the U.S.

Dec 6, 2024

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, December 02–06, 2024

NIST sharpened the tools for organizations to measure their cybersecurity readiness, addressing both technical and leadership challenges. The two-volume guidance blends data-driven assessments with managerial insights, emphasizing the critical role of leadership in applying findings. The Manson Market, a notorious hub for phishing networks, fell in a sweeping Europol-led takedown. With over 50 servers seized and 200TB of stolen data recovered, the operation spanned multiple countries, including Germany and Austria. Russian APT group BlueAlpha leveraged Cloudflare Tunnels to cloak its GammaDrop malware campaign from prying eyes. The group deployed HTML smuggling and DNS fast-fluxing to bypass detection, targeting Ukrainian organizations with precision. Earth Minotaur intensified its surveillance operations against Tibetan and Uyghur communities through the MOONSHINE exploit kit. The kit, now updated with newer exploits, enables the installation of the DarkNimbus backdoor on Android and Windows devices. Cloudflare Pages became an unwitting ally in the sharp rise of phishing campaigns, with a staggering 198% increase in abuse cases. Cybercriminals exploited the platform's infrastructure to host malicious pages, fueling a surge from 460 incidents in 2023 to over 1,370 by October 2024. DroidBot has quietly infiltrated over 77 cryptocurrency exchanges and banking apps, building a web of theft across Europe. Active since June 2024, this Android malware operates as a MaaS platform, enabling affiliates to tailor attacks. Rockstar 2FA, a phishing platform targeting Microsoft 365 users, has set the stage for large-scale credential theft. With over 5,000 phishing domains launched, the platform is marketed on Telegram. The Gafgyt malware is shifting gears, targeting exposed Docker Remote API servers through legitimate Docker images, creating botnets capable of launching DDoS attacks.