Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence - April 17–21

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Weekly Threat Briefing • April 21, 2023

The Good

Cyberattacks continue to grow in complexity creating overwhelming consequences. Therefore, protecting these devices against any cyber threat requires a collaborative effort from individuals, organizations, and law enforcement authorities. Keeping this aspect in view, the agencies from Five Eyes countries have issued a cybersecurity best practice guide to improve the security posture of smart city systems. Meanwhile, the EU Commission is working on new security regulations with the aim to boost defense and establish a common incident response plan across EU member states.

  • The CISA, in collaboration with the NSA, the FBI, the NCSC-UK, the ACSC, the CCCS, and the NCSC-NZ, has issued guidelines on best cybersecurity practices for smart cities. It provides an overview of risks associated with ICT supply chain risks, interconnected attack surfaces, and increased use of automation in operations.

  • The European Commission has published the first draft of its Cyber Solidarity Act which focuses on improving cybersecurity across EU member states and establishing a common incident response plan. The new regulations include three major areas of interest; the establishment of a European Cybersecurity Shield, the introduction of a new Cyber Emergency Mechanism, and the creation of the Cybersecurity Incident Review Mechanism.

  • The HHS cybersecurity task force has updated the Health Industry Cybersecurity Practices (HICP) with three new resources to help healthcare organizations address cybersecurity risks effectively. The HICP 2023, which is based on inputs from more than 150 industry experts, includes a free educational platform to train staff on social engineering, malicious data loss, identity theft, and more.

  • ESET researchers, with the help of GitHub, have temporarily disrupted the operations of RedLine Stealer. The experts managed to pull off this act as the malware used GitHub repositories as dead-drop resolvers in the control panel. ESET shared this finding with GitHub, which immediately suspended the repositories.

The Bad

Despite the positive developments, the cybersecurity space witnessed some massive data leak incidents arising due to misconfigured cloud assets. More than 8,000 poorly-secured servers were found exposing sensitive information such as login credentials, database backups, and configuration files online. On the other hand, an unprotected database belonging to the Philippine National Police had laid bare over 1.2 million records containing personal details and tax identification numbers of its employees. Researchers also warned about obsolete routers leaking corporate network information, which increases the chance of fraudulent schemes.

  • A misconfigured database exposed more than 1.2 million police records on the internet. The database also included 800 GB of information on people who applied for employment in law enforcement in the Philippines, along with documents on tax identification numbers of law enforcers. It is believed that the database had been left exposed for at least six weeks.

  • Network infrastructure provider CommScope confirmed suffering a ransomware attack that took place last month. Vice Society had claimed responsibility for the attack and for stealing the sensitive data of over 30,000 employees.

  • Capita, a London-based corporation, admitted to a ransomware attack that may have compromised the data of some of its staff, potential customers, and vendors. Meanwhile, BlackBasta claimed responsibility for the attack and further added that it has put up for sale sensitive data stolen from the firm. This includes bank account information, addresses, and passport photos.

  • Researchers indexed more than 8,000 misconfigured servers that exposed sensitive information and database backups to the public. Furthermore, over 18,000 comma-separated value files and another 2,000 SQL database files could also be accessed without any authentication. This huge volume of exposed data can be used by attackers to launch malicious attacks.

  • Researchers warned that decommissioned core routers from Cisco, Juniper, and Fortinet were found leaking corporate network information, including credentials, and data on applications, customers, vendors, and partners. The applications exposed in the routers included Microsoft SharePoint, Microsoft Exchange, Spiceworks SQL, VMWare Horizon View, and Salesforce.

  • Point32Health, a New England health insurance firm, is dealing with a ransomware attack that impacted several of its systems. The firm detected the attack on April 17 after it was unable to access the systems for service members, accounts, brokers, and providers. Upon detecting the unauthorized activity, it proactively took certain systems offline to contain the threat.

  • Payment processing giant NCR disclosed that it was a victim of a ransomware attack that occurred last weekend. This caused a PoS outage and affected multiple companies using the service. One of the affected systems was Aloha, the payments service which is used by multiple restaurants.

  • Microsoft uncovered a Remcos RAT campaign that targeted organizations dealing with tax preparation, financial services, CPA, bookkeeping, and accounting. As part of the campaign, the attackers relied on legitimate links that redirected recipients to fake tax documents sent by clients.

New Threats

Besides data leaks, a surge in the adoption of new attack tactics and techniques was also observed this week. While the MuddyWater APT was found abusing yet another legitimate tool, SimpleHelp, to bypass traditional security checks, the Play ransomware group upgraded its arsenal with two new .NET tools to improve the effectiveness of its attacks. Furthermore, a hacking tool, dubbed AuKill, came in handy for intruders deploying backdoors and ransomware in BYOVD attacks.

  • The Iranian threat actor group, MuddyWater, was found abusing yet another legitimate tool, called SimpleHelp, to ensnare more victims. The tool enabled threat actors to take control of the victim’s devices and maintain persistence without being detected by traditional security tools. The tool also allowed the attackers to execute various arbitrary commands on the targeted device.
  • Government agencies in the U.S. and the U.K issued a joint advisory to warn organizations about attacks targeting an old vulnerability in Cisco routers. The attacks are attributed to the Fancy Bear threat group and the flaw in question is CVE-2017-6742. It can allow unauthenticated attackers to execute arbitrary code on the targeted device by sending specially crafted SNMP packets. The attackers are exploiting the vulnerability to deploy a custom malware, named Jaguar Tooth.
  • The Play ransomware group added two custom tools written in .NET to expand the effectiveness of its attacks. Named Grixba and Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS), these tools enable attackers to keep track of users in compromised networks and gather information about security, backup, and remote administration software.
  • Google’s Threat Analysis Group (TAG) deciphered multiple Russian threat actor groups involved in different large-scale phishing attacks. One of them is identified as FROZENLAKE, which is active since 2022. The attackers focus on targeting webmail users in Eastern Europe. Another notable adversary is FROZENBARENTS (aka Sandworm), which was engaged in attacks against organizations affiliated with the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) and other entities in the energy sector in Ukraine.
  • Researchers observed a new variant of LockBit ransomware that focuses on disrupting macOS systems. While the variant is in active development, it is revealed that the malware enables threat actors to encrypt files stored on ARM-powered Macs.
  • In another update, the NCSC warned about a new class of Russian adversaries that focused on performing DDoS attacks against critical entities such as airports, parliaments, and government sites. Hence the agency advised all organizations to implement recommended actions to increase the security of system administration.
  • State-backed hacking groups are using a new hacking tool, dubbed AuKill, to disable EDR software on target’s systems before deploying backdoors and ransomware in BYOVD attacks. The tool uses several threads to continuously probe and disable security processes and services. So far, the tool has been used in at least three separate attacks launched by Medusa Locker and LockBit.
  • A subgroup of the Phosphorous APT group has been found leveraging N-day vulnerabilities to launch low-volume phishing attacks against US critical infrastructure including seaports, energy companies, and transit systems. Among the other tactics are the use of post-compromise tools, an obscure C2 communication protocol, and a third custom implant.
  • Poorly secured MS-SQL servers were found being hacked to deploy Trigona ransomware and encrypt all files. The servers were breached via brute-force attacks. After connecting to a server, the attackers deployed a malware dubbed CLR Shell in the first stage and Trigona ransomware in the last stage of the attack.
  • The CISA released a new report on ICONICSTEALER, an info-stealer used in the supply chain attack against 3CX’s desktop app. The malware is designed to primarily steal sensitive data from a victim user's web browser.
  • Secureworks researchers found a new wave of SEO poisoning attacks that distributed Bumblebee malware on victims’ systems. Booby-trapped versions of legitimate software were pushed in the Google search ads to trick unsuspecting users into downloading it.
  • Threat actors abused Eval PHP, an abandoned WordPress plugin, to take over and backdoor websites. The plugin allowed attackers to insert malicious PHP code into pages and posts on WordPress sites. These malicious codes are executed every time the posts or the pages are opened in a browser.

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Apr 11, 2025

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Mar 21, 2025

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, March 17–21, 2025

The race to outpace quantum threats is officially on. The NCSC has issued guidance to help organizations transition to post-quantum cryptography by 2035, with a focus on NIST-approved algorithms and planned support for critical sectors. A nationwide fraud crackdown ends with hundreds behind bars. Operation Henhouse led to 422 arrests and the seizure of millions in assets, as U.K. police target the country’s most widespread and costly crime - fraud. A threat actor briefly exposed their entire playbook. Researchers found a public server hosting tools tied to a campaign targeting South Korea, including a Rust-compiled payload delivering Cobalt Strike Cat and a list of over 1,000 potential targets. Phishing messages on Signal are leading to full system compromise. CERT-UA warns of DarkCrystal RAT attacks targeting Ukraine’s defense sector, using fake contacts and malicious files to trick victims into executing spyware. Ransomware slipped into VSCode under the radar. Two malicious extensions were discovered on the VSCode Marketplace, bypassing checks to deliver test-stage ransomware demanding ShibaCoin for decryption. Fake ads are being weaponized to steal Google credentials. A campaign targeting Semrush users is redirecting victims to spoofed login pages, where attackers harvest Google account logins through a fake “Log in with Google” prompt. A fake browser update could cost you more than a few clicks. A new ClearFake campaign is using fake reCAPTCHA and Turnstile pages to deliver malware like Lumma and Vidar Stealer, with payloads fetched through Binance’s Smart Chain. Hackers are quietly poisoning AI-generated code. A new supply chain attack targets AI editors like Copilot and Cursor, exploiting rules files to inject malicious prompts that trick the tools into writing compromised code.

Mar 14, 2025

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, March 10–14, 2025

A Russian hosting provider is feeling the heat from global sanctions. Australia, the U.K., and the U.S. have sanctioned Zservers, a bulletproof hosting provider linked to ransomware and fraud, freezing its assets and restricting operations. Switzerland is tightening its grip on cyber incident reporting. Starting April 1, critical infrastructure operatorsmust report cyberattacks to the NCSC within 24 hours, reinforcing national cybersecurity defenses. Cybercriminals are upgrading their toolkit for long-term access. Ragnar Loader is being leveraged by ransomware groups like FIN7, FIN8, and Ragnar Locker, evolving into a stealthier and more modular malware for persistent system compromise. Chinese hackers are slipping past defenses in Juniper routers. The UNC3886 threat group is backdooring older Juniper MX routers, bypassing security protections and embedding custom TinyShell malware to maintain access. North Korean hackers are adding ransomware to their arsenal. Moonstone Sleet (Storm-1789) is deploying Qilin ransomware, using fake companies and trojanized tools to infiltrate targets through LinkedIn and freelance platforms. A botnet is turning home routers into attack platforms. The Ballista botnet is exploiting an unpatched TP-Link Archer router flaw (CVE-2023-1389) to spread stealthily, using Tor domains and remote command execution to launch DDoS attacks worldwide. Copy, paste, and lose your crypto. MassJacker hijacks clipboard transactions, swapping wallet addresses with attacker-controlled ones, stealing funds from victims who unknowingly send money to the wrong destination. A fake CAPTCHA is all it takes to get root access. The OBSCURE#BAT campaign is using social engineering tactics to install the r77 rootkit, bypassing defenses and targeting English-speaking users with stealthy, persistent malware.

Mar 7, 2025

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, March 03–07, 2025

The code caves of GitHub just got a cleanup crew courtesy of Microsoft. A sprawling malvertising campaign that snagged nearly a million devices worldwide has been knocked down a peg. Cheap Android gadgets are getting a breather from a relentless digital pest. The BadBox 2.0 botnet, a souped-up sequel backed by multiple threat crews, saw 24 shady apps booted from Google Play and half a million infected devices cut off from their puppet masters, thanks to some crafty sinkholing and Google’s cleanup sweep. A sneaky gatecrasher has turned WordPress into a redirect rollercoaster. A malicious JavaScript injection lurking in a theme file has snagged at least 31 sites, pulling visitors through a two-step detour to shady third-party domains. Japan’s digital defenses are under siege from a shadowy crew with a taste for chaos. Since January, unknown threat actors have been prying open organizations in tech, telecom, entertainment, and more, exploiting CVE-2024-4577 in PHP-CGI on Windows. Crooks posing as the Electronic Frontier Foundation are targeting Albion Online players with phishing emails and fake PDFs, claiming account trouble. It’s a ruse to drop Stealc malware and Pyramid C2. A fresh face in the cybercrime underworld is juggling a bag of nasty surprises. EncryptHub is hitting users of QQ Talk, WeChat, Google Meet, and more with trojanized apps and slick multi-stage attacks. The Eleven11bot botnet, loosely tied to Iran, has taken over 86,000 IoT devices to slam telecoms and gaming servers with relentless DDoS barrages. Social media’s sunny side has a dark shadow creeping across the Middle East and North Africa. Since September 2024, Desert Dexter has been slinging a tweaked AsyncRAT via legit file-sharing sites and Telegram. For detailed Cyber Threat Intel, click ‘Read More’.

Feb 28, 2025

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, February 24–28, 2025

Stay ahead of cyber threats with the latest on the Vo1d botnet infecting Android TVs, GitVenom malware on GitHub, Redox Stealer, LCRYX ransomware, and a critical WordPress XSS vulnerability. Plus, insights on Lotus Blossom cyber espionage, PolarEdge malware targeting routers, Chrome extension hijacks, and PayPal phishing scams. Get the full security briefing now!