Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence - August 09–13

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence - August 09–13 - Featured Image

Weekly Threat Briefing August 13, 2021

The Good

Is the enemy of my enemy my friend? Probably not. But, it’s always fun to see threat actors pitting against each other. One such unhappy affiliate from the Conti gang released sensitive information as the former was unhappy about their payment. Talking about hackers, a tool has been developed that can restrict hackers from abusing Cobalt Strike beacons for malware command and control.

  • Europol detained 23 suspects accused of defrauding companies of more than $1.2 million in multiple BEC scams across 20 countries. Meanwhile, German authorities nabbed four cybercriminals for swindling millions of euros from novice investors through fake websites.
  • The U.S. Senate set aside more than $1.9 billion in cybersecurity funds for state and local governments to strengthen their cybersecurity posture and help organizations defend themselves.
  • The CobaltSpam tool developed by Mario Henkel can flood Cobalt Strike servers with fake beacons to debauch the internal databases of compromised systems. This would prevent attackers from differentiating real and fake infections.
  • An unhappy affiliate linked to the Conti ransomware gang leaked confidential information—screenshots of IP addresses, instructions and training material for new recruits, and how-to guides—on an underground forum.
  • Researchers presented a scheme—Pretty Good Phone Privacy—that can hide users’ locations from carriers with just a software upgrade.

The Bad

Given the choice between getting free vaccines and paying for a fake vaccine card, which one would you choose? ?Apparently, a lot of people are going for the latter, resulting in a rise in sales of such cards at underground marketplaces. In other news, a Chinese cyberespionage actor is posing as an Iranian threat actor and launching attacks against Israel. Crytek warned its customers of a ransomware attack by Egregor last year. Data was leaked. Yikes!

  • Waste Management Resources disclosed unauthorized access into its network that exposed healthcare information—social security numbers, dates of birth, and bank account numbers—of current and former employees and their dependents.
  • A ransomware attack on St. Joseph’s/Candler laid bare the protected healthcare information for both staff and patients. Victims have been informed.
  • Game developer and publisher Crytek alerted its customers about an Egregor ransomware attack that occurred in October 2020. Criminals leaked the stolen personal data of customers on its leak site.
  • DeFi protocol and network Poly Network lost more than $600 million in a massive cryptocurrency heist. Hackers reportedly reversed more than $4,772,000 worth of assets in less than 24 hours. However, a majority of the funds have been returned to the firm.
  • A Chinese cyberespionage group, dubbed UNC215, impersonated Iranian threat actors to target Israeli organizations in a campaign that began in January 2019.
  • The Joplin City government paid $320,000 in ransom to a ransomware group that briefly impacted the city’s COVID-19 dashboard, online utility payments, and court functions.
  • Security researchers reported a fake version of the Briansclub[.]com carding shop that was using a similar domain to lure users. The fake website was siphoning off the funds deposited by cybercriminal users of the infamous carding shop.
  • Flashpoint experts suggest AlphaBay, which used to be the largest darknet marketplace and community, could be returning after four years of hiatus.
  • The sale of fake COVID-19 vaccine cards has ramped up on the dark web, with most of the sales from the Netherlands, Switzerland, Greece, France, and Italy.

New Threats

This week left researchers questioning the characteristics of a new malware. This newly developed malware calls itself a ransomware but has the features of a wiper. Dubbed Chaos, it may be released in the wild soon. A new smishing scam is causing quite the chaos as it is very persuasive and impersonates an international parcel delivery firm. In another boat, a malvertising campaign was found using a rebranded version of the Cinobi trojan to target Japan.

  • SentinelOne warned against a new AdLoad malware variant that bypasses Apple's YARA signature-based XProtect built-in antivirus tech to infect macOS. The malware variant is connected with an ongoing attack campaign active since November 2020.
  • An under-construction malware Chaos is available for testing - as per the advertisements on dark web forums. While it claims to be a ransomware, Chaos is actually a wiper.
  • A new smishing scam is mimicking the international delivery company DPD. The scam is convincing and attempts to entice victims into giving away their payment information and other personal details.
  • AllWorld Cards, a new criminal carding marketplace, is being promoted by a threat actor who published a million credit cards stolen between 2018 and 2019. As per a ransom sampling of 98 cards, 27% of them were still active.
  • IISpy, a previously undocumented backdoor, is capable of evading detection, disrupting the server’s logging in, and conducting long-term cyberespionage.
  • A new strain of the eCh0raix ransomware is targeting Synology NAS and QNAP NAS devices. Findings until June suggest that the gang has earned quite a decent amount of ransom from Small Office and Home Office (SOHO) users.
  • The Iran-linked ITG18 threat actor deployed an Android backdoor to pilfer confidential information from at least 20 Iranian reformists. The campaign was active between August 2020 and May 2021 and used LittleLooter, a previously undocumented malware.
  • A new malvertising campaign by the Water Kappa group attempts to steal the banking credentials of Japanese targets using a rebranded version of Cinobi banking trojan.
  • FlyTrap, a new Android trojan packaged under fraudulent apps, reportedly compromised Facebook accounts of more than 10,000 users in at least 144 countries since March 2021.
  • Virtual meetings, such as Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Skype, can fall prey to an exotic attack named Glowworm. This enables threat actors to eavesdrop on confidential conversations by measuring the LED power light changes in an audio output device and converting them to audio reproductions.

Related Threat Briefings

Jun 20, 2025

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, June 16–20, 2025

As cybercriminals weave intricate webs in the digital underworld, global defenders are cutting through the chaos. Six nations toppled Archetyp Market, a darknet drug bazaar with €250 million ($288 million) in Monero deals, nabbing its admin and vendors while seizing €7.8 million ($9 million) in assets. The U.K unveiled a Cyber Growth Action Plan, injecting £16m ($21.2m) to fortify its £13.2bn ($17.5bn) cybersecurity industry after attacks bled retailers like M&S. Stateside, the U.S. reclaimed $225 million in crypto from investment scams, marking the Secret Service’s biggest digital heist bust yet. Cloud services are being quietly turned into covert attack channels. The Serpentine#Cloud campaign is abusing Cloudflare Tunnels and Python to deploy fileless malware via invoice-themed phishing lures. A popular WordPress plugin is exposing sites to full takeover. It affects the AI Engine plugin, impacting over 100,000 websites and opening the door to site-wide compromise. An official-looking email from the tax department may be anything but. Silver Fox APT is targeting Taiwanese users with phishing emails posing as the National Taxation Bureau, delivering malware like Winos 4.0, HoldingHands RAT, and Gh0stCringe. A new Android trojan is turning devices into data-harvesting tools under attackers’ full control. Attributed to the LARVA-398 group, AntiDot has infected thousands of devices through phishing and malicious ads. A fake job offer could now come bundled with custom-built spyware. PylangGhost is targeting crypto professionals in India. Delivered through spoofed job sites, the malware includes registry tampering, remote control, and data exfiltration modules aimed at compromising Windows systems. One compromised travel site is now a launchpad for infostealer infections. A new ClickFix variant, LightPerlGirl, is using fake Cloudflare CAPTCHA prompts and clipboard hijacking to deliver the Lumma infostealer.

Jun 6, 2025

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, June 02–06, 2025

Authorities have taken down a major hub for stolen financial data. The DOJ seized approximately 145 domains associated with the BidenCash marketplace, which had evolved from a small credit card shop in 2022 into a massive hub for stolen payment data. In a move to reinforce Europe’s cyber defenses, Microsoft is stepping in with strategic support. The newly launched European Security Program offers EU governments free access to AI-driven threat intelligence, vulnerability alerts, and guidance to counter attacks from state-sponsored actors. Not all GitHub projects are built with good intentions. Researchers uncovered a widespread campaign involving more than 130 repositories booby-trapped with malware disguised as game cheats, hacking tools, and utilities. A free software download could end up costing your entire crypto wallet. ViperSoftX is back in circulation, targeting crypto users with malicious PowerShell scripts bundled into cracked apps, keygens, and torrent packages. Some attackers mine crypto, JINX-0132 mines misconfigurations. This threat actor is running a stealthy cryptojacking campaign against DevOps platforms, exploiting exposed defaults and overlooked RCE flaws. Destruction masquerading as maintenance tools is hitting Ukraine’s infrastructure. Researchers attributed a new wiper malware called PathWiper to a Russia-linked APT group, targeting critical systems by leveraging legitimate administrative frameworks. A few swapped letters could be all it takes to get owned. A new supply chain attack targets Python and npm developers through typo-squatting and name confusion. A new Android banking trojan, named Crocodilus, has emerged in the threat landscape. It masquerades as legitimate apps like Google Chrome and uses overlay attacks to steal credentials from financial apps.

May 30, 2025

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, May 26–30, 2025

Under the hood of vulnerability management, NIST just added a sharper diagnostic tool. The new Likely Exploited Vulnerabilities metric offers deeper insight into which CVEs are likely being used in the wild, complementing EPSS with more contextual signals. Digital warfare is no longer a future threat, it's a current investment. The U.K. Ministry of Defence has unveiled a £1 billion Cyber and Electromagnetic Command to protect military networks and support offensive cyber missions. With AI-driven systems like the Digital Targeting Web in development, the goal is seamless coordination across weapons platforms. A quiet but relentless campaign has been unfolding across multiple industries. The Chinese group Earth Lamia is targeting finance, government, logistics, and more by exploiting known web app vulnerabilities. APT41 hides malware commands where no one’s looking: your calendar. In a creative twist on C2 infrastructure, China-backed APT41 embedded encrypted instructions inside Google Calendar events. AyySSHush doesn’t make noise, it builds armies. More than 9,000 ASUS routers have been compromised by this botnet, which quietly slips in through a CVE-2023-39780 exploit. Fake CAPTCHA prompts are now doing more than testing if you're human—they're installing malware. EDDIESTEALER, a new Rust-based infostealer, spreads through deceptive CAPTCHA pages that trigger malicious PowerShell scripts. Threat actors are wrapping their tools in layers of obfuscation, and DOUBLELOADER is no exception. This new backdoor uses the ALCATRAZ obfuscator—once seen in the game-hacking scene—to disguise its presence. A new Go-based botnet called PumaBot is clawing its way through Linux IoT devices. It brute-forces SSH credentials, impersonates Redis files for stealth, and deploys rootkits to mine crypto and steal credentials.

May 23, 2025

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, May 19–23, 2025

Operation Endgame just dealt a major blow to the ransomware supply chain. Europol led the charge in dismantling malware infrastructure tied to multiple malware families, seizing 300 servers and more. Japan has officially gone on the cyber offense. The new Active Cyberdefense Law allows preemptive strikes against foreign cyber threats. It enables traffic analysis and takedowns of hostile servers. Think twice before clicking on that Ledger update. A new macOS malware campaign is deploying fake versions of the Ledger Live app to steal cryptocurrency seed phrases. A Turkish phishing lure leads straight to SnakeKeylogger. Fake AI tools are the new phishing lures and they’re convincing. Cybercriminals cloned Kling AI’s brand through Facebook ads and spoofed websites to trick users into downloading malware. The DBatLoader (aka ModiLoader) malware is making the rounds again - this time disguised as a Turkish bank email. The copyright threat in your inbox might be bait. A phishing campaign sweeping across central and eastern Europe is using fake legal complaints to deliver the Rhadamanthys Stealer. Two years of silence, 6,200 downloads later - the malware is finally found. A malicious campaign targeting JavaScript developers slipped past detection by disguising harmful npm packages as plugins for frameworks like React, Vue.js, Vite, and Quill Editor. Researchers uncovered a stealthy new backdoor paired with a Monero coinminer, using the PyBitmessage library for encrypted peer-to-peer communications.

May 9, 2025

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, May 05–09, 2025

Another blow to DDoS-for-hire networks. Europol has shut down six services used to launch global cyberattacks, arresting suspects in Poland and seizing domains in the U.S. The UN has launched a new framework to help policymakers make sense of cyber intrusions. Called UNIDIR Intrusion Path, it complements models like MITRE ATT&CK but simplifies the technical details. It breaks down attacker activity into three layers, making it easier to evaluate threats in a policy context. Old routers are becoming cybercrime goldmines. The FBI has warned that end-of-life routers are being hijacked with malware like TheMoon and sold on proxy networks such as 5Socks and Anyproxy. These compromised devices are used for crypto theft, cybercrime-as-a-service, and even espionage. Crypto users on Discord are the latest targets of a phishing campaign tied to Inferno Drainer. Attackers were found impersonating the Collab.Land bot to trick users into signing malicious transactions. The Play ransomware group has joined the list of actors exploiting CVE-2025-29824. This Windows zero-day in the CLFS driver enables privilege escalation via a race condition during file operations. Linked to the Balloonfly group, the attacks targeted a U.S. organization and included deployment of the Grixba infostealer. COLDRIVER’s latest malware, LOSTKEYS, is now in play. The Russian state-backed group is deploying this tool to steal files and system data from advisors, journalists, NGOs, and individuals linked to Ukraine. Agenda’s playbook just got upgraded. The ransomware group has added two new tools: SmokeLoader and a stealthy .NET-based loader called NETXLOADER. The latter leverages techniques like JIT hooking and AES decryption to deploy ransomware. Corporate HR teams are the latest target in a spear-phishing spree by Venom Spider. Disguised as job applications, these emails deliver More_eggs backdoor, now upgraded with advanced features.

May 2, 2025

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, April 28–May 02, 2025

The FBI just dropped a massive breadcrumb trail. Details of 42,000 phishing domains tied to the LabHost platform have been released to help defenders investigate potential breaches. The service enabled the theft of 500,000 credit cards and over a million credentials. The takedown of JokerOTP has exposed just how far phishing has evolved. The tool was used in more than 28,000 attacks across 13 countries, tricking victims into handing over 2FA codes by mimicking trusted brands. The operation cost victims £7.5 million and has now led to serious criminal charges, thanks to a joint effort involving Europol and Dutch authorities. Malware’s now hitching a ride on Go modules. Socket has uncovered three malicious packages hiding disk-wiping payloads, designed to cause irreversible data loss, especially on Linux systems. These modules take advantage of Go’s decentralized ecosystem. In the shadows of the cybersecurity landscape, MintsLoader emerges as a formidable adversary, orchestrating a multi-faceted infection strategy that deploys the notorious GhostWeaver RAT. Some PyPI packages are doing more than importing functions. Researchers uncovered seven malicious Python packages under the “Coffin” naming scheme, using Gmail’s SMTP service as a stealthy C2 channel. Ransomware groups aren’t always the ones breaking the door open. Researchers have uncovered ToyMaker, an initial access broker selling network entry to ransomware groups. Using a custom malware strain called LAGTOY, ToyMaker establishes reverse shells and executes commands on compromised systems. New vulnerabilities in Apple’s AirPlay protocol, collectively dubbed AirBorne, expose billions of devices to remote code execution without user interaction. Sharp and TX stealers are back, donning a new cloak - named Hannibal Stealer. It is going after credentials from browsers, crypto wallets, FTP clients, and VPN apps. It even captures Discord tokens and Steam sessions.

Apr 25, 2025

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, April 21–25, 2025

AI security finally has a global playbook. ETSI has released TS 104 223, a first-of-its-kind technical specification outlining how to secure AI systems across their entire lifecycle - from design to decommissioning. MITRE’s latest update is catching up with the cloud. ATT&CK v17 expands the framework to include ESXi and adds more than 140 defensive analytics. Platform-specific data collection advice, improved mitigation mapping, and deeper coverage of mobile threats like SIM swaps round out the upgrade. An APT group with deep roots in Southeast Asia is quietly siphoning data through everyday cloud platforms. Earth Kurma has been active since late 2020, targeting government and telecom entities across the Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, and Malaysia. Signal and WhatsApp are the new frontline for cloud compromise. Russian actors are running OAuth phishing campaigns against Microsoft 365 users tied to Ukraine and human rights work. A forged email that passes every security check - that’s the new phishing trick. Attackers are using DKIM replay tactics to forward legitimate Google security alerts to unsuspecting victims. It starts with a fake sales order and ends with FormBook silently stealing your data. A recent phishing campaign has been abusing a long-patched Microsoft flaw to deliver a fileless variant of the malware. Docker containers aren’t always what they seem. A new threat named TenoBot is targeting systems running outdated Teneo Web3 node software, deploying malicious containers to hijack environments. A stealthy new RAT is slipping through Ivanti Connect Secure devices in Japan. Dubbed DslogdRAT, the malware exploits a zero-day flaw to execute commands via web shell and quietly exfiltrate data using encoded C2 traffic.

Apr 11, 2025

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, April 07–11, 2025

The U.K. government rolled out a Cyber Governance Code of Practice aimed at directors and board members, not just CISOs. Backed by the NCSC and other national bodies, the code includes practical actions, modular training, and a board-level toolkit. Startups building the future of cyber defense are getting serious backing. The British Business Bank has committed most of a £50 million fund to Osney Capital, which will invest in early-stage cybersecurity companies across the U.K. A torrent download might be doing more than delivering cracked software. A campaign has been distributing ViperSoftX to Korean users, likely run by Arabic-speaking threat actors. Invasive spyware campaigns are zeroing in on high-risk communities. MOONSHINE and BADBAZAAR are being deployed through trojanized mobile apps to surveil Uyghur, Tibetan, and Taiwanese individuals, as well as civil society groups. Search for QuickBooks during tax season, and you might land on a trap. Threat actors are placing deceptive Google Ads that link to phishing pages almost identical to the real QuickBooks login portal. It starts with a PDF search and ends with malware on your machine. A new campaign is using fake CAPTCHAs and Cloudflare Turnstile to lure users into downloading LegionLoader. Seed phrases aren’t supposed to come from strangers. The PoisonSeed campaign is targeting crypto holders and enterprise users by compromising bulk email services. Victims are lured with fake wallet setup instructions that embed attacker-controlled recovery phrases - giving threat actors full access once the wallets are used. A Chinese-linked threat group, ToddyCat, has been exploiting a security vulnerability in ESET's software to deliver a new malware, TCESB, in Asia.