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 Threat Intelligence - June 3–7

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence - June 3–7 - Featured Image

Weekly Threat Briefing Jun 7, 2019

The Good

The week witnessed some major developments in cybersecurity with government agencies making good strides towards addressing cyber threats. The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security has released its draft bill for the year 2020 which includes funding for new technologies, the establishment of a cybersecurity agency and research activities. Apple has unveiled a new ‘Find My’ app which can help users to locate their macOS and iOS devices even when they are not connected to the internet. The app is a merged version of ‘Find My Friends’ and ‘Find My iPhone’ apps.

  • The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security has released its draft bill which includes funding for new technologies, the establishment of a cybersecurity agency and research activities. An estimated sum of $898 million has been allocated towards specific technologies & research and almost $2 million for the government’s lead cybersecurity agency. The draft appropriations bill aims at investing in smart, effective technologies and programs in order to keep Americans safe from threats.

  • The U.S. Department of State has sent to Congress a long-awaited plan of reestablishing the Bureau of Cyberspace Security and Emerging Technologies (CSET). This cybersecurity-focused bureau will assist the US government to secure cyberspace and its technologies by reducing the likelihood of cyber conflict. The new bureau has been proposed to include 80 staff members. The budget is projected at $20.8 million.

  • Apple has unveiled a new ‘Find My’ app, which is available on its Mac and iOS platforms. The new app is a merged version of ‘Find My Friends’ and ‘Find My iPhone’ apps. The purpose of the app is to help the users to locate their lost macOS and iOS devices even when they are not connected to Wi-Fi or a cellular network. The app leverages nearby Bluetooth-enabled Apple devices to accomplish the work.

  • Security researchers have found a novel way to defeat hackers trying to take over critical parts of autonomous cars. This technique takes advantage of a feature in Control Area Network (CAN) bus protocol and uses covert channels. This eliminates the possibility of unauthorized interference with the car’s operation.

  • The creators of GandCrab have announced that they will stop the ransomware’s operation within a month. The announcement has been made on a hacking forum where the creators have been advertising the ransomware since its inception.

The Bad

The last seven days also saw several data breaches worldwide. This includes breaches on American Medical Collection Agency (AMCA), WestPac’s PayID, University of Chicago and Radisson. Moreover, a hacker who goes by the online name Achilles has been found selling network access data of UNICEF, Symantec, and Comodo Group. The details are being sold at a price between $2000-$5000.

  • The web payment page breach at American Medical Collection Agency (AMCA) has impacted millions of individuals of Quest Diagnostics, Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings (LabCorp) and Opko Health Inc. While Quest Diagnostics saw the compromise of personal & financial information of nearly 11.9 million patients, LabCorp disclosed that 7.7 million customers were affected in the breach. In addition, the data breach has affected around 422,600 patients of OPKO Health Inc.

  • Private details of almost 100,000 Australian bank customers have been exposed in a cyber attack on WestPac’s PayID. An investigation has revealed that the attack had begun on April 7, 2019. The company has confirmed that no financial information was compromised in the attack.

  • A hacker who goes by the online name Achilles has been found selling network access details of major big firms which includes UNICEF, Symantec and Comodo Group. Achilles is selling the data at a price ranging between $2000-$5000, depending on the value of the target.

  • A security lapse at IT giant Tech Data had exposed its customer and billing data. The incident occurred due to an unprotected database. The database contained a swath of customer personal data and records related to payment cards. After being informed by a research team from vpnMentor, the database was secured by Tech Data.

  • The Australian National University has confirmed that around 200,000 people have been impacted in a data breach that took place in late 2018. The unauthorized party has accessed a significant amount of personal data related to staff and students and visitors. The data is believed to be as old as 19 years.

  • An unprotected Elasticsearch database belonging to FMC Consulting had exposed millions of resumes and company data. The leaky database contained 884,178 internal emails, 5,392,816 company records, 110,000 customer records and 73,000 client messages. Upon learning this, CNCERT/CC immediately took down the unsecured database.

  • The University of Chicago has exposed 1,679,993 records due to a misconfigured Elasticsearch database. The database contained a 34GB cluster named ‘data-ucmbsd2’. It included full names, birth dates, phone numbers, email addresses, marital status and communication notes of individuals.

  • Radisson has inadvertently sent information related to its loyalty program users to wrong members. This exposed first names, point balances, membership tiers, and email addresses of loyalty program users.

New Threats

Various new malware and vulnerabilities were also unearthed by researchers this week. A newly discovered GoldBrute botnet has been found brute forcing over 1.5 million unique RDP endpoints to launch its malicious activities. On the other hand, a new variant of Vega ransomware called Buran is leveraging the RIG exploit kit for distribution. Security researchers have also discovered a critical vulnerability in Exim that affects nearly half of the email servers.

  • A newly discovered GoldBrute botnet has compiled over 1.5 million unique systems that have RDP connections. The attack begins by gaining access to the system using a brute-force attack. If successful, a ZIP file containing the GoldBrute malware code is downloaded onto the system.
  • A new variant of Vega ransomware named Buran has been found to be distributed via RIG exploit kit. When executed, the ransomware copies itself to the %APPDATA%\microsoft\windows\ctfmon.exe and launches itself from that point. The ransomware encrypts files with specific extensions and later appends them with the victim’s unique ID.
  • A critical RCE vulnerability in mail transfer agent Exim has affected nearly half of the email servers. The vulnerability has been identified as CVE-2019-10149 and exists in Exim version 4.87 to 4.91. The flaw is remediated in Exim 4.92.
  • Over 440 million Android phones have been infected by a BeiTaPlugin adware. The adware is distributed via 238 unique applications on Google Play. It forcibly displays ads on the users’ screen even when the phone is locked as well as triggers unwanted video and audio advertisements on victims’ phones.
  • Hackers are exploiting a four-year-old vulnerability, CVE-2014-8361, in Realtek routers to distribute multiple IoT malware families. The installer includes a script for Hakai botnet which is a variant of Gafgyt botnet. The campaign targeted users in South Africa.
  • A new malware family named BlackSquid has been found using eight notorious exploits to drop XMRig miner on infected systems. The exploits can be used to compromise web servers, network drives, and removable devices. The malware employs anti-virtualization, anti-debugging, and anti-sandboxing methods to evade detection. It also has worm-like behavior for lateral propagation.

Related Threat Briefings

Feb 14, 2025

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, February 10–14, 2025

Cyber defenders are sharpening their tools, and EARLYCROW is the latest weapon against stealthy APT operations. This method detects C2 activity over HTTP(S) using a novel traffic analysis format called PAIRFLOW. India is taking digital banking security up a notch. The RBI is launching a dedicated domain to curb financial fraud and enhance trust in online banking. Starting April 2025, financial institutions will register under this domain. China’s RedMike hackers are dialing into telecom networks - literally. Between December 2024 and January 2025, they targeted over 1,000 unpatched Cisco devices. Their primary focus? Global telecoms and university networks in Argentina, Bangladesh, and the U.S. Russia’s Sandworm hackers are using pirated software as bait. Their latest attack on Ukrainian Windows users disguises malware inside trojanized KMS activators and fake Windows updates. Love is in the air, but so are phishing scams. In late January, cybercriminals launched a Valentine’s-themed phishing campaign, offering fake gift baskets in exchange for stolen credentials. Cybercriminals are upping their game with Astaroth, a phishing kit that doesn’t just steal credentials but also hijacks entire sessions. By using a reverse proxy, Astaroth intercepts logins and 2FA tokens in real time, allowing attackers to bypass security measures undetected. South America’s foreign ministry was caught in the crosshairs of an advanced cyber-espionage campaign. In November 2024, attackers linked to REF7707 deployed the PATHLOADER and FINALDRAFT malware to infiltrate diplomatic networks. A new malware named Ratatouille is stirring up trouble by bypassing UAC and using I2P for anonymous communications. Spreading through phishing emails and fake CAPTCHA pages, it tricks victims into running an embedded PowerShell script.

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.