Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, July 20 - 24, 2020

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, July 20 - 24, 2020 - Featured Image

Weekly Threat Briefing • July 24, 2020

The Good

The proliferation of security mishaps has pushed IT giants to rethink the security capabilities of their products to protect their customers from cyberattacks. Taking a step in this direction, Microsoft has added a Data Loss Prevention (DLP) feature in Office 365 to prevent data leaks and inappropriate data sharing. Furthermore, Google’s G Suite products have been enhanced with 11 new security features to help administrators secure their devices against unwanted intrusions.

  • Microsoft Office 365 now includes a Data Loss Prevention (DLP) feature, making it easier for organizations to prevent data leaks, inappropriate data sharing, and other similar risks. The new extension will protect sensitive data and items on Windows 10 devices.

  • Google Cloud has announced 11 new G Suite security features to help IT administrators more effectively manage and secure their devices. The updates also apply to other GSuite products: Gmail, Chat, and Meet.

  • The industry advisory panel, created as a part of Australia’s upcoming 2020 Cyber Security Strategy, has provided 60 recommendations to boost the nation’s cybersecurity. One of these recommendations is aimed at increasing the ability of the Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) to disrupt cybercriminal activities on the dark web through offensive cyber operations.

The Bad

Talking about data breaches, five e-learning platforms leaked nearly one million records due to unsecured databases. Apart from this, hackers sold the sensitive data associated with CouchSurfing and Instacart on different hacker forums. The compromised data included personal information of their customers.

  • A group of hacktivists that goes by the online name of Ghost Squad Hackers defaced a site of the European Space Agency (ESA) for the second time in a week. The group managed to pull it off by exploiting a server-side request forgery vulnerability in the agency’s server.

  • Four misconfigured AWS S3 buckets and one unsecured Elasticsearch database belonging to five e-learning platforms leaked nearly one million records of online students. The five affected platforms were Okoo, Square Panda, Playground Sessions, MyTopDog, and Escola Digital.

  • Telecom Argentina fell victim to a ransomware attack, following which the attackers demanded a ransom of $7.5 million to unlock unencrypted files. However, the firm denied the ransom demand and sought to regain control of nearly 18,000 infected computers.

  • The week saw cases of cyberattacks on many healthcare service providers. While Lorien Health Services announced being attacked by ransomware in early June, GEDmatch confirmed a security breach that affected its website. In addition, a breach at the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services resulted in the compromise of private data of disabled Delawareans.

  • Many software providers also came under the scanner due to different security incidents this week. Cloud computing provider, Blackbaud, admitted paying a ransom to cybercriminals to regain control of data that was affected in a ransomware attack in May 2020. In addition to this, the Family Tree Maker software exposed 25GB of its users’ data due to a misconfigured Elasticsearch server. Also, smartwatch and wearable maker, Garmin, shut down its several services on July 23 to deal with a ransomware attack that encrypted its internal network and some production systems.

  • DeepSource notified all its users about a Sawfish phishing campaign that collected victims’ GitHub credentials and 2FA codes. The firm learned about the incident after one of its employees’ accounts was compromised and its GitHub app credentials were stolen.

  • An investigation into Twitter’s largest breach revealed that the perpetrators manipulated a small number of employees and used their credentials to log into internal tools and turn over access to 45 accounts. It is further postulated that the hackers could have also read direct messages to and from 36 accounts.

  • The week also witnessed the dumping of several sensitive data troves — stolen from different organizations — on the dark web. Over 270,000 accounts associated with Instacart customers were sold on two dark web forums. On the contrary, 17,000 Slack credentials stolen from roughly 12,000 Slack workspaces made to various hacker forums. CouchSurfing also disclosed a breach after hackers sold the details of 17 million users on Telegram channels and hacking forums. The data was sold at a price of $700.

  • An unsecured Amazon S3 bucket leaked nearly 1 million records of sensitive data belonging to students registered on CaptainU’s platform. The bucket contained GPA scores, ACT, SAT and PSAT scores, parents’ names, email addresses, home addresses, and phone numbers.

  • A popular Asian poker site, GGPoker, took its systems offline after it suffered a DDoS attack. The firm admitted to not shielding the server with DDoS protection after migrating to a new cloud data center.

  • Twilio suffered a security breach after miscreants sneaked into its unsecured AWS S3 bucket and altered the TaskRouter v1.20 SDK to include non-malicious code.

  • The Sodinokibi ransomware group targeted Administrador de Infraestructuras Ferroviarias (ADIF) and stole 800GB of data that included correspondence, contracts, and other accounting details.

New Threats

The week also saw the discovery of some new and sophisticated attack methods such as Shadow, Meow, and Bad Power. While the Shadow attack leverages vulnerable PDF viewer applications, the Meow attack wiped data from over 1800 unsecured databases to highlight the underlying security issues. Meanwhile, the Bad Power attack can be used to melt components or even set devices on fire.

  • Researchers exposed a malicious cyber-operation that was carried out by 29 fake photo editing apps. These apps, downloaded 3.5 million times in total from the Google Play store, enabled their operators to compromise devices as a part of a nefarious cyber scheme named Chartreuse Blur.
  • The latest intel on Dacls trojan, which Kaspersky refers to as MATA, revealed that the trojan is capable of distributing VHD ransomware and exfiltrating data from databases. The malware is associated with the Lazarus threat actor group and has been employed against users in Poland, Germany, Turkey, Korea, Japan, and India.
  • Researchers demonstrated a new Shadow attack that affected 15 vulnerable desktop PDF viewer applications. The attack can allow threat actors to modify content in digitally signed PDF files.
  • The OilRig threat actor group returned with a new version of the RDAT backdoor. The new variant was used to target a telecom company in the Middle East.
  • The notorious Emotet trojan returned after a five-month gap to deliver QBot trojan to victims’ devices. The campaign is executed via phishing emails and is spotted targeting users in the U.S., U.K, Canada, Austria, Germany, Brazil, Italy, and Spain.
  • Researchers discovered a cryptocurrency mining malware, dubbed Prometei, that uses several techniques to spread across networks. Its primary purpose is to mine Monero cryptocurrency from the infected devices.
  • Newly discovered Meow attack wiped over 1800 unsecured Elasticsearch and MongoDB databases without leaving any explanation or even a ransom note. The operators behind the attack intend to give administrators a hard lesson in security by destroying the unsecured data.
  • A newly discovered BadPower attack can allow attackers to alter the firmware of fast charger devices to deliver extra voltage and damage connected equipment. It can further be used to melt components or even set devices on fire.
  • An analysis of over 5 million IoT, IoMT, and unmanaged devices revealed a host of security risks in them. These devices are used across a range of sectors, including healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, and retail, and are vulnerable to ransomware and other malicious attacks.

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Apr 25, 2025

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, April 21–25, 2025

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Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, April 14–18, 2025

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Apr 11, 2025

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, April 07–11, 2025

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Apr 4, 2025

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, March 31–April 04, 2025

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Mar 28, 2025

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, March 24–28, 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!

Feb 21, 2025

Cyware Weekly Threat Intelligence, February 17–21, 2025

Google is stepping up its defenses against the quantum threat. The company is rolling out quantum-resistant digital signatures in Cloud KMS, following NIST’s post-quantum cryptography standards. Supply chain attacks just got harder to pull off. Apiiro has released two open-source tools to detect malicious code in software projects. With high detection rates across PyPI and npm packages, these tools add a crucial layer of security for developers. China’s Salt Typhoon is making itself at home in global telecom networks. The group has been caught using JumbledPath, a custom-built spying tool, to infiltrate ISPs in the U.S., Italy, South Africa, and Thailand. ShadowPad malware is once again causing havoc in Europe. Trend Micro flagged 21 targeted companies across 15 countries, with manufacturing firms bearing the brunt. A RAT is hiding in plain sight. SectopRAT has been spotted disguised as a fake Google Docs Chrome extension. It steals browser data, targets VPNs and cryptocurrency wallets, and injects malicious scripts into web pages. Darcula Suite is taking PhaaS to the next level. The upcoming update, currently in beta, will let users generate their own phishing kits by cloning real websites and customizing attack elements. A new payment card skimming campaign is turning Stripe’s old API into a weapon. Hackers are injecting malicious scripts into checkout pages, validating stolen card details through Stripe before exfiltration. LummaC2 is spreading through cracked software downloads again. ASEC found it disguised as a pirated Total Commander installer, hiding behind Google Collab Drive and Reddit links.