Threat Intelligence Blog

Contact our Experts Now

Subscribe to our Weekly Cyber Threat Intelligence Briefing

Black Arrow Admin 03/12/2023 Black Arrow Admin 03/12/2023

Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 01 December 2023

Black Arrow Cyber Threat Intelligence Briefing 01 December 2023:

-Law Firms Face Surge in Targeted Attacks as Hundreds Impacted by Single Attack

-Approach Cyber Security Awareness Training by Engaging People at All Levels

-Board Support Remains Critical as Majority of CISOs Experience Repeat Cyber Attacks

-Ransomware Attacks Surge 81% in October as New Threat Actors Emerge

-Hacked Microsoft Word Documents Being Used to Trick Windows Users

-Mitigating Deepfake Threats in The Corporate World

-Black Basta Ransomware Made Over $100 Million From Extortion Alone

-Long Recovery Times After Cyber Attacks Could Annihilate Your Organisation

-Booking.com Customers Scammed in Novel Social Engineering Campaign

-Stop Panic Buying Your Security Products and Start Prioritising

-A Fifth of UK SMBs Unable to Spot Scams

Welcome to this week’s Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing – a weekly digest, collated and curated by our cyber threat intelligence experts to provide senior and middle management with an easy to digest round up of the most notable threats, vulnerabilities, and cyber related news from the last week.

Top Strategic Cyber Stories of the Last Week

Law Firms Face Surge in Targeted Attacks as Hundreds Impacted by Single Attack

An estimated 80 to 200 law firms across the UK were impacted by a cyber attack on a third party firm in their supply chain. The attack was on managed service supplier CTS, who provide services to hundreds of law firms across the UK, especially those with conveyancing departments, and many property sales were impacted nationwide as a result of the attack.

This is against a sharp increase in the number of law firms being singled out by cyber threat actors; only recently, magic circle firm Allen & Overy confirmed themselves as a victim of ransomware.

Sources: [SC Media] [Lawyer Monthly] [Scottish Legal News] [Law Gazette] [Dark Reading]

Approach Cyber Security Awareness Training by Engaging People at All Levels

In the cyber security landscape, human-related factors like social engineering, compromised credentials, and errors are the top causes of breaches. Increased investment in threat detection doesn't guarantee foolproof security. Organisations need a proactive strategy focusing on human risks, a security mindset in employees, and a security culture. According to IBM’s latest data security report, high levels of security training can significantly reduce the impact, cost, and frequency of data breaches.

However, most employee training programmes fail due to staff resistance and lack of management support. The key is convincing leadership of its value. To achieve a successful and impactful security awareness programme, it is important that security teams understand their audiences (leaders, managers, and employees), address their requirements, and effectively communicate the benefits of security training.

Source: [CPO Magazine]

Board Support Remains Critical as Majority of CISOs Experience Repeat Cyber Attacks

A recent report found that despite 95% of Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs) receiving budgetary and other support from their organisation after a cyber attack, this largely fails to prevent future incidents, with over half admitting they have experienced multiple “major cyber security incidents” in the last five years.

The report revealed that after an attack 46% of CISOs were given a bigger tech budget, 42% revised their security strategy, 41% adopted new frameworks, and 38% created new roles. However, incidents come with hidden consequences such as revenue loss, rising insurance premiums and declining reputation. CISOs need to have support from the board and executives from the start so that investments can be made in the right technology, processes, and tools. In doing so, a culture of security and vigilance can be instilled from the top down to help protect organisations against evolving threats.

Sources: [Business Wire] [Silicon UK]

Ransomware Attacks Surge 81% in October as New Threat Actors Emerge

The NCC Group revealed that ransomware attacks have surged by 81% in October 2023, compared to the same period in the previous year. Ransomware gangs have already victimised over 50% more individuals and enterprises in 2023 than during the entirety of 2022. As artificial intelligence, phishing kits and ransomware-as-a-service has improved, so too has the number of threat actors; those who were previously stunted by their technical know-how are now able to gain access to sophisticated attacks.

Source: [Security Brief]

Hacked Microsoft Word Documents Being Used to Trick Windows Users

Active campaigns carried out by cyber criminals are again using macros within Word documents to deploy malware, in spite of Microsoft’s efforts to stop these types of attacks. Most of the time the actor delivers the Word document via phishing emails, with the aim of convincing the user to click and run the macro. Once run, the malware has then achieved its goal of establishing itself on the victims’ machine and executing its malicious payload.

Source: [TechRadar]

Mitigating Deepfake Threats in The Corporate World

Deepfakes are synthetic media that are created or manipulated with the desired outcome of convincing the recipient of their legitimacy; and it’s entering the corporate world. Deepfake technology has already been used to impersonate Presidents and financial experts, however there has been an uprise in the number of these attacks. This has left the corporate world questioning existing operational procedures such as callbacks and how they will need to adjust to encompass the changing landscape.

Some of the ways a corporation can mitigate this, is to promote awareness within the workplace, adjust operational procedures to reflect the current landscape, and utilise advanced detection tools.

Source: [MSSP Alert]

Black Basta Ransomware Made Over $100 Million From Extortion Alone

The cyber crime operator “Black Basta” has raked in at least $100 million in ransom payments from more than 90 victims since it first surfaced in April 2022. In total, 329 victims worldwide were targeted and research has estimated that at least 35% paid a ransom, with multiple payments over $1 million. Black Basta uses double extortion techniques, where data is both ransomed and exfiltrated. This way, victims are forced to pay to get their data back and not have it published online; the latter itself can lead to regulatory fines.

Source: [Bleeping Computer]

Long Recovery Times After Cyber Attacks Could Annihilate Your Organisation

In the evolving cyber security landscape, organisations are increasingly investing in detection and prevention measures. However, there's a growing trend of neglecting post-attack recovery. While advanced security tools and technologies are crucial, recent ransomware incidents have shown that recovery is equally vital. Organisations have faced substantial downtime and financial losses due to attacks. Cyber resilience, the ability to bounce back quickly after an attack, is crucial, especially with the rise of remote work.

Budgets often prioritise prevention, leaving organisations ill-prepared for recovery. In 2023, a significant number of companies paid ransoms to regain data. To achieve true cyber resilience, a rebalance in approach is essential, focusing on preparation, response, and recovery alongside detection and prevention, ensuring rapid recovery and safeguarding of valuable assets.

Source: [TechRadar]

Booking.com Customers Scammed in Novel Social Engineering Campaign

According to new research by SecureWorks, Booking.com customers are being targeted by a novel social engineering campaign that is “paying serious dividends” for cyber criminals. Researchers believe the campaign has gone on for at least a year and it begins by deploying the Vidar infostealer to gain access partner hotels’ Booking.com credentials. This information is then used to send phishing emails to Booking.com customers and trick them into handing over their payment details, in many cases leading to money being stolen. The scam is proving so fruitful that sales of Booking.com portal credentials are commanding sale prices of up to $2,000 in two cyber crime forums.

Source: [Infosecurity Magazine]

Stop Panic Buying Your Security Products and Start Prioritising

In the cyber security landscape, impulse buying can lead to costly mistakes. Breaches are now more expensive than ever, underscoring the need to assess cyber security investments. Fear-driven tactics and the quest for a "silver bullet" solution can push organisations, especially smaller ones, into impulsive investments. These decisions may introduce even more risk by failing to integrate with existing systems, or buying systems but failing to configure them properly or utilising them to the fullest extent, leading to a false sense of security. The consequences can be severe, with breaches now costing organisations millions. To navigate this landscape, organisations must assess the real value of cyber security investments. Calculating risk by evaluating likelihood and impact can guide us in making informed decisions. Instead of impulse buying, assign a monetary value to cyber risks for strategic budget decisions in these economic times, ensuring investments align with security and business goals.

Source: [Help Net Security]

A Fifth of UK SMBs Unable to Spot Scams

New data from UK Finance reveals that 17% of UK small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) struggle to identify online fraud and scam indicators. This is particularly alarming given the rise in authorised push payment (APP) scams in the UK, where fraudsters impersonate trusted entities to deceive victims into transferring money to controlled accounts. In the first half of 2023 alone, criminals stole a reported £42.6 million through such scams, with total losses including consumer impacts reaching £239 million. SMBs are increasingly targeted due to typically fewer anti-fraud and other countermeasures and controls, compared to larger and better protected larger firms. It is important for SMBs to be vigilant and verify payment details directly with suppliers to help avoid these types of scams.

Source: [Infosecurity Magazine]

Governance, Risk and Compliance

Threats

Ransomware, Extortion and Destructive Attacks

Ransomware Victims

Phishing & Email Based Attacks

Artificial Intelligence

Malware

Mobile

Denial of Service/DoS/DDOS

Same threat, new stakes: DDoS in an evolving telecoms sector

Internet of Things – IoT

Data Breaches/Leaks

Organised Crime & Criminal Actors

Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs/Blockchain

Insurance

Supply Chain and Third Parties

Cloud/SaaS

Passwords, Credential Stuffing & Brute Force Attacks

Social Media

Google, Meta, allege China cyber attacks • The Register

Training, Education and Awareness

Regulations, Fines and Legislation

Models, Frameworks and Standards

Data Protection

Thought GDPR Compliance Was Hard? Buckle Up (darkreading.com)

Careers, Working in Cyber and Information Security

Law Enforcement Action and Take Downs

Misinformation, Disinformation and Propaganda

Ahead of 2024 election, Meta worries about lack of information on top-tier nation-state covert operations | CyberScoop

Nation State Actors, Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs), Cyber Warfare, Cyber Espionage and Geopolitical Threats/Activity

Cyber Warfare and Cyber Espionage

Nation State Actors

China

Russia

Iran

North Korea

Other Nation State Actors, Hacktivism, Extremism, Terrorism and Other Geopolitical Threat Intelligence

Vulnerability Management

Why it’s the perfect time to reflect on your software update policy - Help Net Security

Vulnerabilities

Tools and Controls

Reports Published in the Last Week

2023 Zscaler ThreatLabz State of Phishing Report | Zscaler

Other News

Sector Specific

Industry specific threat intelligence reports are available.

· Automotive

· Construction

· Critical National Infrastructure (CNI)

· Defence & Space

· Education & Academia

· Energy & Utilities

· Estate Agencies

· Financial Services

· FinTech

· Food & Agriculture

· Gaming & Gambling

· Government & Public Sector (including Law Enforcement)

· Health/Medical/Pharma

· Hotels & Hospitality

· Insurance

· Legal

· Manufacturing

· Maritime

· Oil, Gas & Mining

· OT, ICS, IIoT, SCADA & Cyber-Physical Systems

· Retail & eCommerce

· Small and Medium Sized Businesses (SMBs)

· Startups

· Telecoms

· Third Sector & Charities

· Transport & Aviation

· Web3

As usual, contact us to help assess where your risks lie and to ensure you are doing all you can do to keep you and your business secure.

Look out for our ‘Cyber Tip Tuesday’ video blog and on our YouTube channel.

You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

Links to articles are for interest and awareness and linking to or reposting external content does not endorse any service or product, likewise we are not responsible for the security of external links.

Black Arrow Admin 19/11/2023 Black Arrow Admin 19/11/2023

Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 17 November 2023

Black Arrow Cyber Threat Intelligence Briefing 17 November 2023:

-Cyber Resilience Requires Maturity, Persistence & Board Engagement

-Security is a Process, Not a Tool

-46% of SMBs and Enterprises Have Experienced a Ransomware Attack

-Cyber Threat Intelligence: Getting on the Front Foot Against Adversaries

-67% of Workers Put Businesses at Risk by Downloading Applications and Software Without Permission

-The Persistent Menace: Understanding And Combating Ransomware, as New Ransomware Groups Account for Quarter of All Leaks in 2023

-Financial Services still Stubbornly Vulnerable to Cyber Disruption

-Worlds Biggest Bank Hit by Ransomware, Workers Forced to Trade With USB Sticks

-NCSC Warns UK Over Significant Threat to Critical Infrastructure

-Ransomware Gang Files SEC Complaint Over Victim’s Undisclosed Breach

-Businesses are Losing Huge Chunks of Their Revenue to Cyber Attacks

-Phishing Emails Are More Believable Than Ever. Here's What to Do About It.

Welcome to this week’s Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing – a weekly digest, collated and curated by our cyber experts to provide senior and middle management with an easy to digest round up of the most notable threats, vulnerabilities, and cyber related news from the last week.

Top Cyber Stories of the Last Week

Cyber Resilience Requires Maturity, Persistence & Board Engagement

Cyber resilience is more important than ever, particularly with the added dimensions of deepening geopolitical threats and risks coming from new technology like AI. In cyber security, it is commonly accepted that it is a matter of when, not if, an organisation will experience an attack. It is imperative to ensure there is an ability across the organisation to bounce back.

Source: [Dark Reading]

Security is a Process, not a Tool

The cyber security industry is constantly seeing tools that claim to make organisations 100% secure, despite this never being achievable. A recent report found 55% of all security tools are not put into operation or are not actively managed. Additionally, the report found that 33% of all security incidents are identifiably traced to process errors. The findings are further evidence that cyber security is more than just technology tools: it requires a mindset that aligns controls across people, operations and technology.

Source: [Dark Reading]

46% of SMBs and Enterprises Have Experienced a Ransomware Attack

A recent report found that 46% of small and medium businesses (SMBs) and enterprises have experienced ransomware attacks. In addition, 90% of SMBs and 87% of enterprises are extremely or somewhat concerned about ransomware attacks, and 64% of SMBs and 70% of enterprises don’t believe in paying a ransom.

Despite the fact that nearly 50% of the firms have suffered ransomware, too many businesses still seem to think this is something that will not happen to them and is something only other businesses need to worry about.

Source: [Security Magazine] [IT Business]

Cyber Threat Intelligence: Getting on the Front Foot Against Adversaries

In the realm of cyber security, threat intelligence (TI) is a crucial yet often underused asset for countering sophisticated cyber attacks. TI involves gathering, analysing, and contextualising information about potential cyber threats, including advanced ones, thus enabling organisations to identify, assess, and mitigate cyber risks effectively. The TI market, expected to exceed $44 billion by 2033, offers four main types: Strategic, Tactical, Technical, and Operational.

Each type serves different organisational needs, from informing senior leadership to aiding security operations teams. When thinking about TI, organisations should focus on completeness, accuracy, relevance, timeliness, scalability, vendor reputation, and integration capabilities. The rapidly evolving nature of TI demands a careful, long-term approach to choosing the right services, considering an organisation's maturity and specific needs. Effective TI not only aids in countering immediate threats but also builds long-term resilience. With 80% of the top 2000 global companies projected to increase their TI investment in 2024, it's crucial for organisations to find a trusted vendor to ensure their cyber security success.

Black Arrow conducts daily threat intelligence analyses from trusted specialist sources, and interprets the TI in the context of our client organisations to support them in proactively addressing risks. In addition to our weekly Threat Briefing and subscription email, we offer tailored briefings for organisations in various sectors and geographies.

Source: [welivesecurity]

67% of Workers Put Businesses at Risk by Downloading Applications and Software Without Permission

New research has found that 67% of UK employees are endangering their business by downloading applications and software without the knowledge of IT or security teams.

Other key findings included 39% of respondent organisations lacked total visibility of applications and software on company owned assets, and 77% lacked visibility over employee owned assets connected to the corporate environment. Of total respondents, 69% acknowledged their organisations required better policies and procedures in order to deal with security vulnerabilities, with 39% of total respondents feeling challenged by UK and other jurisdictions’ increasingly complicated regulations and governance requirements.

Black Arrow help organisations of all sizes to design and deliver comprehensive asset visibility programmes that lay the foundation for proportionate and credible cyber security controls to protect the organisation. We enable organisations to adhere to regulatory and governance requirements, by providing expert cyber security resources on a flexible basis for technical, governance and transformational positions.

Sources: [Tech Radar] [the HR Director]

The Persistent Menace: Understanding and Combating Ransomware, as New Ransomware Groups Account for Quarter of All Leaks in 2023

In 2023, the landscape of cyber threats, particularly ransomware, has significantly evolved, remaining a primary concern for businesses.

This change has been further facilitated by the emergence of Ransomware as a Service (RaaS) and the increased sophistication of phishing attacks, supported by advancements in AI. This has led at least in part to almost half (29) of the ransomware groups tracked by WithSecure in 2023 having begun operations this year. These groups accounted for 25% of data leaks in this period, helping to drive a 50% year-on-year increase in data leaks.

Businesses face not only the immediate costs of ransom demands but also indirect impacts such as operational downtime and damage to reputation. Key trends include the exploitation of basic security vulnerabilities, the role of access brokers in facilitating attacks, and innovative evasion techniques used by ransomware groups. Ransomware is not going away, and organisations need to ensure they are prepared given the realistic probability of an attack.

Black Arrow works with organisations of all sizes and sectors to design and prepare for managing a cyber security incident such as ransomware; this can include an Incident Response Plan and an educational tabletop exercise for the leadership team that highlights the proportionate controls to help the organisation prevent and mitigate an incident.

Sources: [Forbes] [Infosecurity Magazine] [ITPro]

Financial Services Still Stubbornly Vulnerable to Cyber Disruption

A recent report found the UK financial system remains stubbornly vulnerable to disruption caused by cyber and IT-related incidents, and that regulated firms are not acting quickly enough to affect required changes designed to ensure firms’ systems are resilient against significant operational shocks.

According to the UK FCA’s records, the total number of cyber incidents reported between January 2018 to May 2023 was 4,192. In general terms, incidents are reportable where they are of a certain level of materiality; for instance, where there has been a “significant failure in the firm's systems or controls.

Source: [FTAdviser]

World’s Biggest Bank Hit by Ransomware; Workers Forced to Trade with USB Sticks

The US subsidiary of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) experienced a ransomware attack earlier this month, which reportedly forced the bank (ICBC Financial Services) to handle trades through messengers carrying USB thumb drives. This attack has sent shockwaves through financial services and banking and has prompted an increase in vigilance within the financial sector. The US Financial Services Information Sharing and Analysis Center (FS-ISAC) has urged financial services organisations to ensure their systems are protected and vulnerabilities are immediately resolved.

Sources: [SC Media] [Bit Defender]

NCSC Warns UK Over Significant Threat to Critical Infrastructure

The UK's National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has once again sounded its concern over the rising threat level to the nation's critical national infrastructure (CNI), with its annual review admitting the level of cyber security resilience in the UK’s most critical areas is not in a satisfactory place.

The NCSC stated that CNI in the UK faces an “enduring and significant” threat from state-aligned threat actors aggressively ramping up activity, and the UK must therefore work more closely with allies and industry in countering “epoch-defining” cyber challenges.

They noted a 64% increase on last year’s voluntary report figures; to note, this refers to organisations voluntarily self-reporting suffering a cyber incident.

For wider context, the Russian cyber attacks on Ukraine began a month and a half before the invasion. In 2022 Ukraine’s national incident response team dealt with 2,194 cyber incidents, followed by another 2,054 attacks in the first 10 months of this year and Ukraine’s defence chief warns that Russia will soon attack companies that provide services to Ukraine as part of their larger cyber efforts.

This comes as Russian hackers were linked to what is being described as the largest ever cyber attack on Danish critical infrastructure. The attack involved 22 companies associated with the operation of Denmark’s energy sector.

Sources: [Computer Weekly] [The Register] [The Record Media] [The Irish Times] [The Hacker News]

Ransomware Gang Files SEC Complaint Over Victim’s Undisclosed Breach

The ALPHV ransomware group, also known as BlackCat, has taken extortion to a new level by filing a US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) complaint against one of their alleged victims, MeridianLink, for not complying with the four-day rule to disclose a cyber attack. The ransomware group said it compromised the digital lending solutions provider on November 7 and told the SEC the victim suffered a “significant breach and did not disclose it as required in Form 8-k”. While many ransomware and extortion gangs have threatened to report breaches and data theft to the SEC, this may be the first public confirmation that they have done so. Previously, ransomware actors exerted pressure on victims by contacting customers to let them know of the intrusion. Sometimes, they would also try to intimidate the victim by contacting them directly over the phone.

Sources: [Infosecurity Magazine] [Bleeping Computer]

Businesses are Losing Huge Chunks of Their Revenue to Cyber Attacks

A new report has found that businesses are paying a huge price for not properly securing their digital assets. The report found that businesses on average suffered 46 attacks (successful and unsuccessful) over the last year, resulting in the loss of 9% of their annual income. Cyber attacks are hurting their businesses in other ways such as network outages (34%), data loss (29%), web apps going offline (24%) and customer account compromises (22%).

Firms are reevaluating their cyber security approaches, with 76% planning increased spending despite concerns about current investment efficiency, as 35% feel they've overspent and only 55% of tools are fully utilised. A significant talent gap is also a challenge, with 30% attributing recent issues to a shortage of skilled personnel, and 33% expecting this trend to continue. Nearly half are seeking to address this by boosting recruitment budgets. Additionally, 51% of respondents are focusing on investing in Generative AI tools for cyber security in the next two years.

Source: [TechRadar]

Phishing Emails Are More Believable Than Ever. Here's What to Do About It.

Phishing is not new. This social engineering tactic has existed in the attack toolbox for decades, with threat actors posing as trusted contacts and then targeting unsuspecting victims through email or text messages to steal sensitive data. According to a recent report by Fortinet, phishing is the top tactic (56%) malicious actors use to infiltrate a network and launch ransomware successfully. With the turn of AI-driven content tools, cyber criminals are using them to make their phishing emails and texts appear more realistic than ever before.

It is crucial to focus on employee education to protect organisations. Customised training programs are essential. Security awareness training is fundamental in creating a cyber-aware culture, keeping employees informed about current security threats and meeting compliance requirements.

Black Arrow supports organisations of all sizes in designing and delivering proportionate user education and awareness programmes, including in-person and online training as well as simulated phishing campaigns. Our programmes help secure employee engagement and build a cyber security culture to protect the organisation.

Source: [CSO Online]