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Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 05 April 2024
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Intelligence Briefing 05 April 2024:
-Corporations with Effective Cyber Governance Create 4 Times More Value, Boosting Shareholder Returns
-Ransomware Incidents Reported to UK Financial Regulator Doubled
-Half of British SMEs Have Lost Data in Past Five Years: Threat Indicators Show 2024 Already Promising to be Worse Than 2023
-Researchers Report Sevenfold Increase in Data Theft Cases, as 17 billion Personal Records Exposed in Breaches in 2023
-AI Abuse and Misinformation Campaigns Threaten Financial Institutions
-Security Teams are ‘Overconfident’ About Handling Next-Gen Threats
-AI Makes Phishing Attacks Accessible to Basic Users
-Cyber Attacks Wreaking Physical Disruption on the Rise
-73% Brace for Cyber Security Impact on Business in Next Two Years
-To Stay Ahead of Ransomware Businesses Need to Adopt An Offensive Security Mindset
-Cyber Security Imperative for Protecting Executives
-The Increasing Role of Cyber Security Experts in Complex Legal Disputes
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
Corporations with Effective Cyber Governance Create 4 Times More Value, Boosting Shareholder Returns
According to a recent report, companies who demonstrated an advanced level of cyber security performance generated a shareholder return 372% higher than their peers over a 5 year period. The report highlighted that having board committees focused on specialised risk and audit compliance produced the best outcomes; however, it was found that only a small number of those surveyed had done this. Financial institutions and healthcare had the highest cyber security ratings, highlighting the correlation between regulatory environments and cyber security performance.
Sources: [Help Net Security ] [Dark Reading]
Ransomware Incidents Reported to UK Financial Regulator Doubled
The number of security and ransomware incidents reported to the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) surged in 2023, according to a freedom of information request. 31% of these incidents were categorised as ransomware, which had double the number of reports as the previous year. To note, these statistics address the number of ransomware incidents involving financial services that were disclosed: the number of actual incidents could be far higher.
Sources: [Digital Journal] [Digital Journal]
Half of British SMEs Have Lost Data in Past Five Years: Threat Indicators Show 2024 Already Promising to be Worse Than 2023
According to a new report, since 2019 nearly half (48%) of the UK’s small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have lost access to data, potentially costing billions. The report found that nationwide, the number of businesses that lost data temporarily or permanently could amount to more than 800,000. Unfortunately, the report found that half of respondents assessed were relying on flawed backup processes, with a quarter not backing up data at all.
A number of organisations assume that they are backing data up automatically and that these backups are safe, but it is an assumption that can have cost. Added to this, some organisations are not aware that their backups can be changed, or deleted, by a malicious actor; a situation better mitigated by implementing immutable backups.
To better their situation, organisations need to understand the cause of a breach, map their data and understand where it is stored, follow the 3,2,1 rule (three copies of data, two separate locations, one in the cloud), consider immutable backups and monitor their backups. An effective backup policy will help.
Sources: [Infosecurity Magazine] [Security Week] [IT Security Guru]
Researchers Report Sevenfold Increase in Data Theft Cases, as 17 billion Personal Records Exposed in Breaches in 2023
According to a global threat intelligence report, data breach incidents rose by 34.5% in 2023, with 17 billion personal records compromised throughout the year. The research also observed a 429% spike in stolen or leaked personal data in the first two months of 2024. In a separate report, Kaspersky found that roughly 10 million devices encountered data-stealing malware in 2023, a sevenfold increase since 2020.
The reports highlight the importance of ensuring that precautions and mitigations are undertaken to thwart attackers. This should include enabling multi-factor authentication, strong and unique passwords, and using a password manager.
Sources: [Infosecurity Magazine] [Infosecurity Magazine]
AI Abuse and Misinformation Campaigns Threaten Financial Institutions
According to the Financial Services Information Sharing Analysis Center (FS-ISAC), cyber threats relating to generative AI in financial services are a consistent concern, with threat actors using generative AI to write malware and other types of attacks. In some cases, attackers are injecting contaminated data into the large language models used by AI, in order to supply it with misinformation which will in turn feed back to financial institutions.
Not all risks are malicious, however. In some cases where generative AI uses enormous datasets, this can contain privileged information or biased data, which can in turn cost financial firms the trust of regulators, consumers and investors. The FS-ISAC stated “As we look ahead to a critical year marked by emerging technology and heightened geopolitical tensions, the best way to maintain the integrity, security, and trust of the sector is through global information sharing.”
Source: [Help Net Security]
Security Teams are ‘Overconfident’ About Handling Next-Gen Threats
In a new study of more than 8,000 cyber security decision makers, Cisco found that nearly three-quarters of organisations anticipated a cyber incident to disrupt their business in the next two years and 80% said they felt at least “moderately confident” in their ability to defend against emerging threats. In contrast, Cisco’s own analysis rated the maturity of these organisations, finding 71% were deemed to be rated as ‘formative’ or ‘beginner’, the two lowest categories.
Source: [CSO Online]
AI Makes Phishing Attacks Accessible to Basic Users
One of the big selling points of AI is its ability to allow even an unsophisticated user to advance their capability and operate at a far more damaging level. Crucially AI can enable a completely non-technical user to understand and produce technical output. Unfortunately, many cyber criminals have realised this and are using AI to sharpen the efficacy of their phishing emails. With AI, phishing emails can now be created without telltale grammatical errors, and can be convincingly formatted to use a certain style to resonate with given target audience, such as a board level executive. AI is also enabling these phishing campaigns to be replicated across languages and geographies, giving malicious actors wider nets than ever before. Whilst low sophistication ‘Nigerian Prince’ type phishing emails are still doing the rounds they are largely being replaced by much more convincing and devious legitimate looking emails.
Source: [The Economic Times]
Cyber Attacks Wreaking Physical Disruption on the Rise
According to a report, more than 500 industrial operational technology (OT) sites worldwide suffered physical consequences as the result of a cyber attack last year, a near 20% rise from the previous year. The report found that some of the attacks cost the organisation up to $100 million in damages.
Attacks on utilities, water, energy, and other critical national infrastructure (CNI) have seen a sharp rise over the last year, against a backdrop of geopolitical tensions and actions by nation state aggressors such as Russia, China, North Korea and Iran, as well as hacktivist groups and other malicious actors.
Threats to IT may be better known than threats to OT, but the latter can result in very serious real world consequences, ultimately leading to potential mass loss of life events.
Source: [Dark Reading]
73% Brace for Cyber Security Impact on Business in Next Two Years
A survey has found that 73% of organisations are expecting a business disruption relating to a cyber incident in the next 12 to 24 months. Part of this was based on previous experiences, with 54% experiencing a cyber incident in the last 12 months, and 52% of those impacted reporting costs of at least $300,000. 87% reported issues with talent, and 46% reported having more than 10 unfilled roles related to cyber security.
Source: [Help Net Security]
To Stay Ahead of Ransomware Businesses Need to Adopt An Offensive Security Mindset
2023 was the most lucrative year yet for ransomware attacks and it was also the year that saw the biggest shift in ransomware tactics, with the majority of ransomware actors now implementing data exfiltration and extortion, in addition to encryption. As it is getting harder for organisations to defend against these attacks and to stay ahead of ransomware, organisations need to develop an offensive security mindset, working out how an attacker might gain access to their systems. This includes keeping up with the latest tactics, communicating this throughout the organisation and running threat-led attack simulations.
Source: [IBTimes]
Cyber Security Imperative for Protecting Executives
The stakes are high in cyber security, and particularly for executives whose positions amplify the potential fall out and damage from cyber incidents. The variety of sensitive information that they have access to, and their authority in the organisation, makes them a desirable target for business email compromise.
Organisations need to implement a robust security culture, led by executives, to foster an environment where cyber threats are understood and mitigated. As part of this, training needs to be given to the whole organisation, including executives.
Executives may have historically excluded themselves from security controls, yet ironically it is this exclusion and their position in the organisation that makes them such a lucrative target.
Source: [Forbes]
The Increasing Role of Cyber Security Experts in Complex Legal Disputes
Expert witnesses have been known to play significant roles in matters where their valuable insight is required. In today’s world, with the number of high-stake crimes now involving technology, cyber security professionals have become some of the most sought-after experts.
Disputes involving highly complex cyber crimes typically require more technical experience than is on hand, and the contributions of a cyber expert are significant in uncovering critical evidence and shaping the legal strategy, as well as explaining cyber security in the courtroom.
Source: [JDSupra]
Governance, Risk and Compliance
Ransomware incidents reported to UK financial regulator have doubled - Digital Journal
AI abuse and misinformation campaigns threaten financial institutions - Help Net Security
The Big Question: Are SMEs now at the forefront of cyber risks? - Emerging Risks Media Ltd
Threat Indicators Show 2024 Is Already Promising to be Worse Than 2023 - Security Week
Security teams are ‘overconfident’ about handling next-gen threats | CSO Online
Banks told to expand risk management to cover AI (finextra.com)
Corporations With Cyber Governance Create 4X More Value (darkreading.com)
Cyber Leaders Struggle With Heightened Job Expectations, Communicating With Board - WSJ
73% brace for cyber security impact on business in the next year or two - Help Net Security
Businesses overestimating their skills amid cyber security crisis, survey reveals (holyrood.com)
Why your data isn’t as safe as you think and what it could cost you - IT Security Guru
Unspoken Battle: Cyber Security Imperative For Protecting Executives (forbes.com)
Businesses must prioritise prevention to lock out online threats (yahoo.com)
CISOs Are Facing Challenges In Proactive Threat Defence And Compliance Management (forbes.com)
Lessons from the World's Costliest Corporate Cyber Attacks - Management Today
Three trends set to drive cyber attacks in 2024 (networkingplus.co.uk)
Why Cyber Security Is a Whole-of-Society Issue (darkreading.com)
Instilling the Hacker Mindset Organisationwide (darkreading.com)
How CISOs Can Make Cyber Security a Long-Term Priority for Boards (darkreading.com)
Threats
Ransomware, Extortion and Destructive Attacks
Cyber security incidences surge in the UK financial services sector - Digital Journal
Ransomware attacks rise by 46% in February 2024, finds NCC Group (securitybrief.co.nz)
RDP Abuse Present in 90% of Ransomware Breaches - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
How will the Merck settlement affect the insurance industry? (securityintelligence.com)
Trend Micro: LockBit ransomware gang's comeback is failing | TechTarget
Hosting firm's VMware ESXi servers hit by new SEXi ransomware (bleepingcomputer.com)
Ransomware Victims
Ransomware attacks ravaged municipal governments in March | TechTarget
NHS Scotland confirms ransomware attackers leaked patients' data - Help Net Security
Yacht retailer MarineMax discloses data breach after cyber attack (bleepingcomputer.com)
How will the Merck settlement affect the insurance industry? (securityintelligence.com)
Ransomware gang leaks UK city council’s confidential files • The Register
Omni Hotels confirms cyber attack behind ongoing IT outage (bleepingcomputer.com)
World’s second-largest lens-maker blinded by cyber incident • The Register
Phishing & Email Based Attacks
This new phishing attack targets iPhone and Android alike via RCS | TechRadar
Cloud Email Filtering Bypass Attack Works 80% of the Time (darkreading.com)
$1.28 Million Lost From Crypto Phishing Attacks (coinpedia.org)
Naked photos sent in WhatsApp ‘phishing’ attacks on UK MPs and staff – POLITICO
Cyber security: Enabled by AI, phishing becomes quite simple - The Economic Times (indiatimes.com)
Phishing Attacks Targeting Political Parties, Germany Warns (govinfosecurity.com)
A phish by any other name should still not be clicked – Computerworld
Google now blocks spoofed emails for better phishing protection (bleepingcomputer.com)
New Phishing Campaign Targets Oil & Gas with Evolved Data-Stealing Malware (thehackernews.com)
Microsoft Teams phishing attacks and how to prevent them | TechTarget
Artificial Intelligence
Banks told to expand risk management to cover AI (finextra.com)
AI abuse and misinformation campaigns threaten financial institutions - Help Net Security
22% of employees admit to breaching company rules with GenAI - Help Net Security
6 Prompts You Don't Want Employees Putting in Microsoft Copilot (bleepingcomputer.com)
Microsoft Copilot Blocked on US Congress Devices Over Security Concerns | Cryptopolitan
Cyber security: Enabled by AI, phishing becomes quite simple - The Economic Times (indiatimes.com)
Microsoft Announces New Safety System to Filter Malicious AI Output | Extremetech
Microsoft GM on AI and elections: 'There will be fakes' • The Register
The ‘complicated relationship’ between AI and cyber security (siliconrepublic.com)
Chinese hackers turn to AI to meddle in elections | CyberScoop
Security and AI occupy SME thoughts | Microscope (computerweekly.com)
Malware
Escalating malware tactics drive global cyber crime epidemic - Help Net Security
Linux Version of DinodasRAT Spotted in Cyber Attacks Across Several Countries (thehackernews.com)
TheMoon Malware Rises Again with Malicious Botnet for Hire (darkreading.com)
Hackers Target macOS Users with Malicious Ads Spreading Stealer Malware (thehackernews.com)
Vultur Android Banking Trojan Returns with Upgraded Remote Control Capabilities (thehackernews.com)
Botnets: The uninvited guests that just won’t leave | CSO Online
Detecting Windows-based Malware Through Better Visibility (thehackernews.com)
Apple macOS users targeted with more cyber attacks via dodgy ads and websites | TechRadar
Europe subjected to Mispadu trojan attacks | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
YouTube Video Game ‘Hacks’ Contain Malware Links - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
The Biggest Takeaways from Recent Malware Attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
Thousands of Australian Businesses Targeted With RAT (darkreading.com)
Mobile
This new phishing attack targets iPhone and Android alike via RCS | TechRadar
2 wireless protocols expose mobile users to spying — the FCC wants to fix that - Nextgov/FCW
Location tracking and the battle for digital privacy - Help Net Security
How and why to enable Stolen Device Protection on your iPhone (idownloadblog.com)
Google fixed two actively exploited Pixel vulnerabilities (securityaffairs.com)
Denial of Service/DoS/DDOS
Internet of Things – IoT
Porsche Kills Two More Models Due to Cyber Security Regulations - autoevolution
UK Encouraged to Prioritise Cyber Security with Electric Vehicle Charging Points - Electrical Times
Data Breaches/Leaks
Highly sensitive files mysteriously disappeared from EUROPOL headquarters (securityaffairs.com)
Almost 2.9M impacted by Harvard Pilgrim Health Care breach | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
Ivanti-linked breach of CISA potentially affected more than 100,000 individuals | CyberScoop
Prudential Insurance says data of 36,000 exposed during February cyber attack (therecord.media)
Hotel Self Check-In Kiosks Exposed Room Access Codes - Security Week
Nearly 1M medical records feared stolen from City of Hope • The Register
SurveyLama data breach exposes info of 4.4 million users (bleepingcomputer.com)
Cyber criminals steal data of around 700,000 Apotheka pharmacy customers | News | ERR
PandaBuy data breach allegedly impacted +1.3M customers (securityaffairs.com)
OWASP discloses breach due to a Wiki web server misconfig • The Register
US cancer center data breach exposes info of 827,000 patients (bleepingcomputer.com)
Organised Crime & Criminal Actors
Escalating malware tactics drive global cyber crime epidemic - Help Net Security
Threat Indicators Show 2024 Is Already Promising to be Worse Than 2023 - Security Week
Rise of non-tech hackers: new era of cyber threats - VnExpress International
India rescuing citizens forced into cyber fraud schemes in Cambodia | Reuters
Cyber criminal adoption of browser fingerprinting - Help Net Security
With just $700 and a Raspberry Pi — you too can become a cyber criminal | TechRadar
Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs/Blockchain
FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years for crypto fraud (cnbc.com)
$1.28 Million Lost From Crypto Phishing Attacks (coinpedia.org)
Insider Risk and Insider Threats
Human risk is the top cyber threat for IT teams - Help Net Security
Instilling the Hacker Mindset Organisation wide (darkreading.com)
Insurance
Can cyber insurance help secure business? | Mint (livemint.com)
How will the Merck settlement affect the insurance industry? (securityintelligence.com)
Supply Chain and Third Parties
Cloud/SaaS
How much does cloud-based identity expand your attack surface? - Help Net Security
Who owns your data? SaaS contract security, privacy red flags | CSO Online
Cloud Email Filtering Bypass Attack Works 80% of the Time (darkreading.com)
Identity and Access Management
Linux and Open Source
New Linux Bug Could Lead to User Password Leaks and Clipboard Hijacking (thehackernews.com)
Red Hat warns of backdoor in XZ tools used by most Linux distros (bleepingcomputer.com)
A new XZ backdoor scanner will be able to safeguard any Linux binary from threats (msn.com)
What we know about the xz Utils backdoor that almost infected the world | Ars Technica
Malicious xz backdoor reveals fragility of open source • The Register
Linux Version of DinodasRAT Spotted in Cyber Attacks Across Several Countries (thehackernews.com)
German state switches to LibreOffice, promises Windows move • The Register
Passwords, Credential Stuffing & Brute Force Attacks
Cisco warns of password-spraying attacks targeting VPN services (bleepingcomputer.com)
American fast-fashion firm Hot Topic hit by credential stuffing attacks (securityaffairs.com)
Social Media
WhatsApp was down in Meta’s second big outage this year | TechCrunch
YouTube Video Game ‘Hacks’ Contain Malware Links - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Malvertising
Apple macOS users targeted with more cyber attacks via dodgy ads and websites | TechRadar
New Chrome feature aims to stop hackers from using stolen cookies (bleepingcomputer.com)
Training, Education and Awareness
Human risk is the top cyber threat for IT teams - Help Net Security
Instilling the Hacker Mindset Organisation wide (darkreading.com)
Regulations, Fines and Legislation
Ransomware incidents reported to UK financial regulator have doubled - Digital Journal
EU's reimagined NIS 2 cyber security vision to go live (electronicspecifier.com)
6 business benefits of data protection and GDPR compliance | TechTarget
Treasury accuses banks of 'insufficient data sharing' on fraud | American Banker
A CISO's Guide to Materiality and Risk Determination (darkreading.com)
Models, Frameworks and Standards
Using the NIST CSF for Strong Cyber Security Compliance | NAVEX - JDSupra
NIST And CISA: 13 Must-Review Resources For SMBs (forbes.com)
Are businesses prepared for the CSF 2.0 challenge? - Digital Journal
Backup and Recovery
World Backup Day triggers call for holistic cyber security overhaul (securitybrief.co.nz)
Data protection vs. data backup: How are they different? | TechTarget
Data Protection
6 business benefits of data protection and GDPR compliance | TechTarget
How to conduct a data privacy audit, step by step | TechTarget
Data protection vs. data backup: How are they different? | TechTarget
Careers, Working in Cyber and Information Security
The Complexity and Need to Manage Mental Well-Being in the Security Team - Security Week
Cyber Leaders Struggle With Heightened Job Expectations, Communicating With Board - WSJ
Unlocking Cyber Security Success: The Importance of Certifications - ClearanceJobs
CISOs Are Facing Challenges In Proactive Threat Defence And Compliance Management (forbes.com)
Are you okay? Understanding the world of a CISO | CSO Online
Misinformation, Disinformation and Propaganda
Nation State Actors, Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs), Cyber Warfare, Cyber Espionage and Geopolitical Threats/Activity
Cyber Warfare and Cyber Espionage
Wars prompt questions for facial recognition providers, and obscure the answers | Biometric Update
UN Peace Operations Under Fire from State-Sponsored Hackers (darkreading.com)
Nation State Actors
China
UK minister confirmed as 12th target in Westminster ‘spear-phishing’ scandal – POLITICO
Pulling the Curtain Back on China’s Cyberespionage (informationweek.com)
MPs challenge government claims China cyber attack was unsuccessful (ft.com)
Chinese hackers turn to AI to meddle in elections | CyberScoop
UK, Czech ministers among China’s hacking targets – POLITICO
Security fears over supercomputer deal with Chinese firm Lenovo (thetimes.co.uk)
Russia
Ukraine gives award to foreign vigilantes for hacks on Russia - BBC News
STA: Russian hackers take responsibility for cyber attack on Slovenia
Exclusive: Hackers stole Russian prisoner database to avenge death of Navalny | CNN Politics
Russian network that 'paid European politicians' busted, authorities claim - BBC News
Russia charges suspects behind theft of 160,000 credit cards (bleepingcomputer.com)
Iran
Iran's Evolving Cyber Enabled Influence Operations to Support Hamas (darkreading.com)
Satellite Cyber Security, Iran, and the Israel-Hamas War | Geopolitical Monitor
North Korea
Vulnerability Management
CVE and NVD - A Weak and Fractured Source of Vulnerability Truth - Security Week
Attack Surface Management vs. Vulnerability Management (thehackernews.com)
Vulnerabilities
Are You Affected by the Backdoor in XZ Utils? (darkreading.com)
Red Hat issues urgent alert for Fedora Linux users due to malicious code (betanews.com)
Hosting firm's VMware ESXi servers hit by new SEXi ransomware (bleepingcomputer.com)
Cisco warns of password-spraying attacks targeting VPN services (bleepingcomputer.com)
Cisco addressed high-severity flaws in IOS and IOS XE software (securityaffairs.com)
Ivanti Rushes Patches for 4 New Flaws in Connect Secure and Policy Secure (thehackernews.com)
Apple GoFetch was caused by an obsession with speed • The Register
Heartbleed is 10 Years Old – Farewell Heartbleed, Hello QuantumBleed! - Security Week
Critical Security Flaw Found in Popular LayerSlider WordPress Plugin (thehackernews.com)
Critical Vulnerability in Progress Flowmon Allows Remote Access to Systems - Security Week
Google fixed two actively exploited Pixel vulnerabilities (securityaffairs.com)
Splunk Patches Vulnerabilities in Enterprise Product - Security Week
JetBrains fixes 26 'security problems,' offering no details • The Register
Tools and Controls
RDP Abuse Present in 90% of Ransomware Breaches - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
New XZ backdoor scanner detects implant in any Linux binary (bleepingcomputer.com)
The ‘complicated relationship’ between AI and cyber security (siliconrepublic.com)
How much does cloud-based identity expand your attack surface? - Help Net Security
How Pentesting-as-a-Service can Reduce Overall Security Costs (bleepingcomputer.com)
Building a cyber security risk assessment template - Security Boulevard
Microsoft unveils safety and security tools for generative AI | InfoWorld
The Biggest Mistake Security Teams Make When Buying Tools (darkreading.com)
World Backup Day triggers call for holistic cyber security overhaul (securitybrief.co.nz)
Cloud Email Filtering Bypass Attack Works 80% of the Time (darkreading.com)
Can cyber insurance help secure business? | Mint (livemint.com)
71% Website Vulnerable: API Security Becomes Prime Target for Hackers - Security Boulevard
Old Technology, New Tricks: Why DNS Is Still A Major Security Target (forbes.com)
Cyber Risk Management: A Beginner's Guide - Security Boulevard
Microsoft Entra Recommendations adds several more for better user security - Neowin
A CISO's Guide to Materiality and Risk Determination (darkreading.com)
Attack Surface Management vs. Vulnerability Management (thehackernews.com)
Why a Cloud Security Platform Approach is Critical | Trend Micro (US)
The Importance Of Physical Cyber Security Testing (forbes.com)
CISOs Are Facing Challenges In Proactive Threat Defence And Compliance Management (forbes.com)
Human risk is the top cyber threat for IT teams - Help Net Security
Data protection vs. data backup: How are they different? | TechTarget
SIEM Implementation: Strategies and Best Practices | MSSP Alert
Is Windows Defender All the Antivirus Protection You Need? (makeuseof.com)
Other News
Cyber Attacks Wreaking Physical Disruption on the Rise (darkreading.com)
Cyber Safety Review Board: Microsoft security culture 'inadequate' (geekwire.com)
Microsoft slammed for lax infosec that led to Exchange crack • The Register
Infosec professionals praise CSRB report on Microsoft breach | TechTarget
76% of consumers don't see themselves as cyber crime targets - Help Net Security
Shielding the lifelines: Protecting energy and infrastructure from cyber threats (betanews.com)
Cyber Security Statistics In 2024: Is Your Law Firm Protected? - Above the Law
Sellafield nuclear waste dump faces prosecution over cyber security failures (bitdefender.com)
Australia Doubles Down On Cyber Security After Attacks (darkreading.com)
Furry Hackers Use Church's Money To Buy Inflatable Sea Lions (dailydot.com)
Windows 10 Support Deadline: Your Guide to Extended Security Updates (ESU) (mspoweruser.com)
Healthcare's cyber resilience under siege as attacks multiply - Help Net Security
Rise of non-tech hackers: new era of cyber threats - VnExpress International
Why Cultural Institutions Are Rich Targets for Cyber Attackers (informationweek.com)
Sector Specific
Industry specific threat intelligence reports are available.
Contact us to receive tailored reports specific to the industry/sector and geographies you operate in.
· 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.
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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 Cyber Threat Intelligence Briefing 4th August 2023
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Intelligence Briefing 04 August 2023:
-Top 12 Exploited Vulnerabilities List Highlights Troubling Reality: Many Organisations Still Are Not Patching
-67% of Data Breaches Start with a Single Click, with 1 in 100 Emails Being Malicious
-Ransomware Attacks Hit All Time High. Attackers’ Motives Change, So Should Your Defence
-The Generative AI War Between Companies and Hackers is Starting
-Spend to Save: The CFO’s Guide to Cyber Security Investment
-Corporate Boards Take Heed: Give CISOs the Cold Shoulder at your Peril
-How the Talent Shortage Impacts Cyber Security Leadership
-Salesforce, Meta Suffer Phishing Campaign that Evades Typical Detection Methods
-Cyber Insurance and the Ransomware Challenge
-Microsoft Exposes Russian Hackers' Sneaky Phishing Tactics via Microsoft Teams Chats
-66% of Cyber security Leaders Don’t Trust Their Current Cyber Risk Mitigation Strategies
-Startups Should Move Fast and Remember Cyber Security
Welcome to this week’s Black Arrow Cyber Threat Intelligence 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
Top 12 Exploited Vulnerabilities List Highlights Troubling Reality That Many Organisations Are Still Not Patching
A joint advisory from US and allied cyber security agencies highlights the top routinely exploited vulnerabilities. This is a list that includes old and well-known bugs that many organisations still have not patched, including some vulnerabilities that have been known for more than five years. The list underscores how exploiting years-old vulnerabilities in unpatched systems continues to dominate the threat landscape. Organisations are more likely to be compromised by a bug found in 2021 or 2020 than they are by ones discovered over the past year.
This report emphasises that a vulnerability management strategy relying solely on CVSS for vulnerability prioritisation is proving to be insufficient at best; CVSS is an established method for assigning criticality scores to known vulnerabilities based on different scoring criteria. Additional context is required to allow for a more scalable and effective prioritisation strategy. This context should stem from internal sources, for example, the target environment (asset criticality, mitigating controls, reachability), as well as from external sources, which will permit a better assessment of the likelihood and feasibility of exploitation. Most organisations have a limited patching capacity, affected by the tooling, processes, and skills at their disposal. The challenge is to direct that limited patching capacity towards vulnerabilities that matter most in terms of risk reduction. Therefore, the task of sifting the signal through the noise is becoming increasingly more important.
Sources: [HelpNetSecurity] [NSA.gov] [SCMagazine]
67% of Data Breaches Start with a Single Click, with 1 in 100 Emails Being Malicious
In a report that leveraged data from 23.5 billion cyber security attacks, spanning 500 threat types and 900 distinct infrastructure and software vulnerabilities it was found that approximately 67% of all breaches start with someone clicking on a seemingly safe link, which explains why adversaries begin 80-95% of all attacks with a phishing email.
A separate report found that there was a 36% rise in cyber attacks in the first half of 2023. Email continued to be the main vector for delivering malicious content, with as many as 1 in every 100 emails sent in the first half of 2023 found to be malicious. In addition, malware accounted for 20% of attacks, and business email compromise (BEC) constituted 8%.
The findings reinforce the need for organisations to employ effective and regular security awareness training for users to better help them to not only identify, but also report such attacks to help strengthen the cyber resilience of the organisation. Black Arrow offers bespoke training to all roles within the organisation as well as upskilling tailored to those at the board level.
Source: [Security Intelligence]
Ransomware Attacks Hit All Time High. Attackers’ Motives Change, So Should Your Defence
Cases of straight-up data theft and extortion now appear to be more widespread a threat than ransomware, becoming the single most observed threat in the second calendar quarter of 2023, according to new data released by researchers. 1,378 organisations have been named as victims on ransomware data-leak websites in Q2 2023. This was a 64.4% increase from the record-breaking number of victims named in Q1 2023.
Despite both the rise in threats and the high percentage of respondents whose organisations suffered recent attacks, there hasn’t been a corresponding uptick in strategic measures to shore up cyber resilience. In fact, close to four in five survey respondents don’t have complete confidence that their company has a cyber resilience strategy designed to address today’s escalating cyber challenges and threats.
Sources: [Forbes] [HelpNetSecurity] [ComputerWeekly] [SecurityBrief.co.nz] [Malwarebytes]
The Generative AI War Between Companies and Hackers is Starting
To no one’s surprise, criminals are tapping open-source generative AI programs for all kinds of heinous acts, including developing malware and phishing attacks, according to the FBI. This comes as the UK National Risk Register officially classes AI as a long-term security threat. It’s safe to say AI is certainly a controversial field right now, with the battle between companies and hackers really starting to take place; only recently had technology giants such as Amazon, Google, Meta and Microsoft met with the US President Joe Biden to pledge to follow safeguards.
A recent report from security firm Barracuda has found that between August 2022 and July 2023, ransomware attacks had doubled and this surge has largely been driven by the breaching of networks via AI-crafted phishing campaigns, as well as automating attacks to increase reach, again using AI.
Despite the controversy, AI can be of tremendous value to organisations, helping to streamline and automate tasks. Organisations employing or looking to employ AI in the workplace should also have effective governance and identification procedures over the usage of said AI. Equally, when it comes to defending against AI attacks, organisations need to have a clear picture of their attack landscape, with layers of defence.
Sources: [CSO Online] [PC MAG] [CNBC] [Tech Radar]
Spend to Save: The CFO’s Guide to Cyber Security Investment
As a CFO, you need to make smart choices about cyber security investments. The increasing impact of data breaches creates a paradox: While more spending is necessary to combat these challenges, this spending isn’t directly tied to profit. Instead, cyber security spending should be seen an investment in the future of your business.
The impact of a cyber event extends beyond quantifiable currency loss. Further impacts include those of reputation and customer retention. CFOs should look to identify weak spots, understand the effect these can have, pick the right solution that mitigates these and finally, advocate cyber security and robust governance at the board level.
It is important to remember, cyber security is not just a technical issue, but also a business one, and you have a key role in ensuring the security and resilience of your organisation.
Source: [Security Intelligence]
Corporate Boards Take Heed: Give CISOs the Cold Shoulder at your Peril
The debate over whether the CISO should, by the very nature of the position, be considered a member of the C-suite has been raging for some time and seems likely to continue for a good while to come. CISOs should not only have a seat among the uppermost echelon at the big table but also be recognised as a foundational element in the success of any business.
There is a danger that, without an effective CISO, organisations can end up in a perilous situation in which there's no one driving the cyber security bus at a time when vulnerabilities and incidents are ever on the rise. When the CISO has a seat at the big table, everybody wins.
Source [CSO Online]
How the Talent Shortage Impacts Cyber Security Leadership
The lack of a skilled cyber security workforce hampers the effectiveness of an organisation’s security program. While technologies like AI and machine learning can provide some support, they are not sufficient, especially for small and medium sized businesses (SMBs). The cyber security workforce shortage affects not just current security but the future of leadership roles, including CISOs and CSOs.
Today’s CISOs require a blend of technology and business understanding. According to the (ISC)2 2022 Workforce Study, the global cyber security workforce is nearly 5 million and growing at 26% yearly. However, more than 3 million jobs still need to be filled, including specialised roles in cloud security, data protection, and incident response. This gap jeopardises functions like risk assessment, oversight, and systems patching.
The greatest talent shortage is found in soft skills, leading to a trend of looking outside the traditional security talent pool. The future of CISOs will likely require a solid security background, but as the talent gap widens, finding leadership candidates from the existing pool may remain challenging.
Source: [Security Intelligence]
Salesforce, Meta Suffer Phishing Campaign that Evades Typical Detection Methods
A recent report by cyber security company identified a sophisticated email phishing campaign exploiting a zero-day vulnerability in Salesforce's legitimate email services. The vulnerability allowed threat actors to craft targeted phishing emails, cleverly evading conventional detection methods by leveraging Salesforce's domain and reputation and exploiting legacy quirks in Facebook's web games platform.
Whilst Facebook and Salesforce have now addressed the issue, it goes to show that technology alone is not enough to stop phishing; operational and people controls are still necessary and should form part of an effective organisational response.
Source: [Security Brief]
Cyber Insurance and the Ransomware Challenge
The cyber insurance industry has been heavily criticised for providing coverage for ransom payments. A frequent accusation, which has become close to perceived wisdom in policymaking and cyber security discussions on ransomware, is that cyber insurance has incentivised victims to pay a ransom following a cyber incident, rather than seek alternative remediation options. However, the insurance industry could do much more to instil discipline in both insureds and the ransomware response ecosystem in relation to ransom payments to reduce cyber criminals’ profits. Insurers’ role as convenors of incident response services gives them considerable power to reward firms that drive best practices and only guide victims towards payment as a last resort.
While the insurance industry has the power to do this, there are still challenges that need to be addressed in the underwriting process. Offering expensive policies that exclude common risks such as ransomware or nation-state attacks is simply not a sustainable approach. This has helped insurers become more profitable for now, but these are only short-term fixes to the real problem at hand. Namely, that the underwriting process for cyber insurance policies is still not that sophisticated. Most underwriters are poorly equipped to effectively measure the cyber risk exposure of new or renewing customers.
Sources: [RUSI] [Dark Reading]
Microsoft Exposes Russian Hackers' Sneaky Phishing Tactics via Microsoft Teams Chats
Microsoft on Wednesday disclosed that it identified a set of highly targeted social engineering attacks mounted by a Russian nation-state threat actor using credential theft phishing lures sent as Microsoft Teams chats. The tech giant attributed the attacks to a group it tracks as Midnight Blizzard.
"In this latest activity, the threat actor uses previously compromised Microsoft 365 tenants owned by small businesses to create new domains that appear as technical support entities" Microsoft said. "Using these domains from compromised tenants, Midnight Blizzard leverages Teams messages to send lures that attempt to steal credentials from a targeted organisation by engaging a user and eliciting approval of multi-factor authentication (MFA) prompts."
Source: [TheHackerNews]
66% of Cyber security Leaders Don’t Trust Their Current Cyber Risk Mitigation Strategies
A recent report found that 66% of cyber security leaders don’t trust their current cyber risk mitigation strategies. It was also found that while 90% of respondents say their organisation has dedicated resources responsible for managing and reducing cyber risk, in almost half of situations (46%) this consists of just one person.
In some cases, it can be hard to get the necessary talent to build out the cyber security arm of an organisation; this is where organisations can look towards outsourcing to fulfil positions with expertise. At Black Arrow we offer many services to help you to govern your cyber security, including as virtual CISO that leverages our diverse team with backgrounds from British intelligence, board governance, IT and finance.
Source: [ITSecurityWire]
UK legal Sector at Risk, National Cyber Security Centre Warns
Over the past three years more than 200 ransomware attacks worldwide have been inflicted on companies in the legal industry. The UK was the second most-attacked country constituting 2.3% of all ransomware attacks across various sectors. The legal sector was the fourth most-attacked industry in the UK in 2022. Ransomware groups are indiscriminate in their targeting, attacking companies of all sizes, from small law firms with only ten employees to large firms with 1,000+ employees, and ranging in revenue from companies generating £100 million to those with under £3 million. No single kind of company is immune to these attacks.
The International Bar Association (IBA) has released a report to guide senior executives and boards in protecting their organisations from cyber risk. Entitled "Global perspectives on protecting against cyber risks: best governance practices for senior executives and boards of directors," the report aims to provide leaders with insight into the primary elements of a robust cyber risk management programme. Its recommendations for senior executives and boards encompass understanding the organisation's cyber risk profile, knowing what information assets to safeguard, being aware of significant regulatory requirements, and recognising the security standards utilised by the organisation.
Sources: [Todays Conveyancer] [Infosecurity Magazine]
Startups Should Move Fast and Remember Cyber Security
The importance of cyber security for startups, which can often be overlooked in the pursuit of fast-paced growth, cannot be overstated. However, cyber attacks can have devastating consequences for businesses of all sizes. The percentage of micro-businesses in the UK that consider cyber security a high priority has dropped from 80% to 68% in the past year, possibly due to wider economic pressures. Cyber criminals target businesses of all sizes, often initially using automated software to find weak spots. Startups can be particularly vulnerable due to their fast-paced environments and new or less familiar supply chains. The use of shared office spaces can also increase risk.
The UK DCMS/DSIT 2023 Cyber Security Breaches survey reported that almost a third of businesses (32%) and a quarter of charities (24%) reported breaches or attacks in the past 12 months alone, with the average victim losing £15,300. Startups have the unique advantage of being able to implement cyber security best practices from the outset and embed them into company culture. It is recommended that startups prioritise cyber security from the get-go to protect their business and ensure long-term growth.
Source: [UKTech] [Cyber security breaches survey 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)]
Governance, Risk and Compliance
Corporate boards take heed: Give CISOs the cold shoulder at your peril | CSO Online
How to lead your organisation through a ransomware attack | World Economic Forum (weforum.org)
How the Talent Shortage Impacts Cyber security Leadership (securityintelligence.com)
From tech expertise to leadership: Unpacking the role of a CISO - Help Net Security
Cyber Insurance and the Ransomware Challenge | Royal United Services Institute (rusi.org)
Cyber Risk and Resiliency Report: Dueling Disaster in 2023 (informationweek.com)
Spend to save: The CFO’s guide to cyber security investment (securityintelligence.com)
CISOs Need Backing to Take Charge of Security (darkreading.com)
Create a ‘win-win’ scenario for security teams and cyber insurers | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
Risk Appetite vs. Risk Tolerance: How are They Different? (techtarget.com)
Threats
Ransomware, Extortion and Destructive Attacks
67% of data breaches start with a single click - Help Net Security
AI-Enhanced Phishing Driving Ransomware Surge - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
The race against time in ransomware attacks - Help Net Security
As Ransomware Attackers’ Motives Changes, So Should Your Defence (forbes.com)
Ransomware gang increases attacks on insecure MSSQL servers | CSO Online
MOVEit Campaign Claims Millions More Victims - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
How to lead your organisation through a ransomware attack | World Economic Forum (weforum.org)
Ransomware Attacks on Industrial Organisations Doubled in Past Year: Report - SecurityWeek
In new ransomware model, cloud provider acts as front for bad actors: report | CSO Online
Researchers claim US-registered cloud host facilitated state-backed cyber attacks | TechCrunch
Cyber Insurance and the Ransomware Challenge | Royal United Services Institute (rusi.org)
Cyber criminals pivot away from ransomware encryption | Computer Weekly
Ransomware on manufacturing industry caused $46bn in losses - IT Security Guru
How Ransomware Gangs Enlist Insiders (And How to Stop Them) (makeuseof.com)
Linux version of Abyss Locker ransomware targets VMware ESXi servers (bleepingcomputer.com)
The Trickbot/Conti Crypters: Where Are They Now? (securityintelligence.com)
Ransomware Victims
MOVEit Campaign Claims Millions More Victims - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Hawai'i Community College pays ransomware gang to prevent data leak (bleepingcomputer.com)
Scottish university UWS targeted by cyber attackers - BBC News
Tempur Sealy isolated tech system to contain cyber burglary • The Register
US govt contractor Serco discloses data breach after MoveIT attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
Phishing & Email Based Attacks
67% of data breaches start with a single click - Help Net Security
Russian Hackers Are Conducting Phishing Attacks via Microsoft Teams - MySmartPrice
Microsoft downplays damaging report on Chinese hacking its own engineers vetted | CyberScoop
Threat actors abuse Google AMP for evasive phishing attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
BEC – Business Email Compromise
Other Social Engineering; Smishing, Vishing, etc
Humans Unable to Reliably Detect Deepfake Speech - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Artificial Intelligence
AI-Enhanced Phishing Driving Ransomware Surge - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
UK calls artificial intelligence a “chronic risk” to its national security | CSO Online
FBI warns of broad AI threats facing tech companies and the public | CyberScoop
As Artificial Intelligence Accelerates, Cyber crime Innovates (darkreading.com)
Another AI Pitfall: Digital Mirroring Opens New Cyber attack Vector (darkreading.com)
Intersection of generative AI, cyber security and digital trust | TechTarget
Hackers are using AI to create vicious malware, says FBI | Digital Trends
The generative A.I. war between companies and hackers is starting (cnbc.com)
Generative AI and cloud have created gaps in cyber security: Wipro report - BusinessToday
'DarkBERT' GPT-Based Malware Trains Up on the Entire Dark Web (darkreading.com)
A New Attack Impacts ChatGPT—and No One Knows How to Stop It | WIRED
Humans Unable to Reliably Detect Deepfake Speech - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
OWASP Top 10 for LLM applications is out! - Security Affairs
Think tank wants monitoring of China's AI-enabled products • The Register
UK spy agencies want to relax ‘burdensome’ laws on AI data use | Data protection | The Guardian
Researchers figure out how to make AI misbehave, serve up prohibited content | Ars Technica
Organisations want stronger AI regulation amid growing concerns - Help Net Security
Malware
Hackers Abusing Windows Search Feature to Install Remote Access Trojans (thehackernews.com)
Hackers can abuse Microsoft Office executables to download malware (bleepingcomputer.com)
IcedID Malware Adapts and Expands Threat with Updated BackConnect Module (thehackernews.com)
Hackers continue to distribute malware through hacked verified pages on Facebook - Neowin
'DarkBERT' GPT-Based Malware Trains Up on the Entire Dark Web (darkreading.com)
Attackers can turn AWS SSM agents into remote access trojans - Help Net Security
Hackers are infecting Modern Warfare 2 players with a self-spreading malware | TechSpot
Fruity Trojan Uses Deceptive Software Installers to Spread Remcos RAT (thehackernews.com)
Experts link AVRecon bot to malware proxy service SocksEscort - Security Affairs
New P2PInfect Worm Targets Redis Servers with Undocumented Breach Methods (thehackernews.com)
New persistent backdoor used in attacks on Barracuda ESG appliances - Help Net Security
MacOS malware discovered on Russian dark web forum | Security Magazine
Apple Users Open to Remote Control via Tricky macOS Malware (darkreading.com)
NodeStealer 2.0 takes over Facebook Business accounts - Security Affairs
Chrome malware Rilide targets enterprise users via PowerPoint guides (bleepingcomputer.com)
BlackBerry Discovers Crypto-Centric Malware Amid Stopping 1.5 Million Cyber a ttacks (ethnews.com)
Kaspersky crimeware report: Emotet, DarkGate and LokiBot | Securelist
CISA: New Submarine malware found on hacked Barracuda ESG appliances (bleepingcomputer.com)
Mobile
New Android malware uses OCR to steal credentials from images (bleepingcomputer.com)
CherryBlos Malware Uses OCR to Pluck Android Users' Cryptocurrency (darkreading.com)
Apple Sets New Rules for Developers to Prevent Fingerprinting and Data Misuse (thehackernews.com)
Google: Android patch gap makes n-days as dangerous as zero-days (bleepingcomputer.com)
New smartphone vulnerability could allow hackers to track user location (techxplore.com)
Hackers steal Signal, WhatsApp user data with fake Android chat app (bleepingcomputer.com)
Ukrainian hackers viciously troll Russian navy, send malware to their phones (tvpworld.com)
Botnets
Denial of Service/DoS/DDOS
Navigating The Landscape Of Hacktivist DDoS Attacks (forbes.com)
Israel's largest oil refinery website offline amid cyber attack claims (bleepingcomputer.com)
Russian hackers crash Italian bank websites, cyber agency says | Reuters
"Mysterious Team Bangladesh" Targeting India with DDoS Attacks and Data Breaches (thehackernews.com)
Internet of Things – IoT
Data Breaches/Leaks
Cyber security breaches exposed 146 million records - ITSecurityWire
Hack Crew Responsible for Stolen Data, NATO Investigates Claims (darkreading.com)
Doctors sign up to legal case against Capita over GP data breach - Pulse Today
Cyber attack on B.C. health websites may have taken workers’ personal information (thestar.com)
Cyber security Recovery Guide: How to Recover from a Data Breach (thelondoneconomic.com)
Organised Crime & Criminal Actors
As Artificial Intelligence Accelerates, Cyber crime Innovates (darkreading.com)
How Hackers Trick You With Basic Sales Techniques (makeuseof.com)
Space Pirates Turn Cyber Sabers on Russian, Serbian Organisations (darkreading.com)
Kaspersky crimeware report: Emotet, DarkGate and LokiBot | Securelist
Hacktivists fund their operations using common cyber crime tactics (bleepingcomputer.com)
Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs/Blockchain
Crypto Hacks in July Resulted in $165 Million in Losses (beincrypto.com)
New Android malware uses OCR to steal credentials from images (bleepingcomputer.com)
Millions stolen from crypto platforms through exploited ‘Vyper’ vulnerability (therecord.media)
BlackBerry Discovers Crypto-Centric Malware Amid Stopping 1.5 Million Cyber a ttacks (ethnews.com)
Couple admit laundering $4B of stolen Bitfinex Bitcoins • The Register
Insider Risk and Insider Threats
How Ransomware Gangs Enlist Insiders (And How to Stop Them) (makeuseof.com)
US military battling cyber threats from within and without • The Register
Deepfakes
Humans Unable to Reliably Detect Deepfake Speech - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
AML/CFT/Sanctions
Insurance
Cyber Insurance and the Ransomware Challenge | Royal United Services Institute (rusi.org)
Cyber Insurance Underwriting Is Still Stuck in the Dark Ages (darkreading.com)
Create a ‘win-win’ scenario for security teams and cyber insurers | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
Dark Web
'DarkBERT' GPT-Based Malware Trains Up on the Entire Dark Web (darkreading.com)
MacOS malware discovered on Russian dark web forum | Security Magazine
Supply Chain and Third Parties
Doctors sign up to legal case against Capita over GP data breach - Pulse Today
Capita boss quits as potential fine looms for huge hack of confidential data | Capita | The Guardian
Iran's APT34 Hits UAE With Supply Chain Attack (darkreading.com)
Software Supply Chain
Cloud/SaaS
Attackers can turn AWS SSM agents into remote access trojans - Help Net Security
New Microsoft Azure AD CTS feature can be abused for lateral movement (bleepingcomputer.com)
Generative AI and cloud have created gaps in cyber security: Wipro report - BusinessToday
In new ransomware model, cloud provider acts as front for bad actors: report | CSO Online
Researchers claim US-registered cloud host facilitated state-backed cyber attacks | TechCrunch
These Are the Top Five Cloud Security Risks, Qualys Says - SecurityWeek
Google warns companies about keeping hackers out of cloud infrastructure | CyberScoop
Identity and Access Management
Encryption
Braverman fights Meta encryption plans ‘that aid paedophiles’ (thetimes.co.uk)
SCARF cipher sets new standards in protecting sensitive data - Help Net Security
Cult of Dead Cow hacktivists design encryption system for mobile apps - The Washington Post
Open Source
Open-source security challenges and complexities - Help Net Security
Linux version of Abyss Locker ransomware targets VMware ESXi servers (bleepingcomputer.com)
Passwords, Credential Stuffing & Brute Force Attacks
Biometrics
Social Media
Hackers continue to distribute malware through hacked verified pages on Facebook - Neowin
Social media giants on notice over foreign cyber threat (themandarin.com.au)
NodeStealer 2.0 takes over Facebook Business accounts - Security Affairs
Travel
Regulations, Fines and Legislation
Strengthening Cyber security: Can The SEC’s New Rules Be Enforced? (forbes.com)
CISA’s security-by-design initiative is at risk: Here’s a path forward | TechCrunch
What is the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA)? | Definition from TechTarget
Organizations want stronger AI regulation amid growing concerns - Help Net Security
Materiality Definition Seen as Tough Task in New SEC Cyber Rules | Mint (livemint.com)
Cyber security Implementation Plan Offers a Roadmap for Cyber Priorities | Perkins Coie - JDSupra
Models, Frameworks and Standards
OWASP Top 10 for LLM applications is out! - Security Affairs
Security professionals unaware of NCSC Cyber Essentials framework - Lookout - IT Security Guru
What is SOC 2 (System and Organization Controls 2)? | Definition from TechTarget
Careers, Working in Cyber and Information Security
How the Talent Shortage Impacts Cyber security Leadership (securityintelligence.com)
US Gov Rolls Out National Cyber Workforce, Education Strategy - SecurityWeek
Women two-thirds more likely to fear losing CNI security jobs than men - IT Security Guru
White House Cyber Workforce Strategy: No Quick Fix for Skills Shortage (darkreading.com)
Cyber workforce strategy requires buy-in across sectors, experts say - Nextgov/FCW
Law Enforcement Action and Take Downs
Bar for UK crimes prosecuted with live facial recognition could get much lower | Biometric Update
FBI: Without Section 702, we can't ID cyber criminals • The Register
Privacy, Surveillance and Mass Monitoring
UK spy agencies want to relax ‘burdensome’ laws on AI data use | Data protection | The Guardian
Apple Sets New Rules for Developers to Prevent Fingerprinting and Data Misuse (thehackernews.com)
Instead of obtaining a warrant, the NSA would like to keep buying your data | Ars Technica
Tor’s shadowy reputation will only end if we all use it | Engadget
After talking to security expert, I deleted all Chrome extensions: they see everything | Cybernews
Nation State Actors, Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs), Cyber Warfare and Cyber Espionage
Russia
BlueBravo Deploys GraphicalProton Backdoor Against European Diplomatic Entities (thehackernews.com)
Russian spies posed as Microsoft tech support in bid to hack governments (telegraph.co.uk)
Elon Musk ‘stopped Ukraine military using Starlink for military operation’ | The Independent
Researchers Expose Space Pirates' Cyber Campaign Across Russia and Serbia (thehackernews.com)
MacOS malware discovered on Russian dark web forum | Security Magazine
Kazakhstan Rebuffs US Extradition Request for Russian Cyber security Expert - The Moscow Times
Russian hackers crash Italian bank websites, cyber agency says | Reuters
Ukrainian hackers viciously troll Russian navy, send malware to their phones (tvpworld.com)
China
FBI warns of broad AI threats facing tech companies and the public | CyberScoop
Multiple Chinese APTs establish major beachheads inside sensitive infrastructure | Ars Technica
US senator victim-blames Microsoft for Chinese hack • The Register
Patchwork Hackers Target Chinese Research Organizations Using EyeShell Backdoor (thehackernews.com)
US Tech Sanctions Against China Are Starting to Bite Hard | Tom's Hardware (tomshardware.com)
Think tank wants monitoring of China's AI-enabled products • The Register
Microsoft downplays damaging report on Chinese hacking its own engineers vetted | CyberScoop
US military battling cyber threats from within and without • The Register
Iran
Iran's APT34 Hits UAE With Supply Chain Attack (darkreading.com)
Iranian Company Plays Host to Reams of Ransomware, APT Groups (darkreading.com)
North Korea
Misc/Other/Unknown
Vulnerability Management
Relying on CVSS alone is risky for vulnerability management - Help Net Security
40% of Log4j Downloads Still Vulnerable (securityintelligence.com)
What Causes a Rise or Fall in Fresh Zero-Day Exploits? (govinfosecurity.com)
Piles of Unpatched IoT, OT Devices Attract ICS Cyber attacks (darkreading.com)
Microsoft comes under blistering criticism for “grossly irresponsible” security | Ars Technica
Vulnerabilities
Exploitation of Recent Citrix ShareFile RCE Vulnerability Begins - SecurityWeek
Over 640 Citrix servers backdoored with web shells in ongoing attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
New flaw in Ivanti Endpoint Manager Mobile actively exploited in the wild - Security Affairs
Second Ivanti EPMM Zero-Day Vulnerability Exploited in Targeted Attacks - SecurityWeek
Apple iOS, Google Android Patch Zero-Days in July Security Updates | WIRED UK
US fears attacks will continue against Ivanti MDM installs • The Register
Microsoft fixes WSUS servers not pushing Windows 11 22H2 updates (bleepingcomputer.com)
Hackers exploit BleedingPipe RCE to target Minecraft servers, players (bleepingcomputer.com)
Firefox 116: improved upload performance and security fixes - gHacks Tech News
Tenable CEO accuses Microsoft of negligence in addressing security flaw | CyberScoop
Tools and Controls
Data Loss Prevention for Small and Medium-Sized Businesses - IT Security Guru
Cyber Insurance Underwriting Is Still Stuck in the Dark Ages (darkreading.com)
Spend to save: The CFO’s guide to cyber security investment (securityintelligence.com)
US, Australia Issue Warning Over Access Control Vulnerabilities in Web Applications - SecurityWeek
Data stolen from millions via missing web app access checks • The Register
Keeping the cloud secure with a mindset shift - Help Net Security
Strengthening security in a multi-SaaS cloud environment | TechCrunch
5 Essential Tips For Data Security On The Cloud (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
AI has a place in cyber, but needs effective evaluation | Computer Weekly
Top 5 benefits of SASE to enhance network security | TechTarget
MDR 40-Plus: Top Managed Detection and Response (MDR) Companies: 2023 Edition - MSSP Alert
What is Data Security Posture Management (DSPM)? (thehackernews.com)
Unified XDR and SIEM Alleviate Security Alert Fatigue (darkreading.com)
What is an ISMS (Information Security Management System)? | UpGuard
VPNs remain a risky gamble for remote access - Help Net Security
Insider Threat Protection And Modern DLP (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Risk Appetite vs. Risk Tolerance: How are They Different? (techtarget.com)
Reports Published in the Last Week
Other News
UK Military Embraces Security by Design - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Cyber criminals targeting medical info warns FBI | KSNV (news3lv.com)
How local governments can combat cyber crime - Help Net Security
Governments and public services facing 40% more cyber attacks (securitybrief.co.nz)
Utilities Face Security Challenges as They Embrace Data in New Ways (darkreading.com)
Microsoft Flags Growing Cyber security Concerns for Major Sporting Events (thehackernews.com)
Nearly All Modern CPUs Leak Data to New Collide+Power Side-Channel Attack - SecurityWeek
80 percent of digital certificates vulnerable to man-in-the-middle attacks (betanews.com)
Sector Specific
Industry specific threat intelligence reports are available.
Contact us to receive tailored reports specific to the industry/sector and geographies you operate in.
· 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.
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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 Cyber Threat Briefing 30 June 2023
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 30 June 2023:
-Zurich Insurance Group Secures Data Leak After Leaving Sensitive Data Publicly Accessible
-Employees Worry Less About Cyber Security Best Practices in the Summer
-Businesses are Ignoring Third-Party Security Risks
-Fear Trumps Anger When It Comes to Data Breaches – Angry Customers Vent, But Fearful Customers Don’t Come Back
-Over 130 Organisations and Millions of Individuals Believed to Be Impacted by MOVEit Hack, it Keeps Growing
-Widespread BEC Attacks Threaten European Organisations
-Lloyd’s Syndicates Sued Over Cyber Insurance
-95% Fear Inadequate Cloud Security Detection and Response
-The Growing Use of Generative AI and the Security Risks They Pose
-The CISO’s Toolkit Must Include Political Capital Within The C-Suite
-Microsoft Warns of Widescale Credential Stealing Attacks by Russian Hackers as War Ministers Reliant on Cyber Crime
-SMBs Plagued by Exploits, Trojans and Backdoors
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
Zurich Insurance Group Secures Data Leak After Leaving Sensitive Data Publicly Accessible
Zurich Insurance Group is a major player in the insurance game, with over 55 million clients. They have recently just fixed a sensitive file that they had left publicly accessible. The file in question contained a range of credentials including database credentials, admin credentials, credentials for the actively exploited MOVEit software, credentials for their HR system and more. All of which could be utilised by threat actors to inflict serious damage. This was not the only vulnerability stemming from the insurance group; researchers found that Zurich were also running an outdated website, which contained a large number of vulnerabilities.
The case is alarming as Zurich Insurance Group provides cyber insurance and the instance above reinforces the need for organisations to be proactive in identifying cyber risks in their environment; it is simply not enough to rely on having insurance or meeting insurance requirements.
https://cybernews.com/zurich-insurance-data-leak/
Employees Worry Less About Cyber Security Best Practices in the Summer
IT teams are struggling to monitor and enforce BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) policies during summer months according to a new report. The report found that 55% of employees admitted to relying solely on their mobile devices while working remotely in the summer. 25% of all respondents claim that they aren’t concerned about ensuring network connections are secure when accessing their company’s data.
In the same report, 45% of employees in the US and UK said no specific measures to educate and remind employees on security best practices are taken during the summer, with only 24% of UK respondents receiving access to online cyber security training and guides and even less (17%) in the US. This comes as a separate report found that the number of phishing sites targeting mobile devices increased from 75% to 80% year-on-year in 2022, and this is likely to continue rising. Worryingly, it was also found that the average user is between six and ten times more likely to fall for an SMS phishing attack than email.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/06/30/summer-byod-policies/
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/mobile-malware-and-phishing-surge/
Businesses are Ignoring Third-Party Security Risks
With 58% of companies managing over 100 vendors, 8% of which manage over 1,000, the need for a robust Third-Party Security Risk Management process becomes abundantly clear. Despite this, only 13% of organisations continuously monitor the security risks of their third parties. This is worrying, when considering the knock-on effects of third party breaches from the likes of Capita, SolarWinds and 3CX, and the recent MOVEit attack, impacting organisations whose only relationship with MOVEit was that their supplier used it.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/06/30/third-party-relationships-risks/
Fear Trumps Anger When It Comes to Data Breaches – Angry Customers Vent, But Fearful Customers Don’t Come Back
When a person is notified of a data breach involving their personal information, if they react with a feeling of fear, as opposed to anger, they’re more likely to stop using the site. A report found that positive attitudes toward the website before the breach did not meaningfully affect whether consumers reengaged with the website after the breach, as some prior research has indicated. Instead, the emotional response of fear weighed heavily on customers and outweighed any earlier positive sentiment towards the organisation.
When a company has been breached in the past they have dealt with angry customers and negative press. To do so, companies may engage crisis managers to contain the damage, partner with identity protection services, pay fines or settlements, or try to lure back customers with free services. However, the study shows that companies need to address fearful customers differently after a data breach has occurred if they want to avoid customer loss. To do this, companies can work with their IT departments to identify customers who are no longer active after a breach and then reach out to them directly to assuage their fears.
Over 130 Organisations and Millions of Individuals Believed to be Impacted by MOVEit Hack, it Keeps Growing
The dramatic fallout continues in the mass exploitation of a critical vulnerability in a widely used file-transfer program, with at least three new victims coming to light in the past few days. They include the New York City Department of Education and energy companies Schneider Electric and Siemens Electric. These join others, including PwC, Sony and EY. If the attack has shown us one thing, it’s that any organisation can be a victim.
Widespread BEC Attacks Threaten European Organisations
Based on an analysis of email attack trends between June 2022 and May 2023, total email attacks in Europe increased by 7 times and the US 5 times. For business email compromise (BEC) specifically, Europe saw an alarming 10 times the amount it had previously and the US saw a 2 times increase.
BEC continues to remain a high priority threat for many organisations and if someone already has a legitimate business email which they have compromised to use for BEC attacks on your organisation, it is very likely that your technical processes will be ineffective, leaving your people and operational processes to stop an attack. Is your organisation cyber aware? Are they undergoing regular awareness training?
This is one of many areas that Black Arrow can help improve your organisation’s security through robust employee cyber security Awareness Behaviour and Culture training.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/06/27/bec-attacks-frequency/
Lloyd’s Syndicates Sued Over Cyber Insurance
The University of California (UCLA) is suing a number of insurance firms for refusing to pay out on cyber policies nearly 10 years after hackers breached data on millions of patients at its health system. The dispute is over a cyber attack from 2014 through 2015 that exposed personal information of patients at UCLA Health.
UCLA Health allege that the syndicates refused to engage in dispute resolution by asserting that the statue of limitations applying to the claims had expired. The insurers, who could not be named, are said to have refused every claim saying that UCLA Health failed to satisfy cyber security requirements under the contract terms. It’s important for organisations with cyber insurance to understand their insurance in detail and to know where they stand in the event of a cyber incident.
95% Fear Inadequate Cloud Security Detection and Response
A recent report found 95% of respondents expressed concern in their organisation’s ability to detect and respond to a security event in their cloud environment. The same study also found that 50% of total respondents had reported a data breach due to unauthorised access to their cloud environment.
It is often the case that issues in the cloud come from the perception of the responsibility of the cloud environment. Organisations must realise that they share responsibility for securing their cloud environment, including its configuration. The report found that, despite the number of breaches and concerns in their organisation’s ability, more than 80% of respondents still felt their existing tooling and configuration would sufficiently cover their organisation from an attack. Organisations must ask themselves what they are doing to protect their cloud environment.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/06/27/cloud-environment-security/
The Growing Use of Generative AI and the Security Risks They Pose
A recent survey by Malwarebytes revealed 81% of people are concerned about the security risks posed by ChatGPT and generative AI, and 52% of respondents are calling for a pause on ChatGPT for regulations to catch up, while 7% think it will improve internet security. A key concern about the data produced by generative AI platforms is the risk of "hallucinations" whereby machine learning models produce untruths. This becomes a serious issue for organisations if its content is heavily relied upon to make decisions, particularly those relating to threat detection and response.
Another recent report on the risks brought by Large Language Model AIs showed that the rise in opensource AI adoption is developed insecurely; this results in an increased threat with substantial security risks to organisation.
The CISO’s Toolkit Must Include Political Capital Within The C-Suite
Over the past 18 months, there has been a sea change in the chief information security officer (CISO) role. Fundamentally, the CISO is responsible for the protection of an entity's information. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued a proposed rule change on cyber security risk management, strategy, governance, and incident response disclosure by public companies that requires publicly traded companies to provide evidence of the board's oversight of cyber security risk. Couple this with the former CISO of Uber being found guilty on charges of "obstruction of the proceedings of the Federal Trade Commission" and it is clear that the hand at the helm must be able to navigate all types of seas in their entity's political milieu. In this regard, the CISO needs to acquire political capital. CISO’s should have the capability to talk in understandable terms and clearly demonstrate value to the other board members.
Microsoft Warns of Widescale Credential Stealing Attacks by Russian Hackers as War Ministers Reliant on Cyber Crime
Russia's diminishing position on the world stage has limited its physical options on the ground, leaving Putin's regime increasingly reliant on cyber crime to carry out its oppositional activities against Ukraine and Europe. Microsoft has disclosed that it has detected a spike in credential-stealing attacks conducted by the Russian state-affiliated hacker group known as Midnight Blizzard.
This comes as Switzerland's Federal Intelligence Service (FIS) released its 2023 security assessment, predicting that Russia will increasingly launch cyber attacks as part of its war strategy not just in Ukraine, but against NATO member states as well.
https://www.darkreading.com/threat-intelligence/russia-reliant-on-cybercrime-as-international-pariah
https://thehackernews.com/2023/06/microsoft-warns-of-widescale-credential.html
SMB’s Plagued as Cyber Attackers Still Rely on Decades Old Security Weaknesses and Tactics
Despite best cyber security efforts, small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs) continue to struggle to thwart attacks and harden defences in response to remote working and other newer challenges.
This future focus can lead to a neglection of older weaknesses. Cyber attackers are typically relying on tried-and-tested tactics and old security weaknesses to target organisations, a recent Barracuda threat spotlight found. Hackers are returning to proven methods to gain remote control of systems, install malware, steal information and disrupt or disable business operations through denial-of-service attacks, Barracuda reports. The report found that between February to April 2023, the top malicious tactics found to be used were vulnerabilities from 2008.
The report highlights the fact that there are no cutoff dates for vulnerabilities and attackers will use whatever is at their disposal to try and infiltrate your organisation. This can be protected by having strong policies and controls in place alongside frequent penetration testing to ensure these vulnerabilities are being patched.
https://www.scmagazine.com/news/malware/smbs-plagued-by-exploits-trojans-and-backdoors
Governance, Risk and Compliance
Businesses are ignoring third-party security risks - Help Net Security
Employees worry less about cyber security best practices in the summer - Help Net Security
Digital-First Economy Has Transformed Role of CISO- IT Security Guru
SEC Alleges SolarWinds CFO, CISO Violated US Securities Laws (bankinfosecurity.com)
The CISO’s toolkit must include political capital within the C-suite | CSO Online
NCSC Launches Cyber Risk Management Toolbox - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Threats
Ransomware, Extortion and Destructive Attacks
MOVEit hackers may have found simpler business model beyond ransomware | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
Dozens of Businesses Hit Recently by '8Base' Ransomware Gang - SecurityWeek
UK cyber spies warn ransomware criminals targeting law firms • The Register
Cl0p in Your Network? Here's How to Find Out (darkreading.com)
July is Ransomware Month: Reminder to Prepare, Defend Against Hijackers - MSSP Alert
The Trickbot/Conti Crypters: Where Are They Now? (securityintelligence.com)
Linux version of Akira ransomware targets VMware ESXi servers (bleepingcomputer.com)
Ransomware Victims
Casualties keep growing in this month’s mass exploitation of MOVEit 0-day | Ars Technica
8 Tech And IT Companies Targeted In The MOVEit Attacks | CRN
MOVEIt breach impacts Genworth, CalPERS as data for 3.2 million exposed (bleepingcomputer.com)
Clop names PWC, Ernst & Young, and Sony in MOVEit hack | Cybernews
UCLA, Siemens Among Latest Victims of Relentless MOVEit Attacks (darkreading.com)
Siemens Energy, Schneider Electric Targeted by Ransomware Group in MOVEit Attack - SecurityWeek
10 banks alleged victims of ransomware attacks on file transfer software | American Banker
Almost 770,000 Calpers members hit by cyber attack | Financial Times (ft.com)
Ransomware and phishing attacks continue to plague businesses in Singapore | ZDNET
K-12 schools are revisiting their cyber strategies after year of ransomware attacks (axios.com)
Phishing & Email Based Attacks
Mobile Malware and Phishing Surge in 2022 - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
How a Layered Security Approach Can Minimise Email Threats - MSSP Alert
Less than half of UK banks implement most secure DMARC level | CSO Online
BEC – Business Email Compromise
Widespread BEC attacks threaten European organisations - Help Net Security
The Current State of Business Email Compromise Attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
Other Social Engineering; Smishing, Vishing, etc
Unmasking Pig-Butchering Scams and Protecting Your Financial Future - Security News (trendmicro.com)
Artificial Intelligence
Sharing Your Business’ Data With ChatGPT: How Risky Is It? - MSSP Alert
OpenAI lawsuit: Maker of ChatGPT sued over alleged data usage | CNN Business
Lawyers who cited fake cases invented by ChatGPT must pay • The Register
Generative AI Projects Pose Major Cyber security Risk to Enterprises (darkreading.com)
How to Deploy Generative AI Safely and Responsibly (trendmicro.com)
Generative-AI apps & ChatGPT: Potential risks and mitigation strategies (thehackernews.com)
Does the world need an arms control treaty for AI? | CyberScoop
When It Comes to Secure Coding, ChatGPT Is Quintessentially Human (darkreading.com)
AI-Enabled Voice Cloning Anchors Deepfaked Kidnapping (darkreading.com)
2FA/MFA
Malware
SMBs plagued by exploits, trojans and backdoors | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
Hackers Use Weaponized PDF Files to Attack Organisations (cybersecuritynews.com)
New Mockingjay Process Injection Technique Could Let Malware Evade Detection (thehackernews.com)
Fileless attacks surge as cyber Criminals evade cloud security defences | CSO Online
NSA warns of ‘false sense of security’ against BlackLotus malware (therecord.media)
Trojanized Super Mario Bros game spreads malware- - Security Affairs
New PindOS JavaScript dropper deploys Bumblebee, IcedID malware (bleepingcomputer.com)
NPM Plagued with ‘Manifest Confusion’ Malware-Hiding Weakness (darkreading.com)
Newly Uncovered ThirdEye Windows-Based Malware Steals Sensitive Data (thehackernews.com)
North Korean Andariel APT used a new malware named EarlyRat - Security Affairs
Mobile
Mobile Malware and Phishing Surge in 2022 - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Apple says proposed UK law ‘poses a serious threat’ to end-to-end encryption - The Verge
Anatsa Android trojan now steals banking info from users in US, UK (bleepingcomputer.com)
Fluhorse: Flutter-Based Android Malware Targets Credit Cards and 2FA Codes (thehackernews.com)
Denial of Service/DoS/DDOS
Global rise in DDoS attacks threatens digital infrastructure - Help Net Security
Pro-Russia DDoSia hacktivist project sees 2,400% membership increase (bleepingcomputer.com)
Internet of Things – IoT
Someone sent mysterious smartwatches to US Military personnel - Security Affairs
The tech flaw that lets hackers control surveillance cameras - BBC News
Data Breaches/Leaks
Latitude hit with $1 million lawsuit over data breach (9news.com.au)
Recruitment portal exposes data of US pilot candidates • The Register
3 Steps to Successfully & Ethically Navigate a Data Breach (darkreading.com)
Sensitive Information Stolen in LetMeSpy Stalkerware Hack - SecurityWeek
US Patent Office Data Spill Exposes Trademark Applications (darkreading.com)
Organised Crime & Criminal Actors
2,700 People Tricked Into Working for Cyber Crime Syndicates Rescued in Philippines - SecurityWeek
Security analyst wanted by both Russia and the US • The Register
Former Group-IB manager has been arrested in Kazahstan - Security Affairs
Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs/Blockchain
Twitter Hacker Sentenced to 5 Years in Prison for $120,000 Crypto Scam (thehackernews.com)
JOKERSPY used to target a cryptocurrency exchange in Japan - Security Affairs
Japanese Cryptocurrency Exchange Falls Victim to JokerSpy macOS Backdoor Attack (thehackernews.com)
Insider Risk and Insider Threats
Fraud, Scams & Financial Crime
Twitter Hacker Sentenced to 5 Years in Prison for $120,000 Crypto Scam (thehackernews.com)
Unmasking Pig-Butchering Scams and Protecting Your Financial Future - Security News (trendmicro.com)
This Chatbot Gives Phone Call Scammers a Taste of Their Own Medicine (pcmag.com)
The robotic falcon maker who was targeted by cyber criminals - BBC News
Deepfakes
Insurance
University of California Sues Lloyd’s Syndicates Over Cyber Insurance - WSJ
Insurance companies using AI for underwriting and due diligence amid cyber threats | Fox Business
How Big Is the Cyber Insurance Market? Can It Keep Growing? | Lawfare (lawfaremedia.org)
Dark Web
Citizen of Croatia charged with running the Monopoly Market drug marketplace - Security Affairs
Inside Threat Actors: Dark Web Forums vs. Illicit Telegram Communities (bleepingcomputer.com)
Supply Chain and Third Parties
Cloud/SaaS
95% fear inadequate cloud security detection and response - Help Net Security
Fileless attacks surge as cyber Criminals evade cloud security defences | CSO Online
5 Pitfalls in Cloud Cyber security’s Shared Responsibility Model - MSSP Alert
Uncovering attacker tactics through cloud honeypots - Help Net Security
How hardening Microsoft 365 tenants mitigates potential cloud attacks - Help Net Security
Outlook for the web outage impacts users across America (bleepingcomputer.com)
3 Tips to Increase Hybrid and Multicloud Security (darkreading.com)
Identity and Access Management
Encryption
Apple says proposed UK law ‘poses a serious threat’ to end-to-end encryption - The Verge
Iran finally admits its 'quantum processor' was in fact not quantum at all | PC Gamer
How to stop quantum computers from breaking the internet’s encryption (sciencenews.org)
Open Source
Passwords, Credential Stuffing & Brute Force Attacks
Social Media
Travel
Cyber Bullying, Cyber Stalking and Sextortion
Regulations, Fines and Legislation
SEC Alleges SolarWinds CFO, CISO Violated US Securities Laws (bankinfosecurity.com)
US firm 'breached GDPR' by reputation-scoring EU citizens • The Register
JP Morgan accidentally deletes 47 million comms records • The Register
Models, Frameworks and Standards
Careers, Working in Cyber and Information Security
SEC notice to SolarWinds CISO and CFO roils cyber security industry | CSO Online
Skill gap plagues cyber security industry as jobs go unfilled | Mint (livemint.com)
Law Enforcement Action and Take Downs
Hacker responsible for 2020 Twitter breach sentenced to prison | TechCrunch
Citizen of Croatia charged with running the Monopoly Market drug marketplace - Security Affairs
2,700 People Tricked Into Working for Cyber Crime Syndicates Rescued in Philippines - SecurityWeek
Privacy, Surveillance and Mass Monitoring
Nation State Actors, Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs), Cyber Warfare and Cyber Espionage
Russia
Microsoft Warns of Widescale Credential Stealing Attacks by Russian Hackers (thehackernews.com)
Russian Spies, War Ministers Reliant on Cyber Crime in Pariah State (darkreading.com)
Pro-Russia DDoSia hacktivist project sees 2,400% membership increase (bleepingcomputer.com)
Microsoft hackers say they work for Sudan, not Russia | Fortune
'Chinese spy balloon' was 'crammed' with US hardware • The Register
Hackers attack Russian satellite telecom provider, claim affiliation with Wagner Group | CyberScoop
China
China's 'Volt Typhoon' APT Now Exploits Zoho ManageEngine (darkreading.com)
'Chinese spy balloon' was 'crammed' with US hardware • The Register
Iran
The potent cyber adversary threatening to further inflame Iranian politics | CyberScoop
From MuddyC3 to PhonyC2: Iran's MuddyWater Evolves with a New Cyber Weapon (thehackernews.com)
Iran finally admits its 'quantum processor' was in fact not quantum at all | PC Gamer
North Korea
Misc/Other/Unknown
Vulnerability Management
SMBs plagued by exploits, trojans and backdoors | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
Remediation Ballet Is a Pas de Deux of Patch and Performance (darkreading.com)
Micropatches: What they are and how they work - Help Net Security
When It Comes to Secure Coding, ChatGPT Is Quintessentially Human (darkreading.com)
It's 2023 and out-of-bounds write bugs are still number one • The Register
Vulnerabilities
VMware fixed five memory corruption issues in vCenter Server - Security Affairs
US Cyber security Agency Adds 6 Flaws to Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog (thehackernews.com)
CISA Says Critical Zyxel NAS Vulnerability Exploited in Attacks - SecurityWeek
Serious IDOR Vulnerability Found In Microsoft Teams (latesthackingnews.com)
Fortinet fixes critical FortiNAC RCE, install updates asap - Security Affairs
Details Disclosed for Critical SAP Vulnerabilities, Including Wormable Exploit Chain - SecurityWeek
Critical flaw in VMware Aria Operations for Networks sees mass exploitation | CSO Online
Internet Systems Consortium (ISC) fixed three DoS flaw in BIND - Security Affairs
Chrome 114 Update Patches High-Severity Vulnerabilities - SecurityWeek
Grafana warns of critical auth bypass due to Azure AD integration (bleepingcomputer.com)
The tech flaw that lets hackers control surveillance cameras - BBC News
Exploit released for new Arcserve UDP auth bypass vulnerability (bleepingcomputer.com)
Tools and Controls
95% fear inadequate cloud security detection and response - Help Net Security
How a Layered Security Approach Can Minimize Email Threats - MSSP Alert
ITDR Combines and Refines Familiar Cyber security Approaches (darkreading.com)
Uncovering attacker tactics through cloud honeypots - Help Net Security
10 things every CISO needs to know about identity and access management (IAM) | VentureBeat
FIDO Alliance Publishes Guidance for Deploying Passkeys in the Enterprise (darkreading.com)
3 Tips to Increase Hybrid and Multicloud Security (darkreading.com)
Other News
Businesses count the cost of network downtime - Help Net Security
Exploring the persistent threat of cyber attacks on healthcare - Help Net Security
How Can Manufacturers Stop Being The Top Target For Cyber Crime? (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Ex-FBI employee jailed for mishandling classified material • The Register
Rapid7: Japan Threat Landscape Takes on Global Significance - SecurityWeek
Over 1500 gas stations disrupted in Canada, after energy giant hacked (bitdefender.com)
Sector Specific
Industry specific threat intelligence reports are available.
Contact us to receive tailored reports specific to the industry/sector and geographies you operate in.
· 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 Cyber Threat Briefing 16 June 2023
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 16 June 2023:
-Hacker Gang Clop Deploys Extortion Tactics Against Global Companies
-Social Engineering Drives BEC Losses to $50B Globally
-Creating A Cyber-Conscious Culture—It Must Be Driven from the Top
-Artificial Intelligence is Coming to Windows: Are Your Security Policy Settings Ready?
-Cyber Crooks Targeting Employees, Organisations Fight Back with Training Programs
-Massive Phishing Campaign Uses 6,000 Sites to Impersonate 100 Brands
-A Recent Study Shows Over One in Ten Brits are Willing to Engage in ‘Illegal or Illicit’ Online Behaviour as the Cost of Living Crisis Worsens, Driving Insider Threat Concerns
-Microsoft Office 365 Phishing Reveals Signs of Much Larger BEC Campaign
-Europol Warns of Metaverse and AI Terror Threat
-What is AI, and is it Dangerous?
-Cyber Liability Insurance Vs. Data Breach Insurance: What's the Difference?
-Exploring the Dark Web: Hitmen for Hire and the Realities of Online Activities
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
Hacker Gang Clop Deploys Extortion Tactics Against Global Companies
The Russian-speaking gang of hackers that compromised UK groups such as British Airways and the BBC has claimed it has siphoned off sensitive data from more institutions including US-based investment firms, European manufacturers and US universities. Eight other companies this week made it onto Clop’s list on the dark web. That adds to the news last week that UK groups, including Walgreens-owned Boots, informed employees that their data had been compromised. The issue also targeted customers of Zellis, a UK-based payroll provider that about half of the companies on the FTSE 100 use.
The hacking group is pushing for contact with the companies on the list, according to a post on Clop’s dark web site, as the gang demands a ransom that cyber security experts and negotiators said could be as much as several million dollars.
https://www.ft.com/content/c1db9c5c-cdf1-48bc-8e6b-2c2444b66dc9
Social Engineering Drives BEC Losses to $50B Globally
Business email compromise (BEC) continues to evolve on the back of sophisticated targeting and social engineering, costing businesses worldwide more than $50 billion in the last 10 years - a figure that reflected a growth in business losses to BEC of 17% year-over-year in 2022, according to the FBI.
Security professionals attribute BEC's continued dominance in the cyber threat landscape to several reasons. A key one is that attackers have become increasingly savvy in how to socially-engineer messages so that they appear authentic to users, which is the key to being successful at this scam. And with the increase in availability of artificial intelligence, the continued success of BEC means these attacks are here to stay. Organisations will be forced to respond with even stronger security measures, security experts say.
https://www.darkreading.com/threat-intelligence/social-engineering-drives-bec-losses-to-50b-globally
Creating A Cyber Conscious Culture—It Must Be Driven from the Top
Businesses are facing more frequent and sophisticated cyber threats and they must continuously learn new ways to protect their revenues, reputation and maintain regulatory compliance. With hybrid and remote working blurring traditional security perimeters and expanding the attack surface, the high volumes of sensitive information held by organisations are at increased risk of cyber attacks.
The increase had led to cyber elevating to the board level; after all the board is responsible for cyber security. It doesn’t stop there however, as everyone in an organisation has responsibility for upholding cyber security. The board must aim to create a cyber-conscious culture, where users are aware of their role in cyber security. One important way such a culture can be achieved is through providing regular education and training to all users.
Artificial Intelligence is Coming to Windows: Are Your Security Policy Settings Ready?
What’s in your Windows security policy? Do you review your settings on an annual basis or more often? Do you provide education and training regarding the topics in the policy? Does it get revised when the impact of an incident showcases that an internal policy violation led to the root cause of the issue? And, importantly, do you have a security policy that includes your firm’s overall policies around the increasing race towards artificial intelligence, which is seemingly in nearly every application released these days?
From word processing documents to the upcoming enhancements to Windows 11, which will include AI prompting in the Explorer platform, organisations should review how they want their employees to treat customer data or other confidential information when using AI platforms. Many will want to build limits and guidelines into their security plans that specify what is allowed to be entered into platforms and websites that may store or share the information online. However, confidential information should not be included in any application that doesn’t have clearly defined protections around the handling of such data. The bottom line is that AI is coming to your network and your desktop sooner than you think. Build your policies now and review your processes to determine if you are ready for it today.
Cyber Crooks Targeting Employees, Organisations Fight Back with Training Programs
Cyber criminals are increasingly targeting an organisation’s employees, figuring to trick an untrained staffer to click on a malicious link that starts a malware attack, Fortinet said in a newly released study of security awareness and training.
More than 80% of organisations faced malware, phishing and password attacks last year, which were mainly targeted at users. This underscores that employees can be an organisation’s weakest point or one of its most powerful defences.
Fortinet’s research revealed that more than 90% of the survey’s respondents believe that increased employee cyber security awareness would help decrease the occurrence of cyber attacks. As organisations face increasing cyber risks, employees serving as an organisation’s first line of defence in protecting their organisation from cyber crime becomes of paramount importance.
Massive Phishing Campaign Uses 6,000 Sites to Impersonate 100 Brands
A widespread brand impersonation campaign targeting over a hundred popular apparel, footwear, and clothing brands has been underway since June 2022, tricking people into entering their account credentials and financial information on fake websites. The brands impersonated by the phony sites include Nike, Puma, Asics, Vans, Adidas, Columbia, Superdry, Converse, Casio, Timberland, Salomon, Crocs, Sketchers, The North Face and others.
A recent report found the campaign relies on at least 3,000 domains and roughly 6,000 sites, including inactive ones. The campaign had a significant activity spike between January and February 2023, adding 300 new fake sites monthly. The domain names follow a pattern of using the brand name together with a city or country, followed by a generic TLD such as ".com." Additionally, any details entered on the checkout pages, most notably the credit card details, may be stored by the website operators and resold to cyber criminals.
Over One in Ten Brits are Willing to Engage in ‘Illegal or Illicit’ Online Behaviour
A recent study found that 11% of Brits were tempted to engage in ‘illegal or illicit online behaviour’ in order to help manage the fallout from the cost of living crisis. This statistic becomes even more concerning when focused on younger people, with almost a quarter of 25–35 year old respondents (23%) willing to consider illegal or illicit online activity. Of those willing to engage in this kind of behaviour, 56% suggested it was because they are desperate and struggling to get by, and need to find alternative means of supporting their families.
Nearly half (47%) of UK business leaders believe their organisation has been at a greater risk of attack since the start of the cost-of-living crisis. Against this backdrop, many SME business leaders are understandably worried about the impact on employees. Of those who think their organisation is more exposed to attack, 38% believe it’s due to malicious insiders and 35% to overworked and distracted staff making mistakes. Organisations not doing so already, should look to incorporate insider threat into their security plans. Insider threat should focus on areas such as regular education and monitoring and detection.
The report found that 44% of respondents have also noticed an uptick in online scams hitting their inboxes since the cost of living crisis began in late 2021/early 2022. Another worrying finding is that this uptick is proving devastatingly effective for scammers: over one in ten (13%) of UK respondents have already been scammed since the cost of living crisis began. This rises to a quarter (26%) of respondents in the 18-25 age range, reflecting a hyper-online lifestyle and culture that scammers can work to exploit effectively.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/costofliving-crisis-drives-insider/
Microsoft Office 365 Phishing Reveals Signs of Much Larger BEC Campaign
Recently, Microsoft discovered multi-stage adversary-in-the-middle (AitM) phishing and business email compromise (BEC) attacks against banking and financial services organisations. The attackers are successfully phishing employees’ accounts with fake Office 365 domains. This allows them to bypass authentication, exfiltrate data and send further phishing emails against other employees and several targeted external organisations. In some cases, threat actors have registered their own device to the employee’s account, to evade MFA defences and achieve persistent access.
https://securityaffairs.com/147327/hacking/aitm-bec-attacks.html
https://thehackernews.com/2023/06/adversary-in-middle-attack-campaign.html
Europol Warns of Metaverse and AI Terror Threat
New and emerging technologies like conversational AI, deepfakes and the metaverse could be utilised by terrorists and extremists to radicalise and recruit converts to their cause, Europol has warned. The report stated that the online environment lowers the bar for entering the world of terrorism and extremism, broadens the range of people that can become exposed to radicalisation and increases the unpredictability of terrorism and extremism.
Europol also pointed to the potential use of deepfakes, augmented reality and conversational AI to enhance the efficiency of terrorist propaganda. Both these technologies and internet of things (IoT) tools can also be deployed in more practical tasks such as the remote operation of vehicles and weapons used in attacks or setting up virtual training camps. Digital currencies are also playing a role in helping to finance such groups while maintaining the anonymity of those contributing the funding, Europol said.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/europol-warns-metaverse-and-ai/
What is AI, and is it Dangerous?
Recently, we saw the release of the first piece of EU regulation on AI. This comes after a significant rise in the usage of tools such as ChatGPT. Such tools allow for even those with limited technical ability to perform sophisticated actions. In fact, usage has risen 44% over the last three months alone, according to a report.
Rather worryingly, there is a lack of governance on the usage of AI, and this extends to how AI is used within your own organisation. Whilst the usage can greatly improve actions performed within an organisation, the report found that 6% of employees using AI had pasted sensitive company data into an AI tool. Would your organisation know if this happened, and how damaging could it be to your organisation if this data was to be leaked? Continuous monitoring, risk analysis and real-time governance can help aid an organisation in having an overview of the usage of AI.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-65855333
https://thehackernews.com/2023/06/new-research-6-of-employees-paste.html
Cyber Liability Insurance Vs. Data Breach Insurance: What's the Difference?
With an ever-increasing number of cyber security threats and attacks, companies are becoming motivated to protect their businesses and customer data both technically and financially. Finding the right insurance has become a key part of the security equation.
Companies looking to protect themselves have most likely heard the terms “cyber liability insurance” and “data breach insurance.” Put simply, cyber liability insurance refers to coverage for third-party claims asserted against a company stemming from a network security event or data breach. Data breach insurance, on the other hand, refers to coverage for first-party losses incurred by the insured organisation that has suffered a loss of data.
Exploring the Dark Web: Hitmen for Hire and the Realities of Online Activities
The dark web makes up a significant portion of the internet. Access can be gained through special browser, TOR, also known as the onion Router. The service bounces around IP addresses, constantly changing to protect the anonymity of the user.
This dark web contains an array of activities and sites, which include hitmen for hire, drugs for sale, and stolen credit card databases amongst others. Sometimes these aren’t real however, and are actually a trap to steal money from users on the basis that these users are unlikely to report it to law enforcement when the victim was trying to break the law in the first place. What we do know however, is that the dark web contains a plethora of information, and this could include data from your organisation.
Governance, Risk and Compliance
Creating A Cyber-Conscious Culture—It Must Be Driven From The Top (forbes.com)
Most businesses vulnerable to attacks on the cyber battlefield - The Globe and Mail
10 Important Security Tasks You Shouldn't Skip (darkreading.com)
Enhancing security team capabilities in tough economic times - Help Net Security
Ignoring digital transformation is more dangerous than a recession - Help Net Security
Ransomware Insurance: Security Strategies to Obtain Coverage (trendmicro.com)
Lax security measures, sophisticated hackers reason for rise in cyber breaches (ewn.co.za)
Cyber Crooks Targeting Employees, Organisations Fight Back with Training Programs - MSSP Alert
Cyber liability insurance vs. data breach insurance: What's the difference? | CSO Online
Red teaming can be the ground truth for CISOs and execs - Help Net Security
Threats
Ransomware, Extortion and Destructive Attacks
CL0P Ransomware Gang Hits Multiple Governments, Businesses in Wide-Scale Attack - MSSP Alert
How Continuous Monitoring and Threat Intel Can Help Prevent Ransomware (darkreading.com)
Researchers Report First Instance of Automated SaaS Ransomware Extortion (darkreading.com)
Why Critical Infrastructure Remains a Ransomware Target (darkreading.com)
Ransomware Insurance: Security Strategies to Obtain Coverage (trendmicro.com)
CISA: LockBit ransomware extorted $91 million in 1,700 US attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
Microsoft links data wiping attacks to new Russian GRU hacking group (bleepingcomputer.com)
To Fight Cyber Extortion and Ransomware, Shift Left (trendmicro.com)
Ransomware Hackers and Scammers Utilizing Cloud Mining to Launder Cryptocurrency (thehackernews.com)
Russian ransomware hacker extorted tens of millions, says DOJ (cnbc.com)
Ransomware Victims
Ofcom, Minnesota Dept of Ed among latest MOVEit victims • The Register
Confidential data downloaded from UK regulator Ofcom in cyber attack (therecord.media)
Oil and gas giant Shell confirms it was impacted by Clop ransomware attacks (therecord.media)TfL warns 13,000 staff that it was raided by Russian hackers (telegraph.co.uk)
Russian hackers steal data on thousands of Ulez drivers (telegraph.co.uk)
An Illinois hospital links closure to ransomware attack (nbcnews.com)
US energy department, other agencies hit in global hacking spree | Reuters
iTWire - Financial services firm FIIG hit by cyber attack, ALPHV claims credit
Xplain data breach also impacted national Swiss railway FSS - Security Affairs
Rhysida ransomware leaks documents stolen from Chilean Army (bleepingcomputer.com)
Phishing & Email Based Attacks
Microsoft Office 365 AitM phishing reveals signs of much larger BEC campaign | CSO Online
Adversary-in-the-Middle Attack Campaign Hits Dozens of Global Organisations (thehackernews.com)
Log4J exploits may rise further as Microsoft continues war on phishing | ITPro
Popular Apparel, Clothing Brands Being Used in Massive Phishing Scam (darkreading.com)
Massive phishing campaign uses 6,000 sites to impersonate 100 brands (bleepingcomputer.com)
BEC – Business Email Compromise
Microsoft warns of multi-stage AiTM phishing and BEC attacks - Security Affairs
Analysis: Social Engineering Drives BEC Losses to $50B Globally (darkreading.com)
Other Social Engineering; Smishing, Vishing, etc
Artificial Intelligence
New Research: 6% of Employees Paste Sensitive Data into GenAI tools as ChatGPT (thehackernews.com)
Artificial intelligence is coming to Windows: Are your security policy settings ready? | CSO Online
Europol Warns of Metaverse and AI Terror Threat - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
How Europe is Leading the World in the Push to Regulate AI - SecurityWeek
AI is moving too fast to regulate, security minister warns (telegraph.co.uk)
AI to render humans 'second most intelligent creations' | ITWeb
LLM meets Malware: Starting the Era of Autonomous Threat - Security Affairs
What is AI, is it dangerous and what jobs are at risk? - BBC News
Calculations Suggest It'll Be Impossible to Control a Super-Intelligent AI : ScienceAlert
2FA/MFA
Multi-Factor Authentication Usage Nearly Doubles Since 2020, New Okta Report Finds - MSSP Alert
Small organisations outpace large enterprises in MFA adoption - Help Net Security
Malware
New SPECTRALVIPER Backdoor Targeting Vietnamese Public Companies (thehackernews.com)
New Loader Delivering Spyware via Image Steals Cryptocurrency Info (darkreading.com)
Pirated Windows 10 ISOs install clipper malware via EFI partitions (bleepingcomputer.com)
Chinese hackers use DNS-over-HTTPS for Linux malware communication (bleepingcomputer.com)
Fake zero-day PoC exploits on GitHub push Windows, Linux malware (bleepingcomputer.com)
LLM meets Malware: Starting the Era of Autonomous Threat - Security Affairs
New ‘Shampoo’ Chromeloader malware pushed via fake warez sites (bleepingcomputer.com)
Russian hackers use PowerShell USB malware to drop backdoors (bleepingcomputer.com)
Fake Security Researcher Accounts Pushing Malware Disguised as Zero-Day Exploits - SecurityWeek
Vidar Malware Using New Tactics to Evade Detection and Anonymize Activities (thehackernews.com)
Mobile
Denial of Service/DoS/DDOS
Microsoft’s Azure portal down following new claims of DDoS attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
DOS Attacks Dominate, but System Intrusions Cause Most Pain (darkreading.com)
Swiss government warns of ongoing DDoS attacks, data leak (bleepingcomputer.com)
IoT Botnet DDoS Attacks Threaten Global Telecom Networks, Nokia (hackread.com)
10 Different Types of DDoS Attacks and How to Prevent Them (geekflare.com)
Exclusive: Inside FXStreet's DDoS Attack (financemagnates.com)
Internet of Things – IoT
IoT Botnet DDoS Attacks Threaten Global Telecom Networks, Nokia (hackread.com)
How secure is your vehicle with digital key technology? - Help Net Security
Flipper Zero “Smoking” A Smart Meter Is A Bad Look For Hardware Hackers | Hackaday
Data Breaches/Leaks
Another huge US medical data breach confirmed after Fortra mass-hack | TechCrunch
New Research: 6% of Employees Paste Sensitive Data into GenAI tools as ChatGPT (thehackernews.com)
Top 10 cyber security findings from Verizon's 2023 data breach report | VentureBeat
Xplain data breach also impacted national Swiss railway FSS - Security Affairs
Examining the long-term effects of data privacy violations - Help Net Security
A Massive Vaccine Database Leak Exposes IDs of Millions of Indians | WIRED
Swiss Fear Government Data Stolen in Cyber attack - SecurityWeek
Ofcom, Minnesota Dept of Ed among latest MOVEit victims • The Register
Have I Been Pwned warns of new Zacks data breach impacting 8 million (bleepingcomputer.com)
Organised Crime & Criminal Actors
Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs/Blockchain
Hackers steal $3 million by impersonating crypto news journalists (bleepingcomputer.com)
Beware: 1,000+ Fake Cryptocurrency Sites Trap Users in Bogus Rewards Scheme (thehackernews.com)
New Loader Delivering Spyware via Image Steals Cryptocurrency Info (darkreading.com)
Cryptocurrency Attacks Quadrupled as Cyber criminals Cash In (darkreading.com)
Ransomware Hackers and Scammers Utilizing Cloud Mining to Launder Cryptocurrency (thehackernews.com)
Insider Risk and Insider Threats
Cyber Crooks Targeting Employees, Organisations Fight Back with Training Programs - MSSP Alert
Insider Threat Vs Outsider Threat: Which Is Worse? (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Fraud, Scams & Financial Crime
Impersonation Attacks
Insurance
Ransomware Insurance: Security Strategies to Obtain Coverage (trendmicro.com)
Cyber liability insurance vs. data breach insurance: What's the difference? | CSO Online
Dark Web
Supply Chain and Third Parties
Cloud/SaaS
SaaS Ransomware Attack Hit Sharepoint Online Without Using a Compromised Endpoint - SecurityWeek
New MOVEit Transfer critical flaws found after security audit, patch now (bleepingcomputer.com)
Seven steps for using zero trust to protect your multicloud • The Register
New cloud security guidance: it's all about the config - NCSC.GOV.UK
Microsoft keeps quiet on talk of possible Azure DDoS attack • The Register
Encryption
Open Source
Chinese hackers use DNS-over-HTTPS for Linux malware communication (bleepingcomputer.com)
Fake zero-day PoC exploits on GitHub push Windows, Linux malware (bleepingcomputer.com)
Passwords, Credential Stuffing & Brute Force Attacks
Thoughts on scheduled password changes (don’t call them rotations!) – Naked Security (sophos.com)
Microsoft misused our dark web data, says security vendor • The Register
RDP honeypot targeted 3.5 million times in brute-force attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
Want to be hacked? Just make these password mistakes | Tom's Guide (tomsguide.com)
Training, Education and Awareness
Digital Transformation
Regulations, Fines and Legislation
AI is moving too fast to regulate, security minister warns (telegraph.co.uk)
Ofcom, Minnesota Dept of Ed among latest MOVEit victims • The Register
Confidential data downloaded from UK regulator Ofcom in cyber attack (therecord.media)
Yet more direct calling fiends fined by UK's data watchdog • The Register
How Europe is Leading the World in the Push to Regulate AI - SecurityWeek
Feds extend deadline for software security attestations • The Register
Models, Frameworks and Standards
Data Protection
Careers, Working in Cyber and Information Security
Law Enforcement Action and Take Downs
Privacy, Surveillance and Mass Monitoring
Examining the long-term effects of data privacy violations - Help Net Security
Strava heatmap feature can be abused to find home addresses (bleepingcomputer.com)
US Intelligence Has Admitted Amassed Data on 'Nearly Everyone' (gizmodo.com)
Feds Say Facial Recognition IDed Bosnian War Criminal Miljkovic (gizmodo.com)
Spyware, Cyber Espionage & Cyber Warfare, including Russian Invasion of Ukraine
Putin’s little cyber helpers turn their sights on the UK (telegraph.co.uk)
Russia-Ukraine war sending shockwaves into cyber-ecosystem • The Register
Ukrainian hackers take down service provider for Russian banks (bleepingcomputer.com)
RomCom Threat Actor Targets Ukrainian Politicians, US Healthcare (darkreading.com)
Pro-Russian hackers step up attacks against Swiss targets, authorities say | Reuters
Russian hackers steal data on thousands of Ulez drivers (telegraph.co.uk)
Microsoft links data wiping attacks to new Russian GRU hacking group (bleepingcomputer.com)
Russian hackers use PowerShell USB malware to drop backdoors (bleepingcomputer.com)
Pro-Russian Hackers Target Website of Europe’s Largest Port in Rotterdam - Bloomberg
Russia-linked APT Gamaredon update TTPs in recent attacks against Ukraine - Security Affairs
Russia-backed hackers unleash new USB-based malware on Ukraine’s military | Ars Technica
Nation State Actors
Chinese hackers use DNS-over-HTTPS for Linux malware communication (bleepingcomputer.com)
Iran's 'quantum processor' turned out to be a $600 dev board | PC Gamer
China-based threat actors target UIDAI, AIIMS, ICMR: Govt advisory (moneycontrol.com)
Subsea cables: how the US is pushing China out of the internet’s plumbing
Ukraine information sharing a model for countering China, top cyber official says | CyberScoop
Chinese Threat Actor Abused ESXi Zero-Day to Pilfer Files From Guest VMs (darkreading.com)
North Korea created evil twin of South Korea's Naver.com • The Register
Behind the Scenes Unveiling the Hidden Workings of Earth Preta (trendmicro.com)
Gloucester: Russian hackers behind cyber-attack on council - BBC News
Critical Barracuda ESG Zero-Day Linked to Novel Chinese APT (darkreading.com)
Russian ransomware hacker extorted tens of millions, says DOJ (cnbc.com)
Vulnerability Management
Vulnerabilities
Third Flaw Uncovered in MOVEit Transfer App Amidst Cl0p Ransomware Mass Attack (thehackernews.com)
Bitwarden update corrects password manager access vulnerability on Windows - gHacks Tech News
Fortinet: Patched Critical Flaw May Have Been Exploited (darkreading.com)
Bitwarden update corrects password manager access vulnerability on Windows - gHacks Tech News
CISA orders federal agencies to secure Internet-exposed network devices (bleepingcomputer.com)
Microsoft June 2023 Patch Tuesday fixes 78 flaws, 38 RCE bugs (bleepingcomputer.com)
Log4J exploits may rise further as Microsoft continues war on phishing | ITPro
New Critical Google Chrome Payments Security Issue Confirmed (forbes.com)
Critical Security Vulnerability Discovered in WooCommerce Stripe Gateway Plugin (thehackernews.com)
VMware fixes critical flaws in Aria Operations for Networks (CVE-2023-20887) - Help Net Security
US energy department, other agencies hit in global hacking spree | Reuters
Tools and Controls
Ignoring digital transformation is more dangerous than a recession - Help Net Security
Cyber Crooks Targeting Employees, Organisations Fight Back with Training Programs - MSSP Alert
Cyber liability insurance vs. data breach insurance: What's the difference? | CSO Online
Red teaming can be the ground truth for CISOs and execs - Help Net Security
How Continuous Monitoring and Threat Intel Can Help Prevent Ransomware (darkreading.com)
What is Dark Web Monitoring and How Does It Work? | Trend Micro News
New cloud security guidance: it's all about the config - NCSC.GOV.UK
Why Now? The Rise of Attack Surface Management (thehackernews.com)
Exploring the All-Time Best Book for Ethical Hacking – Codelivly
Enhancing security team capabilities in tough economic times - Help Net Security
Small organisations outpace large enterprises in MFA adoption - Help Net Security
MSSQL makes up 93% of all activity on honeypots tracking 10 databases | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
5 best practices to ensure the security of third-party APIs | CSO Online
Multi-Factor Authentication Usage Nearly Doubles Since 2020, New Okta Report Finds - MSSP Alert
Reports Published in the Last Week
Sector Specific
Industry specific threat intelligence reports are available.
Contact us to receive tailored reports specific to the industry/sector and geographies you operate in.
· 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.
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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 Cyber Threat Briefing 12 May 2023
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 12 May 2023:
-79% of Cyber Pros Make Decisions Without Threat Intelligence
-61% of Business Leadership Overlook the Role of Cyber Security as a Business Enabler and as being Key to Business Success
-Risk Managers Warn Cyber Insurance Could Become ‘Unviable Product’
-Small and Medium-Sized Businesses: Don’t Give up on Cyber Security
-AI Has Been Dubbed a 'Nuclear' Threat to Cyber Security, but It Can Also Be Used for Defence
-Paying Cyber Hijackers’ Ransoms Doubles Cost of Recovery, Sophos Study Shows
-Majority of US, UK CISOs Unable to Protect Company 'Secrets'
-Company Executives Can’t Afford to Ignore Cyber Security Anymore
-BEC Campaign via Israel Spotted Targeting Multinational Companies
-CISOs Worried About Personal Liability for Breaches
-UK, US and International Allies Uncover Russian Snake Malware Network in 50+ Countries
-Plug-and-Play Microsoft 365 Phishing Tool 'Democratizes' Attack Campaigns
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
79% of Cyber Pros Make Decisions Without Threat Intelligence
In a recent report, 79% of security pros say they make decisions without adversary insights “at least the majority of the time.” Why aren’t companies effectively leveraging threat intelligence? And does the C-Suite know this is going on?
Threat intelligence helps organisations stay informed about the latest cyber threats and vulnerabilities. By gathering and analysing information about potential attacks, threat intelligence can provide organisations with valuable insights into the tactics, techniques and procedures (TTPs) used by cyber criminals.
Given the deep value provided by threat intelligence, why aren’t more cyber pros taking advantage of it?
61% of Business Leadership Overlook the Role of Cyber Security as a Business Enabler and as being Key to Business Success
A recent report found only 39% of respondents think their company's leadership has a sound understanding of cyber security's role as a business enabler. Cyber security can be a huge business enabler; executive leaders need to think of cyber security in terms of the value it can deliver at a more strategic level.
Risk Managers Warn Cyber Insurance Could Become ‘Unviable Product’
The Federation of European Risk Management Associations (FERMA), an umbrella body representing 22 trade associations, said the cyber insurance market is “evolving in isolation from the industries it serves”.
It highlighted a move by Lloyd’s of London, the specialist insurance market and hub for cyber insurance, demanding that standard cyber policies have an exemption for big state-backed attacks.
“Without a more collaborative approach to cyber balancing the risk appetite of the insurance market with the coverage requirements of the corporate buyers, there is a risk that cyber insurance becomes an unviable product for many organisations,” FERMA said in a statement shared with the Financial Times.
The intervention is the strongest yet by the business lobby over the controversial exemption and wider concerns about cyber insurance.
https://www.ft.com/content/401629cc-e68a-41a4-8d50-e7c0d3e27835
Small and Medium-Sized Businesses: Don’t Give up on Cyber Security
In today’s increasingly hostile environment, every enterprise, big or small, should be concerned about cyber security and have access to protection from hackers, scammers, phishers, and all the rest of the host of bad actors who seem to be sprouting up around the world.
Yet time and again, small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are left out in the cold, an unaddressed market segment that finds real protection either too expensive or far too complex to adopt. Thus, cyber security becomes an “afterthought” or “add when we can” kind of service that leaves SMBs far more vulnerable than the corporate giants — just reading the news every day shows even they aren’t immune to ransomware, intrusions, and data theft. If you haven’t already, start thinking about security now.
AI Has Been Dubbed a 'Nuclear' Threat to Cyber Security, but It Can Also Be Used for Defence
Hackers using ChatGPT are faster and more sophisticated than before, and cyber security analysts who don’t have access to similar tools can very quickly find themselves outgunned and outsmarted by these AI-assisted attackers. However, corporations are stumbling to figure out governance around AI, and while they do so, their employees are clearly defying rules and possibly jeopardising company operations. According to a study of 1.6 million workers, 3.1% input confidential company information into ChatGPT. Although the number seems small, 11% of users' questions include private information. This is a fatal flaw for corporate use considering how hackers can manipulate the system into giving them previously hidden information. In another study, it was found that 80% of security professionals used AI, with 46% of these giving specialised capabilities as a reason.
Paying Cyber Hijackers’ Ransoms Doubles Cost of Recovery, Sophos Study Shows
In three out of four cyber attacks, the hijackers succeeded in encrypting victims’ data, cyber security provider Sophos said in its newly released State of Ransomware 2023 report.
The rate of data encryption amounted to the highest from ransomware since Sophos first issued the report in 2020. Overall, roughly two-thirds of the 3,000 cyber security/IT leaders’ organisations were infected by a ransomware attack in the first quarter of 2023, or the same percentage as last year.
Much advice has been doled out by cyber security providers and law enforcement urging organisations to not pay a ransom. According to Sophos’ survey, the data shows that when organisations paid a ransom to decrypt their data, they ended up doubling their recovery costs. On average, those organisations paying ransoms for decryption forked out $750,000 in recovery costs versus $375,000 for organisations that used backups to recover their data.
Moreover, paying the ransom usually meant longer recovery times, with 45% of those organisations that used backups recovering within a week, compared to 39% of those that paid the ransom.
Majority of US, UK CISOs Unable to Protect Company 'Secrets'
A recent study found 75% of organisations have experienced a data leak involving company secrets, including API keys, usernames, passwords, and encryption keys, in the past. It was found that about 52% of chief information and security officers (CISOs) in the US and UK organisations are unable to fully secure their company secrets. The study showed that a huge chunk of the IT sector realises the danger of exposed secrets. Seventy-five percent said that a secret leak has happened in their organisation in the past, with 60% acknowledging it caused serious issues for the company, employees, or both. The report has pointed out that even though secrets management practice across the US and the UK has seen some maturity, it still needs to go a long way.
Company Executives Can’t Afford to Ignore Cyber Security Anymore
In a recent survey, when asked about the Board and C-Suite‘s understanding of cyber security across the organisation, only 36% of respondents believe that it is considered important only in terms of compliance and regulatory demands, while 17% said it is not seen as a business priority. The disconnect between business and security goals appears to have caused at least one negative consequence to 89% of respondents’ organisations, with 26% also reporting it resulted in an increased number of successful cyber attacks at their company. On the misalignment of cyber security goals, respondents believed it contributed to delays in investments (35%), delays in strategic decision making (34%), and unnecessary increases in spending (27%).
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/05/10/cybersecurity-business-goals-alignment/
BEC Campaign via Israel Spotted Targeting Multinational Companies
An Israel-based threat group was discovered carrying out a business email compromise (BEC) campaign primarily targeting large and multinational enterprises. The group has conducted 350 BEC campaigns since February 2021, with email attacks targeting employees from 61 countries across six continents. The group operate through two personas — a CEO and an external attorney and spoofed email addresses using real domains.
CISOs Worried About Personal Liability for Breaches
Over three-fifths (62%) of global CISOs are concerned about being held personally liable for successful cyber attacks that occur on their watch, and a similar share would not join an organisation that fails to offer insurance to protect them, according to Proofpoint annual ‘Voice of the CISO’ survey for 2023. The security vendor polled 1600 CISOs from organisations of 200 employees or more across different industries in 16 countries to compile the report.
It revealed that CISOs in sectors with high volumes of sensitive data and/or heavy regulation such as retail (69%), financial services (65%) and manufacturing (65%) are most likely to demand insurance coverage.
Such concerns only add to the mental load on corporate IT security bosses. A combination of high-stress working environments, shrinking budgets and personal liability could be harming CISOs’ quality of life. Some 60% told Proofpoint they’ve experienced burnout in the past 12 months.
CISOs are most likely to experience burnout in the retail (72%) and IT, technology and telecoms (66%) industries.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/cisos-worried-personal-liability/
UK, US and International Allies Uncover Russian Snake Malware Network in 50+ Countries
The UK NCSC along with the US National Security Agency (NSA) and various international partner agencies have discovered infrastructure connected with the sophisticated Russian cyber-espionage tool Snake in over 50 countries worldwide. Snake operations have been attributed to a specific unit within Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB), Center 16.
Cyber criminals reportedly used Snake to retrieve and remove confidential documents related to international relations and diplomatic communications.
According to an advisory published by the agencies on Tuesday, the FSB targeted various industries, including education, small businesses, media, local government, finance, manufacturing and telecommunications. The Snake malware is installed on external infrastructure nodes for further exploitation.
According to the NSA Russian government actors have used this tool for years for intelligence collection and it is hoped that the technical details shared in the advisory will help many organisations find and shut down the malware globally.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/nsa-uncovers-russian-snake-malware/
Plug-and-Play Microsoft 365 Phishing Tool 'Democratizes' Attack Campaigns
A new phishing-as-a-service tool called "Greatness" is being used in attacks targeting manufacturing, healthcare, technology, and other sectors.
Researchers at Cisco Talos detailed their findings on "Greatness," a one-stop-shop for all of a cyber criminal's phishing needs. With Greatness, anyone with even rudimentary technical chops can craft compelling Microsoft 365-based phishing lures, then carry out man-in-the-middle attacks that steal authentication credentials — even in the face of multifactor authentication (MFA) — and much more.
The tool has been in circulation since at least mid-2022 and has been used in attacks against enterprises in manufacturing, healthcare, and technology, among other sectors. Half of the targets thus far have been concentrated in the US, with further attacks occurring around Western Europe, Australia, Brazil, Canada, and South Africa.
https://www.darkreading.com/cloud/plug-and-play-microsoft-365-phishing-tool-democratizes-attacks
Threats
Ransomware, Extortion and Destructive Attacks
Make them pay: Hackers devise new tactics to ensure ransomware payment | CSO Online
Ransomware gangs display ruthless extortion tactics in April | TechTarget
Our appetite for data increases the risk of being held to ransom (thetimes.co.uk)
Paying Cyber Hijackers’ Ransoms Doubles Cost of Recovery, Sophos Study Shows - MSSP Alert
Refined methodologies of ransomware attacks - Help Net Security
Ranking ransomware: The gangs, the malware and the ever-present risks | CyberScoop
Ransomware Encryption Rates Reach New Heights - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
UK ‘increasingly concerned’ ransomware victims are keeping incidents secret (therecord.media)
Royal ransomware gang quickly expands reign | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
Legitimate Software Abuse: A Disturbing Trend in Ransomware Attacks (darkreading.com)
Ransomware attack confirmed at Rochester Public Schools, FBI alerted - Bring Me The News
Constellation Struck By Ransomware Attack, ALPHV Lays Claim (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
New Ransomware Strain 'CACTUS' Exploits VPN Flaws to Infiltrate Networks (thehackernews.com)
New Akira Ransomware Operation Hits Corporate Networks | Black Hat Ethical Hacking
Babuk code used by 9 ransomware gangs to encrypt VMWare ESXi servers (bleepingcomputer.com)
$1.1M Paid to Resolve Ransomware Attack on California County - SecurityWeek
Western Digital store offline due to March breach - Help Net Security
Western Digital Confirms Ransomware Group Stole Customer Information - SecurityWeek
Former Conti members are behind latest Royal ransomware hacking spree, report finds (axios.com)
Hackers Contacted Dragos CEO’s Son, Wife in Extortion Attempt - Bloomberg
Multiple Ransomware Groups Adapt Babuk Code to Target ESXi VMs (darkreading.com)
Australian software giant won’t say if customers affected by hack | TechCrunch
Multinational tech firm ABB hit by Black Basta ransomware attack (bleepingcomputer.com)
Phishing & Email Based Attacks
Gmail gets blue verification checks to protect against spoofing and phishing | ZDNET
Phishing Ring Bust, Spanish Police Have Arrested 40 People (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
BEC – Business Email Compromise
2FA/MFA
Malware
Chrome users, stay alert: Malware may be just one click away - gHacks Tech News
Microsoft issues optional fix for Secure Boot zero-day used by malware (bleepingcomputer.com)
56,000+ cloud-based apps at risk of malware exfiltration - Help Net Security
Millions of mobile phones come pre-infected with malware • The Register
Severe Ruckus RCE Flaws Utilized By Fresh DDoS Botnet Malware (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Fake system update drops Aurora stealer via Invalid Printer loader (malwarebytes.com)
Stealthier version of Linux BPFDoor malware spotted in the wild (bleepingcomputer.com)
Mobile
Millions of mobile phones come pre-infected with malware • The Register
Mobile hacking and spyware – understanding the risks - TechHQ
Google Announces New Privacy, Safety, and Security Features Across Its Services (thehackernews.com)
Google Improves Android Security With New APIs - SecurityWeek
New Android FluHorse malware steals your passwords, 2FA codes (bleepingcomputer.com)
New Android updates fix kernel bug exploited in spyware attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
Botnets
Fortinet warns of a spike of the activity linked to AndoryuBot botnet- Security Affairs
RapperBot DDoS malware adds cryptojacking as new revenue stream (bleepingcomputer.com)
Denial of Service/DoS/DDOS
FBI seizes 13 more domains linked to DDoS-for-hire services (bleepingcomputer.com)
Severe Ruckus RCE Flaws Utilized By Fresh DDoS Botnet Malware (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Fortinet warns of a spike of the activity linked to AndoryuBot botnet- Security Affairs
RapperBot DDoS malware adds cryptojacking as new revenue stream (bleepingcomputer.com)
Internet of Things – IoT
Data Breaches/Leaks
Security researcher finds trove of Capita data exposed online | TechCrunch
In a new hacking crime wave, more personal data is being held hostage (cnbc.com)
Western Digital says hackers stole customer data in March cyber attack (bleepingcomputer.com)
Leak of MSI UEFI signing keys stokes fears of “doomsday” supply chain attack | Ars Technica
Boot Guard Keys From MSI Hack Posted, Many PCs Vulnerable | Tom's Hardware(tomshardware.com)
1 Million Impacted by Data Breach at NextGen Healthcare - SecurityWeek
Twitter admits 'security incident' broke Circle privacy • The Register
Food distribution giant Sysco warns of data breach after cyber attack (bleepingcomputer.com)
North Korean Hackers Stole 830K Data From Seoul's Top Hospital (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Brightly warns of SchoolDude data breach exposing credentials (bleepingcomputer.com)
Simplify data hack cost the firm almost £7m - Property Industry Eye
Organised Crime & Criminal Actors
In a new hacking crime wave, more personal data is being held hostage (cnbc.com)
The Team of Sleuths Quietly Hunting Cyber attack-for-Hire Services | WIRED
Phishing Ring Bust, Spanish Police Have Arrested 40 People (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Former Ubiquiti Employee Who Posed as Hacker Sentenced to Prison - SecurityWeek
UK cops score another legal win in EncroChat spying case • The Register
Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs/Blockchain
Insider Risk and Insider Threats
Human Error Drives Most Cyber Incidents. Could AI Help? (hbr.org)
Overlooking These 4 Critical Measures Expose Your Company to Cyber Attacks | Entrepreneur
Fraud, Scams & Financial Crime
UK’s new fraud strategy too weak to tackle soaring crime, say experts | Financial Times (ft.com)
Your voice could be your biggest vulnerability - Help Net Security
QR codes used in fake parking tickets, surveys to steal your money (bleepingcomputer.com)
Deepfakes
Insurance
Dark Web
Supply Chain and Third Parties
Security researcher finds trove of Capita data exposed online | TechCrunch
Cyber hack to cost UK outsourcer Capita up to $25 mln | Reuters
Leak of MSI UEFI signing keys stokes fears of “doomsday” supply chain attack | Ars Technica
Software Supply Chain
Cloud/SaaS
56,000+ cloud-based apps at risk of malware exfiltration - Help Net Security
How to reduce risk with cloud attack surface management | TechTarget
ENISA leans into EU clouds with draft cyber security label • The Register
Hybrid/Remote Working
Attack Surface Management
Identity and Access Management
Top 3 trends shaping the future of cyber security and IAM - Help Net Security
Review your on-prem ADCS infrastructure before attackers do it for you | CSO Online
Why the FTX Collapse Was an Identity Problem (darkreading.com)
Asset Management
CISOs confront mounting obstacles in tracking cyber assets - Help Net Security
How Attack Surface Management Supports Continuous Threat Exposure Management (thehackernews.com)
Encryption
API
Open Source
India bans open source messaging apps on security grounds • The Register
Stealthier version of Linux BPFDoor malware spotted in the wild (bleepingcomputer.com)
Passwords, Credential Stuffing & Brute Force Attacks
83% of Americans’ Passwords Can Be Hacked in Less Than a Second, Study Shows (thedailybeast.com)
Top 5 Password Cracking Techniques Used by Hackers (bleepingcomputer.com)
Social Media
Twitter admits 'security incident' broke Circle privacy • The Register
TikTok tracked UK journalist via her cat's account - BBC News
Parental Controls and Child Safety
Regulations, Fines and Legislation
UK’s new fraud strategy too weak to tackle soaring crime, say experts | Financial Times (ft.com)
EU parliament report calls for tighter regulation of spyware | Surveillance | The Guardian
India bans open source messaging apps on security grounds • The Register
PEGA committee calls for EU level regulation of spyware • The Register
ENISA leans into EU clouds with draft cyber security label • The Register
Europe’s Moral Crusader Lays Down the Law on Encryption | WIRED
Scanning Plans On Europe's CSAM May Violate International Law (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Governance, Risk and Compliance
Risk managers warn cyber insurance could become ‘unviable product’ | Financial Times (ft.com)
79% of Cyber Pros Make Decisions Without Threat Intelligence (securityintelligence.com)
Company executives can't afford to ignore cyber security anymore - Help Net Security
Majority of US, UK CISOs unable to protect company 'secrets': Report | CSO Online
Small- and medium-sized businesses: don’t give up on cyber security | CSO Online
(ISC)² Calls for Global Cyber security Standards, Collaboration, Frameworks - MSSP Alert
Organisations Reliant on Social Media For Threat Intelligence - TechRound
Recognizing Cyberthreat Trends For Effective Defence (forbes.com)
Digital trust can make or break an organisation - Help Net Security
Why more transparency around cyber attacks is good for everyone - NCSC
CISOs face mounting pressures, expectations post-pandemic | TechTarget
CISOs' confidence in post-pandemic security landscape fades - Help Net Security
Overlooking These 4 Critical Measures Expose Your Company to Cyber Attacks | Entrepreneur
NCSC and ICO Dispel Incident Reporting Myths - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Models, Frameworks and Standards
(ISC)² Calls for Global Cyber security Standards, Collaboration, Frameworks - MSSP Alert
ENISA leans into EU clouds with draft cyber security label • The Register
Data Protection
Careers, Working in Cyber and Information Security
Law Enforcement Action and Take Downs
FBI seizes 13 more domains linked to DDoS-for-hire services (bleepingcomputer.com)
Phishing Ring Bust, Spanish Police Have Arrested 40 People (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
UK cops score another legal win in EncroChat spying case • The Register
Privacy, Surveillance and Mass Monitoring
The (Security) Cost of Too Much Data Privacy (darkreading.com)
Twitter admits 'security incident' broke Circle privacy • The Register
TikTok tracked UK journalist via her cat's account - BBC News
Artificial Intelligence
Top US cyber official warns AI may be the 'most powerful weapon of our time' | CyberScoop
Amazon Is Being Flooded With Books Entirely Written by AI (futurism.com)
Your voice could be your biggest vulnerability - Help Net Security
The security and privacy risks of large language models - Help Net Security
Spyware, Cyber Espionage & Cyber Warfare, including Russian Invasion of Ukraine
EU parliament report calls for tighter regulation of spyware | Surveillance | The Guardian
China targets foreign consulting companies in anti-spying raids | China | The Guardian
Mobile hacking and spyware – understanding the risks - TechHQ
New Android updates fix kernel bug exploited in spyware attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
CERT-UA Warns of SmokeLoader and RoarBAT Malware Attacks Against Ukraine (thehackernews.com)
PEGA committee calls for EU level regulation of spyware • The Register
FBI-led Operation Medusa kills Russian FSB malware network • The Register
How one of Vladimir Putin’s most prized hacking units got pwned by the FBI | Ars Technica
Nation State Actors
Microsoft warns Iran increasing its cyber-enabled influence operations | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
China labels USA ‘Empire of hacking’ citing old WikiLeaks • The Register
CERT-UA Warns of SmokeLoader and RoarBAT Malware Attacks Against Ukraine (thehackernews.com)
LinkedIn shuts service in China, lays off employees | Fortune
Microsoft: Iranian hacking groups join Papercut attack spree (bleepingcomputer.com)
FBI-led Operation Medusa kills Russian FSB malware network • The Register
China targets foreign consulting companies in anti-spying raids | China | The Guardian
Beijing raids consultancy firm Capvision, promises more • The Register
SideWinder Strikes Victims in Pakistan, Turkey in Multiphase Polymorphic Attack (darkreading.com)
North Korean Hackers Stole 830K Data From Seoul's Top Hospital (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
People’s Republic of China State-Sponsored Cyber Actors Exploit Network Providers and Devices | CISA
Vulnerability Management
Vulnerabilities
Microsoft's May Patch Tuesday Fixes 38 Flaws, Including Active Zero-Day Bug (thehackernews.com)
Microsoft warns of two bugs under active exploit • The Register
Light May Patch Tuesday will weigh heavily on Windows admins | TechTarget
Fortinet fixed two severe issues in FortiADC and FortiOS-Security Affairs
New PaperCut RCE exploit created that bypasses existing detections (bleepingcomputer.com)
Microsoft issues optional fix for Secure Boot zero-day used by malware (bleepingcomputer.com)
Adobe Patches 14 Vulnerabilities in Substance 3D Painter - SecurityWeek
Severe Ruckus RCE Flaws Utilized By Fresh DDoS Botnet Malware (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
CyberGhost VPN patches command injection vulnerability | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
A Linux NetFilter kernel flaw allows escalating privileges to 'root'-Security Affairs
SAP Patches Critical Vulnerabilities With May 2023 Security Updates - SecurityWeek
Fortinet warns of a spike of the activity linked to AndoryuBot botnet-Security Affairs
Tools and Controls
Risk managers warn cyber insurance could become ‘unviable product’ | Financial Times (ft.com)
79% of Cyber Pros Make Decisions Without Threat Intelligence (securityintelligence.com)
Human Error Drives Most Cyber Incidents. Could AI Help? (hbr.org)
Identifying Compromised Data Can Be a Logistical Nightmare (darkreading.com)
Organisations Reliant on Social Media For Threat Intelligence - TechRound
Recognizing Cyberthreat Trends For Effective Defence (forbes.com)
Digital trust can make or break an organisation - Help Net Security
Prevent attackers from using legitimate tools against you - Help Net Security
How to implement principle of least privilege in Azure AD | TechTarget
What is Digital Forensics? Tools, Types, Phases & History (cybersecuritynews.com)
Microsoft enforces number matching to fight MFA fatigue attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
AI Will Take Many Cyber security Jobs, But It's Not a Complete Disaster | PCMag
Google Broadens Dark Web Monitoring To Track All Gmail Users (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
5 SBOM tools to start securing the software supply chain | TechTarget
The Industrywide Consequences of Making Security Products Inaccessible (darkreading.com)
Top 3 trends shaping the future of cyber security and IAM - Help Net Security
Other News
The Team of Sleuths Quietly Hunting Cyber attack-for-Hire Services | WIRED
Why Should You Take IT Security Seriously? - IT Security Guru
To enable ethical hackers, a law reform is needed - Help Net Security
How datacentre operators can fend off cyber attacks | Computer Weekly
'Windows for Gamers' Rolls Dice With Your Security (vice.com)
Risk of cyber attack is main Eurovision worry, says BBC executive | Eurovision 2023 | The Guardian
Sector Specific
Industry specific threat intelligence reports are available.
Contact us to receive tailored reports specific to the industry/sector and geographies you operate in.
· 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 Cyber Threat Briefing 28 April 2023
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 28 April 2023:
- Navigating The Future of Cyber: Business Strategy, Cyber Security Training, and Digital Transformation Are Key
- Shadow IT, SaaS Pose Security Liability for Enterprises
- The Strong Link Between Cyber Threat Intelligence and Digital Risk Protection
- Weak Credentials, Unpatched Vulnerabilities, Malicious Open Source Packages Causing Cloud Security Risks
- Over 70 billion Unprotected Files Available on Unsecured Web Servers
- Cyber Thieves Are Getting More Creative
- Modernising Vulnerability Management: The Move Toward Exposure Management
- Almost Three-quarters of Cyber Attacks Involve Ransomware
- Corporate Boards Pressure CISOs to Step Up Risk Mitigation Efforts
- NSA Sees ‘Significant’ Russian Intel Gathering on European, US Supply Chain Entities
- Email Threat Report 2023: Key Takeaways
- 5 Most Dangerous New Attack Techniques
- Many Public Salesforce Sites are Leaking Private Data
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
Navigating the Future of Cyber: Business Strategy, Cyber Security Training, and Digital Transformation are Key
Cyber investments have become table stakes for businesses around the world. Cyber crime is increasing, with 91% of organisations reporting at least one cyber incident in the past year. Not only are they growing in numbers, but they are becoming more sophisticated and diverse, with new threats constantly emerging. According to the 2023 Deloitte Global Future of Cyber survey, business leaders are changing how they think of cyber, and it’s emerging as a larger strategic discussion tied to an organisation’s long-term success.
Cyber is about more than protecting information—risk management, incident response planning, threat intelligence and training can often be directly correlated to increasing trust within businesses.
Cyber security training is essential for employees to ensure the safety and security of a business. Employees are often the first line of defence against cyber-attacks and frequently the weakest link in an organisation's security posture. Cyber security training can help employees recognise and avoid common cyber threats, such as phishing attacks, malware, and social engineering. 89% of organisations cited as high-performing cyber organisations have implemented annual cyber awareness training among all employees. With increased digital dependency year over year—effective employee training can raise awareness, reduce risk, improve security posture, and support compliance.
Shadow IT, SaaS Pose Security Liability for Enterprises
There's no denying that software-as-a-service (SaaS) has entered its golden age. Software tools have now become essential to modern business operations and continuity. However, not enough organisations have implemented the proper procurement processes to ensure they're protecting themselves from potential data breaches and reputational harm.
A critical component contributing to concerns around SaaS management is the rising trend of shadow IT, which is when employees download and use software tools without notifying their internal IT teams. A recent study shows that 77% of IT professionals believe that shadow IT is becoming a major concern in 2023, with more than 65% saying their SaaS tools aren't being approved. Organisations are beginning to struggle with maintaining security as their SaaS usage continues to sprawl.
To combat shadow IT and the high risks that come along with it, organisations must gain greater visibility over their SaaS stacks and institute an effective procurement process when bringing on new software solutions.
https://www.darkreading.com/edge-articles/shadow-it-saas-pose-security-liability-for-enterprises
The Strong Link Between Cyber Threat Intelligence and Digital Risk Protection
While indicators of compromise and attackers’ tactics, techniques, and processes (TTPs) remain central to threat intelligence, cyber threat intelligence needs have grown over the past few years, driven by things like digital transformation, cloud computing and remote working. In fact, these changes have led to a cyber threat intelligence (CTI) subcategory focused on digital risk protection (DRP). DRP is broadly defined as, “telemetry, analysis, processes, and technologies used to identify and mitigate risks associated with digital assets”.
According to research provider ESG, the most important functions of DRP as part of a mature CTI programme are: vulnerability exploit intelligence, takedown services, leaked data monitoring, malicious mobile application monitoring, brand protection and attack surface management. It should be noted that a mature CTI programme can utilise service providers to help carry out threat intelligence, it doesn’t have to be spun up by the organisation from nothing. Regardless, an organisation employing these DRP functions as part of a CTI programme will be increasing its cyber resilience and reducing the chance of a cyber incident.
Weak Credentials, Unpatched Vulnerabilities, Malicious Open Source Packages Causing Cloud Security Risks
Threat actors are getting more adept at exploiting common everyday issues in the cloud, including misconfigurations, weak credentials, lack of authentication, unpatched vulnerabilities, and malicious open-source software (OSS) packages. Meanwhile, security teams take an average of 145 hours to solve alerts, with 80% of cloud alerts triggered by just 5% of security rules in most environments according to a recent report. The report, conducted by UNIT 42 analysed the workload of 210,000 cloud accounts across 1,300 organisations.
The report’s findings echoed similarities from the previous year, finding almost all cloud users, roles, services and resources grant excessive permissions. Some of the other key findings include as many as 83% of organisations having hard-coded credentials in their source control management systems, 53% of cloud accounts allowing weak password usage and 44% allowing password reuse and 71% of high or critical vulnerabilities exposed were at least two years old.
Over 70 Billion Unprotected Files Available on Unsecured Web Servers
A recent report found that more than 70 billion files, including intellectual property and financial information, are freely available and unprotected on unsecured web servers. Other key findings of the report included almost 1 in 10 of all detected internet-facing assets having an unpatched vulnerability, with the top 10 vulnerabilities found unpatched at least 12 million times each.
The report predicted that there will be a significant rise in information stealing malware; the report had found that 50% of emails associated with customers were plaintext and unencrypted. Additionally, there will be more incidents due to an increase in assets which are not known to IT, known as shadow IT.
Organisations should look to employ efficient patch management, have an up to date asset register, and use encryption to better increase their cyber defences.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/04/24/critical-cybersecurity-exposures/
Cyber Thieves Are Getting More Creative
Cyber criminals are constantly changing their tactics and finding new ways to steal money from organisations. An example of this can be seen where criminals are breaking into systems to learn who is authorised to send payments and what the procedures are. Eventually, this leads to the criminal instructing payment to their own account.
Unfortunately, it is only after such events that some organisations are taking actions, such as verifying payments through phone calls. Whilst it is important for organisations to learn from attacks, it is beneficial to take a pro-active approach and employ procedures such as call back procedures before an incident has occurred.
https://hbr.org/2023/04/cyber-thieves-are-getting-more-creative
Modernising Vulnerability Management: The Move Toward Exposure Management
Managing vulnerabilities in the constantly evolving technological landscape is a difficult task. Although vulnerabilities emerge regularly, not all vulnerabilities present the same level of risk. Traditional metrics such as CVSS score or the number of vulnerabilities are insufficient for effective vulnerability management as they lack business context, prioritisation, and understanding of attackers' motivations, opportunities and means. Vulnerabilities only represent a small part of the attack surface that attackers can leverage.
Exposures are broader and can encompass more than just vulnerabilities. Exposures can result from various factors, such as human error, improperly defined security controls, and poorly designed and unsecured architecture. Organisations should consider that an attacker doesn’t just look at one exposure; attackers will often use a combination of vulnerabilities, misconfigurations, permissions and other exposures to move across systems and reach valuable assets.
As such, organisations looking to improve their cyber resiliency should consider their vulnerability management system and assess both whether it is taking into account exposures and the context in relation to the organisation.
https://thehackernews.com/2023/04/modernizing-vulnerability-management.html
Two-thirds of Cyber Attacks Involve Ransomware
A report from Sophos focusing on recent incident response cases, found that 68.4% of incidents resulted from ransomware. This was followed by network breaches, accounting for 18.4%. Regarding threat actor access, the report found that unpatched vulnerabilities were the single most common access method, followed by compromised credentials.
Corporate Boards Pressure CISOs to Step Up Risk Mitigation Efforts
A recent report found that the top challenges when implementing an effective cyber/IT risk management programme include an increase in the quantity (49%) and severity (49%) of cyber threats, a lack of funding (37%) and a lack of staffing/cyber risk talent (36%).
Cyber attacks have been increasing for several years now and resulting data breaches cost businesses an average of $4.35 million in 2022, according to the annual IBM ‘Cost of a Data Breach’ report. Given the financial and reputational consequences of cyber attacks, corporate board rooms are putting pressure on CISOs to identify and mitigate cyber/IT risk.
When it came to reporting to the board, 30% of CIO and CISO respondents say they do not communicate risk around specific business initiatives to other company leaders, indicating they may not know how to share that information in a constructive way.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/04/26/effective-it-risk-management/
NSA Sees ‘Significant’ Russian Intel Gathering on European, US Supply Chain Entities
According to the US National Security Agency (NSA), Russian hackers could be looking to attack logistics targets more broadly. The NSA have noted a significant amount of intelligence gathering into western countries, including the UK and the US.
Although there is no indication yet regarding attacks from Russia in connection with the logistics related to Ukraine, organisations should be aware and look to improve their cyber security practices to be best prepared.
https://cyberscoop.com/nsa-russian-ukraine-supply-chain-ransomware/
Email Threat Report 2023: Key Takeaways
According to a recent report, email phishing made up 24% of all spam types in 2022, a significant increase in proportion from 11% in 2021. The finance industry was the most targeted by far, accounting for 48% of phishing incidents. It is followed by the construction sector at 17%, overtaking 2021’s second-place industry, e-commerce. Both the finance and construction industries saw an increase in phishing since last year. Of all the emails analysed in 2022, an enormous 90% were spam emails.
With phishing as prevalent as ever, organisations should look to implement training for their staff to not only be able to spot phishing emails, but to be able to report these and aid in improving the cyber security culture of their organisation.
https://www.itsecurityguru.org/2023/04/27/email-threat-report-2023-key-takeaways/
5 Most Dangerous New Attack Techniques
Experts from security training provider SANS Institute have revealed the 5 most dangerous new attack techniques: adversarial AI, ChatGPT-powered social engineering, third-party developer attacks (also known as software supply chain attacks), SEO, and paid advertising attacks.
The new techniques highlight the ever changing environment of the attack environment. SEO and paid advertising attacks are leveraging fundamental marketing strategies to gain initial access, heightening the importance for organisations to incorporate scalable user awareness training programmes, tailored to new threats.
https://www.csoonline.com/article/3694892/5-most-dangerous-new-attack-techniques.html
Many Public Salesforce Sites are Leaking Private Data
A shocking number of organisations — including banks and healthcare providers — are leaking private and sensitive information from their public Salesforce Community websites. The data exposures all stem from a misconfiguration in Salesforce Community that allows an unauthenticated user to access records that should only be available after logging in.
This included the US State of Vermont who had at least five separate Salesforce Community sites that allowed guest access to sensitive data, including a Pandemic Unemployment Assistance programme that exposed the applicant’s full name, social security number, address, phone number, email, and bank account number. Similar information was leaked by TCF Bank on their Salesforce Community Website.
It's not just Salesforce though; misconfigurations in general are responsible for a number of leaked documents and or exposures relating to an organisation.
https://krebsonsecurity.com/2023/04/many-public-salesforce-sites-are-leaking-private-data/
Threats
Ransomware, Extortion and Destructive Attacks
New coercive tactics used to extort ransomware payments - Help Net Security
Almost three-quarters of cyber attacks involve ransomware | Computer Weekly
Ransomware attacks, human error main cause of cloud data breaches: Report (business-standard.com)
Effects of the Hive Ransomware Group Takedown (darkreading.com)
Microsoft Confirms PaperCut Servers Used to Deliver LockBit and Cl0p Ransomware (thehackernews.com)
Tank storage company Vopak hacked, Ransomware groups report | NL Times
Health insurer Point32Health suffered a ransomware attack-Security Affairs
Hacker demands ransom after 'taking control' of Wiltshire school's IT | Swindon Advertiser
RSAC speaker offers ransomware victims unconventional advice | TechTarget
How ransomware victims can make the best of a bad situation | TechTarget
Hackers Leaked Minneapolis Students' Psychological Reports, Allegations of Abuse (gizmodo.com)
Linux version of RTM Locker ransomware targets VMware ESXi servers (bleepingcomputer.com)
CommScope employees left in the dark after ransomware attack | TechCrunch
Phishing & Email Based Attacks
How Dangerous Is Phishing in 2023? - Duo Blog | Duo Security
The New Frontier in Email Security: Goodbye, Gateways; Hello, Behavioural AI (darkreading.com)
BEC – Business Email Compromise
2FA/MFA
CrowdStrike details new MFA bypass, credential theft attack | TechTarget
Phishing-resistant MFA shapes the future of authentication forms - Help Net Security
Malware
Malware-Free Cyber attacks Are On the Rise; Here's How to Detect Them (darkreading.com)
Ex-Conti and FIN7 Actors Collaborate with New Backdoor (securityintelligence.com)
EvilExtractor malware activity spikes in Europe and the US (bleepingcomputer.com)
Zaraza Malware Exploits Web Browsers To Steal Stored Passwords (latesthackingnews.com)
This evil malware disables your security software, then goes in for the kill | TechRadar
Decoy Dog malware toolkit found after analysing 70 billion DNS queries (bleepingcomputer.com)
Lazarus Subgroup Targeting Apple Devices with New RustBucket macOS Malware (thehackernews.com)
A Security Team Is Turning This Malware Gang’s Tricks Against It | WIRED
Evasive Panda APT group delivers malware via updates for popular Chinese software | WeLiveSecurity
Google banned 173K developer accounts to block malware, fraud rings (bleepingcomputer.com)
Chinese Cyber spies Delivered Malware via Legitimate Software Updates - SecurityWeek
Chinese hackers launch Linux variant of PingPull malware | CSO Online
Mobile
WhatsApp used in BEC scam to pilfer $6.4M | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
35M Downloads Of Android Minecraft Clones Spreads Adware (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Botnets
Denial of Service/DoS/DDOS
New SLP bug can lead to massive 2,200x DDoS amplification attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
'Anonymous Sudan' Claims Responsibility for DDoS Attacks Against Israel (darkreading.com)
Internet of Things – IoT
Data Breaches/Leaks
Over 70 billion unprotected files available on unsecured web servers - Help Net Security
Many Public Salesforce Sites are Leaking Private Data – Krebs on Security
American Bar Association data breach hits 1.4 million members (bleepingcomputer.com)
American Bar Association (ABA) suffered a data breach-Security Affairs
Shields Health Breach Exposes 2.3M Users' Data (darkreading.com)
Serving UK Armed Forces member charged under Official Secrets Act (telegraph.co.uk)
Yellow Pages Canada confirms cyber attack as Black Basta leaks data (bleepingcomputer.com)
Vantage Travel Experiences Data Security Incident (darkreading.com)
Organised Crime & Criminal Actors
Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs/Blockchain
Insider Risk and Insider Threats
Fraud, Scams & Financial Crime
The IRS is sending four investigators across the world to fight cyber crime | TechCrunch
US deploys more cyber forces abroad to help fight hackers | Reuters
The ‘Your computer was locked’ scam is gaining traction (consumeraffairs.com)
Google banned 173K developer accounts to block malware, fraud rings (bleepingcomputer.com)
Deepfakes
AML/CFT/Sanctions
Insurance
Dark Web
Supply Chain and Third Parties
The Huge 3CX Breach Was Actually 2 Linked Supply Chain Attacks | WIRED
That 3CX supply chain attack keeps getting worse • The Register
NSA sees 'significant' Russian intel gathering on European, US supply chain entities | CyberScoop
North Korean hackers breach software firm in significant cyber attack | CNN Politics
SD Worx hack: Payroll firm for M&S hit by cyber attack (thetimes.co.uk)
A third-party’s perspective on third-party InfoSec risk management - Help Net Security
Software Supply Chain
Cloud/SaaS
Shadow IT, SaaS Pose Security Liability for Enterprises (darkreading.com)
14 Kubernetes and Cloud Security Challenges and How to Solve Them (thehackernews.com)
Ransomware attacks, human error main cause of cloud data breaches: Report (business-standard.com)
GhostToken Flaw Could Let Attackers Hide Malicious Apps in Google Cloud Platform (thehackernews.com)
Saas Security: The Need For Continuous Sustenance (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
How CISOs navigate security and compliance in a multi-cloud world - Help Net Security
Security experts found a major bug in Google Cloud | TechRadar
Most SaaS adopters exposed to browser-borne attacks - Help Net Security
Exposed Artifacts Seen In Misconfigured Cloud Software Registries (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Google accounts attacked and hijacked by this devious security flaw | TechRadar
Containers
Kubernetes RBAC abused to create persistent cluster backdoors (bleepingcomputer.com)
Experts spotted first-ever crypto mining campaign leveraging Kubernetes RBAC-Security Affairs
Combating Kubernetes — the Newest IAM Challenge (darkreading.com)
Attack Surface Management
Over 70 billion unprotected files available on unsecured web servers - Help Net Security
Study of past cyber attacks can improve organisations' defence strategies - Help Net Security
Shadow IT
Identity and Access Management
Rethinking the effectiveness of current authentication initiatives - Help Net Security
Combating Kubernetes — the Newest IAM Challenge (darkreading.com)
Open Source
The double-edged sword of open-source software - Help Net Security
Linux Shift: Chinese APT Alloy Taurus Is Back With Retooling (darkreading.com)
Chinese hackers launch Linux variant of PingPull malware | CSO Online
Linux version of RTM Locker ransomware targets VMware ESXi servers (bleepingcomputer.com)
Passwords, Credential Stuffing & Brute Force Attacks
Password reset woes could cost FTSE 100 companies $156 million each month - Help Net Security
A '!password20231#' password may not be as complex as you think (bleepingcomputer.com)
Social Media
Malvertising
Google ads push BumbleBee malware used by ransomware gangs (bleepingcomputer.com)
35M Downloads Of Android Minecraft Clones Spreads Adware (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Training, Education and Awareness
Digital Transformation
Parental Controls and Child Safety
Regulations, Fines and Legislation
Governance, Risk and Compliance
Corporate boards pressure CISOs to step up risk mitigation efforts - Help Net Security
How the Talent Shortage Impacts Cyber security Leadership (securityintelligence.com)
Is your bank account safe? Mass layoffs weaken cyber security across finance sector | Fox Business
The strong link between cyber threat intelligence and digital risk protection | CSO Online
Organisations are stepping up their game against cyber threats - Help Net Security
CISOs: unsupported, unheard, and invisible - Help Net Security
The Relationship Between Security Maturity and Business Enablement | CSO Online
CISOs Rethink Data Security with Info-Centric Framework (darkreading.com)
UK Cyber Pros Burnt Out and Overwhelmed - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Good, Better And Best Security (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
SANS Reveals Top 5 Most Dangerous Cyber attacks for 2023 (darkreading.com)
Models, Frameworks and Standards
Careers, Working in Cyber and Information Security
UK Cyber Pros Burnt Out and Overwhelmed - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
How to Begin a Career in Ethical Hacking in the Year 2023? (analyticsinsight.net)
Law Enforcement Action and Take Downs
To combat cyber crime, US law enforcement increasingly prioritizes disruption | CyberScoop
US to focus on stifling cyber attacks, not convictions • The Register
US deploys more cyber forces abroad to help fight hackers | Reuters
Effects of the Hive Ransomware Group Takedown (darkreading.com)
Privacy, Surveillance and Mass Monitoring
Artificial Intelligence
The Growing Need for Cyber Security in an Age of AI Disruption (analyticsinsight.net)
Cyber security Survival: Hide From Adversarial AI (darkreading.com)
AI Experts: Account for AI/ML Resilience & Risk While There's Still Time (darkreading.com)
NSA Cyber security Director Says ‘Buckle Up’ for Generative AI | WIRED
From ChatGPT to HackGPT: Meeting the Cyber security Threat of Generative AI (mit.edu)
ChatGPT fans need 'defensive mindset' to avoid scammers • The Register
DHS announces AI task force, security sprint on China-related threats | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
The New Frontier in Email Security: Goodbye, Gateways; Hello, Behavioral AI (darkreading.com)
Nvidia releases a toolkit to make text-generating AI ‘safer’ | TechCrunch
Artificial intelligence takes RSA Conference by storm | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
Secureworks CEO weighs in on XDR landscape, AI concerns | TechTarget
Spyware, Cyber Espionage & Cyber Warfare, including Russian Invasion of Ukraine
FBI aiding Ukraine in collection of digital and physical war crime evidence | CyberScoop
NSA sees 'significant' Russian intel gathering on European, US supply chain entities | CyberScoop
UK undersea cables worth £7.4 trillion a day under ‘real threat’ from Russia | The Independent
Eurocontrol says website 'under attack' by pro-Russia crew • The Register
Iran cyberespionage group taps SimpleHelp for persistence on victim devices | CSO Online
Russian Hackers Tomiris Targeting Central Asia for Intelligence Gathering (thehackernews.com)
CISA, Cyber Command Collaboration Blocks Attempted Attacks on US Interests - MSSP Alert
Nation State Actors
Chinese Cyber spies Delivered Malware via Legitimate Software Updates - SecurityWeek
North Korean hackers breach software firm in significant cyber attack | CNN Politics
China building cyber weapons to hijack enemy satellites, says US leak | Financial Times (ft.com)
NCSC raises alert on cyber threat to infrastructure | UKAuthority
Iran cyberespionage group taps SimpleHelp for persistence on victim devices | CSO Online
DHS announces AI task force, security sprint on China-related threats | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
North Korea's Kimsuky APT Keeps Growing, Despite Public Outing (darkreading.com)
APT 'Mint Sandstorm' quickly exploits new PoC hacks | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
Russian Hackers Suspected in Ongoing Exploitation of Unpatched PaperCut Servers (thehackernews.com)
Lazarus Subgroup Targeting Apple Devices with New RustBucket macOS Malware (thehackernews.com)
US Cyberwarriors Thwarted 2020 Iran Election Hacking Attempt - SecurityWeek
Evasive Panda APT group delivers malware via updates for popular Chinese software | WeLiveSecurity
Linux Shift: Chinese APT Alloy Taurus Is Back With Retooling (darkreading.com)
Charming Kitten's New BellaCiao Malware Discovered in Multi-Country Attacks (thehackernews.com)
Iranian cyber spies deploy new malware implant on Microsoft Exchange Servers | CSO Online
Ukrainian arrested for selling data of 300M people to Russians (bleepingcomputer.com)
FIN7 Hackers Caught Exploiting Recent Veeam Vulnerability - SecurityWeek
Chinese hackers launch Linux variant of PingPull malware | CSO Online
CISA, Cyber Command Collaboration Blocks Attempted Attacks on US Interests - MSSP Alert
Lazarus, Scarcruft North Korean APTs Shift Tactics, Thrive (darkreading.com)
Vulnerabilities
New Google Chrome Zero-Day Bug Actively Exploited in Wide (gbhackers.com)
Flaw in Microsoft Process Explorer under active attack • The Register
APC warns of critical unauthenticated RCE flaws in UPS software (bleepingcomputer.com)
Double zero-day in Chrome and Edge – check your versions now! – Naked Security (sophos.com)
Security experts found a major bug in Google Cloud | TechRadar
TP-Link Archer WiFi router flaw exploited by Mirai malware (bleepingcomputer.com)
SolarWinds Platform Update Patches High-Severity Vulnerabilities - SecurityWeek
VMware Releases Critical Patches for Workstation and Fusion Software (thehackernews.com)
Cisco discloses XSS zero-day flaw in server management tool (bleepingcomputer.com)
Microsoft removes LSA Protection from Windows settings to fix bug (bleepingcomputer.com)
PaperCut says hackers are exploiting ‘critical’ security flaws in unpatched servers | TechCrunch
FIN7 Hackers Caught Exploiting Recent Veeam Vulnerability - SecurityWeek
Tools and Controls
Corporate boards pressure CISOs to step up risk mitigation efforts - Help Net Security
14 Kubernetes and Cloud Security Challenges and How to Solve Them (thehackernews.com)
Six Key Considerations When Choosing a Web Application Firewall - Security Boulevard
The Complexities of Cyber Insurance | Cyber Risk Management (telos.com)
Unified Endpoint Management: A Powerful Tool for Your Cyber security Arsenal | CSO Online
GitLab’s new security feature uses AI to explain vulnerabilities to developers | TechCrunch
Google Authenticator finally, mercifully adds account syncing for two-factor codes - The Verge
The Needs of a Modernized SOC for Hybrid Cloud (securityintelligence.com)
Rethinking the effectiveness of current authentication initiatives - Help Net Security
Google will add End-to-End encryption to Google Authenticator (bleepingcomputer.com)
Google 2FA Syncing Feature Could Put Your Privacy at Risk (darkreading.com)
CISOs struggle to manage risk due to DevSecOps inefficiencies - Help Net Security
Generative AI and security: Balancing performance and risk - Help Net Security
CISA aims to reduce email threats with serial CDR prototype | TechTarget
Threat Actor Names Proliferate, Adding Confusion (darkreading.com)
Reports Published in the Last Week
Other News
The threat from commercial cyber proliferation - NCSC.GOV.UK
Hackers could learn how to send fake terror threats on YouTube, warn experts (telegraph.co.uk)
Government launches new cyber security measures to tackle ever growing threats - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Attackers are logging in instead of breaking in - Help Net Security
38 Countries Take Part in NATO's 2023 Locked Shields Cyber Exercise - SecurityWeek
The White House National Cyber security Strategy Has a Fatal Flaw (darkreading.com)
Threat Actor Names Proliferate, Adding Confusion (darkreading.com)
Sector Specific
Industry specific threat intelligence reports are available.
Contact us to receive tailored reports specific to the industry/sector and geographies you operate in.
· 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 Cyber Threat Briefing 24 February 2023
Black Arrow Cyber Briefing 24 February 2023:
-Employees Bypass Cyber Security Guidance to Achieve Business Objectives
-Three Quarters of Businesses Braced for Serious Email Attack this Year
-The Cost of Living Crisis is Triggering a Wave of Workplace Crime
-Fighting Ransomware with Cyber Security Audits
-Record Levels of Fraud Impacting 90% of Payment Compliance Teams
-CISOs Struggle with Stress and Limited Resources
-Cyber Threats and Regulations Mount for Financial Industry
-HardBit Ransomware Wants Insurance Details to Set the Perfect Price
-Social Engineering is Becoming Increasingly Sophisticated
-A Fifth of Brits Have Fallen Victim to Online Scammers
-Cyber Attacks Hit Data Centres to Steal Information From Companies
-Phishing Fears Ramp Up on Email, Collaboration Platforms
-The War in Ukraine has Shaken up the Cyber Criminal Eco-system
-Police Bust €41m Email Scam Gang
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
Employees Bypass Cyber Security Guidance to Achieve Business Objectives
Researcher Gartner predicts that by 2025, lack of talent or human failure will be responsible for over half of significant cyber incidents. In a survey conducted by Gartner it was found that 69% of employees had bypassed their organisations cyber security guidance in the previous 12 months and 74% said they would bypass cyber security guidance if it helped them or their team achieve a business objective.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/02/24/bypass-cybersecurity-guidance/
Three Quarters of Businesses Braced for Serious Email Attack this Year
According to a survey conducted by security provider Vanson Bourne, 76% of cyber security professionals predict that an email related attack will have serious consequences for their organisation in the coming year. The survey found that 82% of companies reported a higher volume of email in 2022 compared with 2021 and 2020 and 74% had said email-based threats had risen over the last 12 months. In addition, a worrying 91% had seen attempts to steal or use their email domain in an attack.
The Cost of Living Crisis is Triggering a Wave of Workplace Crime
Almost 6,000 people were caught stealing from their employer in 2022 according to insurance provider Zurich with the firms facing an average loss of £140,000. Zurich have said “As cost of living pressures mount, employee theft has significantly increased, suggesting some workers could be turning to desperate measures to make ends meet”.
Fighting Ransomware with Cyber Security Audits
With the ever increasing number of devices and distributed environments, it’s easy for organisations to lose track of open IP addresses, administrator accounts and infrastructure configurations; all of this creates an increase in opportunities for threat actors to deploy ransomware. By conducting audits of IT assets, organisations can identify the data they hold and reduce the risk of forgotten devices. The need for auditing of an organisations assets is reinforced where a survey conducted by research provider Enterprise Strategy Group found that nearly 70% of respondents had suffered at least one exploit that started with an unknown, unmanaged, or poorly managed Internet-facing IT asset.
https://www.trendmicro.com/en_us/ciso/23/b/cybersecurity-audit.html
Record Levels of Fraud Impacting 90% of Payment Compliance Teams
New research from research provider VIXIO has found that 90% of payment company compliance teams are frequently overwhelmed and increased fraud was a particular concern for teams in the UK.
CISOs Struggle with Stress and Limited Resources
A survey from security provider Cynet has found that 94% of CISOs report being stressed at work, with 65% admitting that this work stress has compromised their ability to protect their organisation. Furthermore, the survey found all respondents said they needed additional resources to adequately cope with current cyber challenges. Amongst some of the key findings were 77% of CISOs believing that a lack of resources had led to important security initiatives falling to the wayside.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/02/23/cisos-work-related-stress/
Cyber Threats and Regulations Mount for Financial Industry
Nation-state adversaries, new reporting regulations, and a fast-paced threat landscape mean that financial services and technology firms need to bolster their security posture. For example, last year a report conducted by the Financial Services Information Sharing and Analysis Center (FS-ISAC) and security provider Akamai found that distributed denial-of-service attacks (DDoS) attacks rose 73% more for European financial institutions compared to the previous year. This combination of attacks is followed by an increase in regulations such as the requirement to report breaches to the European Authorities to satisfy the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Such increase has caused financial institutions to bolster their security, with a survey conducted by security provider Contrast finding 72% of financial organisations plan to increase their investment in the security of their applications and 64% mandated cyber security requirements for their vendors.
https://www.darkreading.com/risk/cyberthreats-regulations-mount-for-financial-industry
HardBit Ransomware Wants Insurance Details to Set the Perfect Price
Operators of a ransomware threat known as Hardbit are trying to negotiate ransom payments so that they would be covered by victim’s insurance companies. Typically, the threat actor tries to convince the victim that it is in their interest to disclose their insurance details so that the threat actor can adjust their demands so that insurance would cover it.
Social Engineering is Becoming Increasingly Sophisticated
The rapid development of deepfake technology is providing an increase in the sophistication of social engineering attacks. Deepfake technology refers to products created through artificial intelligence, which could allow an individual to impersonate another with likeness and voice during a video conversation. The accessibility of such technology has allowed threat actors to conduct more sophisticated campaigns, including the replication of the voice of a company executive.
https://securityaffairs.com/142487/hacking/social-engineering-increasingly-sophisticated.html
A Fifth of Brits Have Fallen Victim to Online Scammers
Security founder F-Secure have found that a fifth of Brits had fallen victim to digital scammers in the past, yet a quarter had no security controls to protect themselves. When providing a reason for the lack of security, 60% said they found cyber security too complex. This is worrying for organisations who need to ensure these low levels of security awareness are not displayed in the corporate environment.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/fifth-brits-have-victim-online/
Cyber Attacks Hit Data Centres to Steal Information from Companies
Cyber attacks targeting multiple data centres globally have resulted in the exfiltration of information relating to companies who used them. In addition, attackers have been seen to publish access credentials relating to these attacks on the dark web. This malicious activity reinforces the need for organisations to be aware of and properly manage their supply chain.
Phishing Fears Ramp Up on Email, Collaboration Platforms
Three quarters of organisations are expecting a serious impact from an email-based attack and with the rapid growth and expansion of collaboration tools such as Microsoft Teams, it’s expected that these will also be used as a vector for threat actors. Combined with the emergence of Chat-GPT, the landscape provides an increasing amount of opportunities for threat actors.
The War in Ukraine has Shaken up the Cyber Criminal Eco-System
One year after Russia invaded Ukraine, the war continues -- including an ever-evolving digital component that has implications for the future of cyber security around the world. Among other things, the war in Ukraine has upended the Eastern European cyber criminal ecosystem, according to cyber security experts from Google, shaking up the way ransomware attacks are playing out. Google later explained that “Lines are blurring between financially motivated and government-backed attackers in Eastern Europe”.
Police Bust €41m Email Scam Gang
A coordinated police operation spanning multiple countries led to the dismantling of a criminal network which was responsible for tens of millions in Business Email Compromise (BEC) losses. In one of the attacks the gang used social engineering to target the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of a real estate developer, defrauding them of 38 million euros.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/police-bust-41m-bec-gang/
Threats
Ransomware, Extortion and Destructive Attacks
HardBit ransomware wants insurance details to set the perfect price (bleepingcomputer.com)
An Overview of the Global Impact of Ransomware Attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
Fight Ransomware with a Cyber security Audit (trendmicro.com)
Time to Deploy Ransomware Drops 94% - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Majority of Ransomware Attacks Last Year Exploited Old Bugs (darkreading.com)
A Deep Dive into the Evolution of Ransomware Part 1 (trendmicro.com)
A Deep Dive into the Evolution of Ransomware Part 2 (trendmicro.com)
Guardian staff forced to work out of former brewery after ransomware attack (telegraph.co.uk)
Royal Ransomware Expands Attacks by Targeting Linux ESXi Servers (trendmicro.com)
Chip company loses $250m after ransomware hits supply chain (malwarebytes.com)
GoAnywhere zero-day opened door to Clop ransomware (malwarebytes.com)
Derivatives market still hit by fallout from Ion Markets cyber attack | Financial Times (ft.com)
Dutch Police arrest three ransomware actors extorting €2.5 million (bleepingcomputer.com)
IBM: Ransomware defenders showing signs of improvement | TechTarget
ESXiArgs Ransomware Has Spread to 500 New Targets in Europe. Will there be More? - MSSP Alert
Ukraine Suffered More Wiper Malware in 2022 Than Anywhere, Ever | WIRED
Food giant Dole hit by ransomware, halts North American production temporarily (bitdefender.com)
Wiper Malware Surges Ahead, Spiking 53% in 3 Months (darkreading.com)
Trellix Report: LockBit 3.0 Ransomware "Most Aggressive" with Demands - MSSP Alert
Israel's Top Tech University Targeted by DarkBit Ransomware (darkreading.com)
Lockbit gang hit Portuguese municipal water utility Aguas do Porto-Security Affairs
Student Medical Records Exposed After LAUSD Breach (darkreading.com)
Phishing & Email Based Attacks
Three-quarters of businesses braced for ‘serious’ email attack this year | CSO Online
Phishing Fears Ramp Up on Email, Collaboration Platforms (darkreading.com)
Big rise in 'email thread hijacking' by cyber criminals (rte.ie)
Smishing, vishing and whaling: How phishing scams are evolving | The Star
Microsoft Outlook flooded with spam due to broken email filters (bleepingcomputer.com)
Coinbase Attack Linked to Group Behind Last Year's Twilio, Cloudflare Hacks - SecurityWeek
BEC – Business Email Compromise
Google Translate Helps BEC Groups Scam Companies in Any Language (darkreading.com)
Police Bust €38m BEC Gang - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Other Social Engineering; Smishing, Vishing, etc
Social engineering, deception becomes increasingly sophisticated-Security Affairs
Smishing, vishing and whaling: How phishing scams are evolving | The Star
Coinbase cyber attack targeted employees with fake SMS alert (bleepingcomputer.com)
2FA/MFA
Malware
Google Ads Spreads FatalRAT Malware, Disguised As Popular Apps (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Researchers unearth Windows backdoor that’s unusually stealthy | Ars Technica
Researchers warn of 'Havoc' command and control tool • The Register
New WhiskerSpy malware delivered via trojanized codec installer (bleepingcomputer.com)
Frebniis malware abuses Microsoft IIS feature to create a backdoor-Security Affairs
New Stealc malware emerges with a wide set of stealing capabilities (bleepingcomputer.com)
Experts Warn of RambleOn Android Malware Targeting South Korean Journalists (thehackernews.com)
Hackers use fake ChatGPT apps to push Windows, Android malware (bleepingcomputer.com)
Unanswered Questions Cloud the Recent Targeting of an Asian Research Org (darkreading.com)
Hydrochasma Threat Group Bombards Targets with Slew of Commodity Malware, Tools (darkreading.com)
Wiper Malware Surges Ahead, Spiking 53% in 3 Months (darkreading.com)
Russian national accused of developing, selling malware appears in US. court | CyberScoop
Defenders on high alert as backdoor attacks become more common - Help Net Security
Mobile
Five easy steps to keep your smartphone safe from hackers | ZDNET
Apple Updates Advisories as Security Firm Discloses New Class of Vulnerabilities - SecurityWeek
Accidental WhatsApp account takeovers? It's a thing • The Register
Google will boost Android security through firmware hardening (bleepingcomputer.com)
Denial of Service/DoS/DDOS
Internet of Things – IoT
Data Breaches/Leaks
Sensitive US military emails exposed by unsecured Azure server • The Register
DNA testing firm inks settlement after forgotten DB break-in • The Register
Activision did not notify employees of data breach for months | TechCrunch
GoDaddy blasted for breach response | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
TELUS investigating leak of stolen source code, employee data (bleepingcomputer.com)
Organised Crime & Criminal Actors
The war in Ukraine has shaken up the cyber criminal ecosystem, Google says | ZDNET
Russian cyber crime alliances upended by Ukraine invasion • The Register
Spain Orders Extradition of British Alleged Hacker to US. - SecurityWeek
Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs/Blockchain
Norwegian police recover $5.9m crypto stolen by North Korea • The Register
Coinbase Attack Linked to Group Behind Last Year's Twilio, Cloudflare Hacks - SecurityWeek
Coinbase breached by social engineers, employee data stolen – Naked Security (sophos.com)
‘Nevada Group’ hackers target thousands of computer networks | Financial Times (ft.com)
Pirated Final Cut Pro infects your Mac with cryptomining malware (bleepingcomputer.com)
SBF faces four additional charges in FTX collapse case • The Register
Insider Risk and Insider Threats
Employees bypass cyber security guidance to achieve business objectives - Help Net Security
Insider Threats Don't Mean Insiders Are Threatening (darkreading.com)
Insider threats must be top-of-mind for organisations facing layoffs - Help Net Security
Fraud, Scams & Financial Crime
The cost of living crisis is triggering a wave of workplace crime - here's how | UK News | Sky News
FTC: Americans lost $8.8 billion to fraud in 2022 after 30% surge (bleepingcomputer.com)
Europol busts ‘CEO fraud’ gang that stole €38M in a few days (bleepingcomputer.com)
Criminals are flooding the internet with fake advice scams and adware, so watch out | TechRadar
City Fund Managers Jailed for £8m Fraud - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Scammers Mimic ChatGPT to Steal Business Credentials (darkreading.com)
SBF faces four additional charges in FTX collapse case • The Register
Insurance
Supply Chain and Third Parties
Chip company loses $250m after ransomware hits supply chain (malwarebytes.com)
3 Steps to Automate Your Third-Party Risk Management Program (thehackernews.com)
Software Supply Chain
Cloud/SaaS
Google Cloud CISO Phil Venables: Zero trust ‘essential’ to protect the cloud | VentureBeat
Four steps SMBs can take to close SaaS security gaps - Help Net Security
Why Are My Employees Integrating With So Many Unsanctioned SaaS Apps? (darkreading.com)
Four Reasons Why Web Security is as Important as Endpoint Security for MSSP Clients - MSSP Alert
Containers
Encryption
Encrypted Traffic, Once Thought Safe, Now Responsible For Most Cyberthreats (darkreading.com)
AI Helps Crack NIST-Recommended Post-Quantum Encryption Algorithm - SecurityWeek
API
Open Source
Passwords, Credential Stuffing & Brute Force Attacks
Social Media
Twitter Limits SMS-Based 2-Factor Authentication to Blue Subscribers Only (thehackernews.com)
7 Tips for Mitigating Cyber-Risks to Your Corporate Social Media (darkreading.com)
Russia's information war against Ukraine went stealth after Meta crackdown | CyberScoop
Malvertising
Training, Education and Awareness
Parental Controls and Child Safety
Regulations, Fines and Legislation
Governance, Risk and Compliance
Employees bypass cyber security guidance to achieve business objectives - Help Net Security
The financial system is alarmingly vulnerable to cyber attack | Financial Times (ft.com)
Cyber threats, Regulations Mount for Financial Industry (darkreading.com)
Fight Ransomware with a Cyber security Audit (trendmicro.com)
Evolving Threat Landscape Leading to Cyber security Pro “Burnout,” Study Says - MSSP Alert
Benchmarking your cyber security budget in 2023 | VentureBeat
7 reasons to avoid investing in cyber insurance | CSO Online
5 top threats from 2022 most likely to strike in 2023 | CSO Online
Cyber arms race, economic headwinds among top macro cyber security risks for 2023 | CSO Online
Malicious actors push the limits of attack vectors - Help Net Security
Data Protection
Careers, Working in Cyber and Information Security
CISOs struggle with stress and limited resources - Help Net Security
Complexity, volume of cyber attacks lead to burnout in security teams - Help Net Security
Law Enforcement Action and Take Downs
Police Bust €38m BEC Gang - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Spain Orders Extradition of British Alleged Hacker to US. - SecurityWeek
Russian national accused of developing, selling malware appears in US. court | CyberScoop
Dutch Police arrest three ransomware actors extorting €2.5 million (bleepingcomputer.com)
Privacy, Surveillance and Mass Monitoring
Artificial Intelligence
MLOps Security AI power analysis breaks post-quantum security algorithm ... (eenewseurope.com)
AI Helps Crack NIST-Recommended Post-Quantum Encryption Algorithm - SecurityWeek
Hackers use fake ChatGPT apps to push Windows, Android malware (bleepingcomputer.com)
Misinformation, Disinformation and Propaganda
Spyware, Cyber Espionage & Cyber Warfare, including Russian Invasion of Ukraine
ENISA and CERT-EU warns Chinese APTs targeting EU organisations-Security Affairs
Russian cybercrime alliances upended by Ukraine invasion • The Register
Musk restricts Starlink for Ukraine, cites World War III | Fortune
America Loves Spying by Balloon, Just Like China (gizmodo.com)
How Ukraine War Has Shaped US Planning for a China Conflict - SecurityWeek
Russia blames 'hackers' for fake missile strike alerts • The Register
Ukraine says Russian hackers backdoored govt websites in 2021 (bleepingcomputer.com)
Russia's information war against Ukraine went stealth after Meta crackdown | CyberScoop
British Army leads Western Europe’s largest cyber warfare exercise | The British Army (mod.uk)
Nation State Actors
ENISA and CERT-EU warns Chinese APTs targeting EU organisations-Security Affairs
The war in Ukraine has shaken up the cybercriminal ecosystem, Google says | ZDNET
Russian cybercrime alliances upended by Ukraine invasion • The Register
Norwegian police recover $5.9m crypto stolen by North Korea • The Register
America Loves Spying by Balloon, Just Like China (gizmodo.com)
EU Organisations Warned of Chinese APT Attacks - SecurityWeek
How Ukraine War Has Shaped US Planning for a China Conflict - SecurityWeek
Earth Zhulong Familiar Patterns Target Southeast Asian Firms (trendmicro.com)
Earth Kitsune Delivers New WhiskerSpy Backdoor via Watering Hole Attack (trendmicro.com)
Putin Speech Broadcast Temporarily Stopped By DDoS Attack (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Ukraine Suffered More Wiper Malware in 2022 Than Anywhere, Ever | WIRED
Lazarus Group Likely Using New WinorDLL64 Backdoor to Exfiltrate Sensitive Data (thehackernews.com)
Ukraine says Russian hackers backdoored govt websites in 2021 (bleepingcomputer.com)
Russia's information war against Ukraine went stealth after Meta crackdown | CyberScoop
Vulnerability Management
CVSS system criticized for failure to address real-world impact | The Daily Swig (portswigger.net)
Majority of Ransomware Attacks Last Year Exploited Old Bugs (darkreading.com)
At least one open source vulnerability found in 84% of code bases: Report | CSO Online
Vulnerabilities
US Cybersecurity Agency CISA Adds Three New Vulnerabilities in KEV Catalog (thehackernews.com)
SolarWinds Announces Upcoming Patches for High-Severity Vulnerabilities - SecurityWeek
A New Kind of Bug Spells Trouble for iOS and macOS Security | WIRED
VMware Patches Critical Vulnerability in Carbon Black App Control Product (thehackernews.com)
PoC exploit code for critical Fortinet FortiNAC bug released online-Security Affairs
Newly Disclosed Vulnerability Exposes EOL Arris Routers to Attacks - SecurityWeek
Emergency VMware ESXi update fixes Windows Server 2022 VM boot issues (bleepingcomputer.com)
Exploitation attempts observed against Fortinet FortiNAC flaw | TechTarget
Researchers find hidden vulnerabilities in hundreds of Docker containers - Help Net Security
Tools and Controls
Despite Breach, LastPass Demonstrates the Power of Password Management (darkreading.com)
Google Cloud CISO Phil Venables: Zero trust ‘essential’ to protect the cloud | VentureBeat
10 Best Network Security Solutions & Providers - 2023 (cybersecuritynews.com)
Why privileged access management should be critical to your security strategy | VentureBeat
The battle for data security now falls on developers; here’s how they can win | VentureBeat
Zero trust, XDR prominent in Gartner’s Hype Cycle for Endpoint Security | VentureBeat
Advantages of the AWS Security Maturity Model (trendmicro.com)
Other News
Army leads Western Europe’s largest cyber warfare exercise | The British Army (mod.uk)
NSA shares guidance on how to secure your home network (bleepingcomputer.com)
Encrypted Traffic, Once Thought Safe, Now Responsible For Most Cyberthreats (darkreading.com)
Malicious actors push the limits of attack vectors - Help Net Security
Researchers Hijack Popular NPM Package with Millions of Downloads (thehackernews.com)
Justice Department Debuts 'Disruptive Technology Strike Force' (gizmodo.com)
How to Detect New Threats via Suspicious Activities (thehackernews.com)
At least one open source vulnerability found in 84% of code bases: Report | CSO Online
Microsoft urges Exchange admins to remove some antivirus exclusions (bleepingcomputer.com)
Sector Specific
Industry specific threat intelligence reports are available.
Contact us to receive tailored reports specific to the industry/sector and geographies you operate in.
· 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 Cyber Threat Briefing 17 February 2023
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 17 February 2023:
-High Risk Users May be Few, but the Threat They Pose is Huge
-The Cost of Cyber Security Insurance is Soaring so Firms Need to Take Prevention More Seriously
-Cyber Attacks Worldwide Increased to an All-Time Record Breaking High
-Most Organisations Make Cyber Security Decisions Without Insights
-Ransomware Attackers Finding New Ways to Weaponise Old Vulnerabilities
-Are Executives Fluent in IT Security Speak? 5 Reasons Why the Communication Gap is Wider Than You Think
-Business Email Compromise Groups Target Firms with Multilingual Impersonation Attacks
-EU Countries Told to Step up Defence Against State Hackers
-Cyber Criminals Exploit Fear and Urgency to Trick Consumers
-How to Manage Third Party and Supply Chain Cyber Security Risks that are Too Costly to Ignore
-Russian Spear Phishing Campaign Escalates Efforts Towards Critical UK, US and European Targets
-5 Biggest Risks of Using Third Party Managed Service Providers
-Cyber Crime as a Service: A Subscription Based Model in the Wrong Hands
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
High Risk Users May be Few, but the Threat They Pose is Huge
High risk users represent approximately 10% of the worker population according to research provider, Elevate Security research. The research found that high risk users were responsible for 41% of all simulated phishing clicks, 30% of all real-world phishing clicks, 54% of all secure-browsing incidents and 42% of all malware events. This is worrying, considering the rise in sophisticated targeted phishing campaigns.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/02/16/high-risk-behavior/
The Cost of Cyber Security Insurance is Soaring so Firms Need to Take Prevention More Seriously
State-backed cyber attacks are on the rise, but they are not raising the level of alarm that they should in the corporate world. Unfortunately, this is not a productive way of thinking. Come the end of March, insurance provider Lloyds will no longer cover damage from cyber attacks carried out by state or state-backed groups. In the worst cases, this reduced insurance coverage could exacerbate the trend of companies taking a passive approach toward state-backed attacks as they feel there is now really nothing they can do to protect themselves. The uncertainty however, could be the motivation for companies to take the threat of state-backed attacks more seriously.
Cyber Attacks Worldwide Increased to an All-Time Record-Breaking High, Report Shows
According to a report by security provider Check Point, cyber attacks rose 38% in 2022 compared to the previous year. Some of the key trends in the report included an increase in the number of cloud-based networking attacks, with a 48% rise and non-state affiliated hacktivist groups becoming more organised and effective than ever before. Additionally, ransomware is becoming more difficult to attribute and track and extra focus should be placed on exfiltration detection.
Most Organisations Make Cyber Security Decisions Without Insights
A report by security provider Mandiant found some worrying results when it came to organisational understanding of threat actors. Some of the key findings include, 79% of respondents stating that most of their cyber security decisions are made without insight into the treat actors targeting them, 79% believing their organisation could focus more time and energy on identifying critical security trends, 67% believing senior leadership teams underestimate the cyber threats posed to their organisation and finally, 47% of respondents felt that they could not prove to senior leadership that their organisation has a highly effective cyber security program.
Ransomware Attackers Finding New Ways to Weaponise Old Vulnerabilities
Ransomware attackers are finding new ways to exploit organisations’ security weaknesses by weaponising old vulnerabilities. A report by security provider Cyber Security Works had found that 76% of the vulnerabilities currently being exploited were first discovered between 2010-2019.
Are Executives Fluent in IT Security Speak? 5 Reasons Why the Communication Gap is Wider Than You Think
Using data from two different reports conducted by security provider Kaspersky, the combined data showed some worrying results. Some of the results include 98% of respondents revealing they faced at least one IT security miscommunication that regularly leads to bad consequences, 62% of managers revealing miscommunication led to at least one cyber security incident, 42% of business leaders wanting their IT security team to better communicate and 34% of C-level executives struggle to speak about adopting new security solutions.
Business Email Compromise Groups Target Firms with Multilingual Impersonation Attacks
Security providers Abnormal Security have identified two Business Email Compromise (BEC) groups “Midnight Hedgehog” and “Mandarin Capybara” which are conducting impersonation attacks in at least 13 different languages. Like many payment fraud attacks, finance managers or other executives are often targeted. In a separate report by Abnormal Security, it was found that business email compromise (BEC) attacks increased by more than 81% during 2022.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/bec-groups-multilingual/
EU Countries Told to Step up Defence Against State Hackers
European states have raced to protect their energy infrastructure from physical attacks but the European Systemic Risk Board (ESRB) said more needed to be done against cyber warfare against financial institutions and the telecommunications networks and power grids they rely on. "The war in Ukraine, the broader geopolitical landscape and the increasing use of cyber attacks have significantly heightened the cyber threat environment," the ESRB said in a report. In addition, the ESRB highlight an increased risk of cyber attacks on the EU financial system, suggesting that stress tests and impact analyses should be carried out to identify weaknesses and measure resilience.
Cyber Criminals Exploit Fear and Urgency to Trick Consumers
Threats using social engineering to steal money, such as refund and invoice fraud and tech support scams, increased during Q4 of 2022 according to a report by software provider Avast. “At the end of 2022, we have seen an increase in human-centred threats, such as scams tricking people into thinking their computer is infected, or that they have been charged for goods they didn’t order. It’s human nature to react to urgency, fear and try to regain control of issues, and that’s where cyber criminals succeed” Avast commented.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/02/13/cybercriminals-exploit-fear-urgency-trick-consumers/
How to Manage Third Party and Supply Chain Cyber Security Risks that are Too Costly to Ignore
Many organisations have experienced that “after the breach” feeling — the moment they realise they have to tell customers their personal information may have been compromised because one of the organisations’ vendors had a data breach. Such situations involve spending significant amount of money and time to fix a problem caused by a third party. An organisation’s ability to handle third-party cyber risk proactively depends on its risk management strategies.
https://techcrunch.com/2023/02/10/why-third-party-cybersecurity-risks-are-too-costly-to-ignore/
Russian Spear Phishing Campaign Escalates Efforts Towards Critical UK, US and European Targets
Following the advisory from the NCSC, it is clear that Russian state-sponsored hackers have become increasingly sophisticated at launching phishing attacks against critical targets in the UK, US and Europe over the last 12 months. The attacks included the creation of fake personas, supported by social media accounts, fake profiles and academic papers, to lure targets into replying to sophisticated phishing emails. In some cases, the bad actor may never leverage the account to send emails from and only use it to make decisions based on intelligence collection.
5 Biggest Risks of Using Third Party Managed Service Providers
As business processes become more complex, companies are turning to third parties to boost their ability to provide critical services from cloud storage to data management to security. It’s often more efficient and less expensive to contract out work. But it does present risks. 5 of the biggest risks to be considered are: indirect cyber attacks, financial risks from incident costs, reputational damage, geopolitical risk and regulatory compliance risk.
Cyber Crime as a Service: A Subscription Based Model in the Wrong Hands
Arguably nothing in tech has changes the landscape more than ‘as a Service’ offerings, the subscription-based IT service delivery model, in fact, the ‘as a Service’ offering has made its way into the cyber crime landscape. And cyber crime, for its part, has evolved beyond a nefarious hobby; today it’s a means of earning for cyber criminals. Organised cyber crime services are available for hire, particularly to those lacking resources and hacking expertise but willing to buy their way into cyber criminal activities. Underground cyber crime markets have thus emerged, selling cyber attack tools and services ranging from malware injection to botnet tools, Denial of Service and targeted spyware services.
https://www.splunk.com/en_us/blog/learn/cybercrime-as-a-service.html
Threats
Ransomware, Extortion and Destructive Attacks
Ransomware attackers finding new ways to weaponize old vulnerabilities | VentureBeat
US, UK slap sanctions on Russians linked to Conti and more • The Register
Clop ransomware claims it breached 130 orgs using GoAnywhere zero-day (bleepingcomputer.com)
Members of Russian cyber crime network unmasked by US and UK authorities - The Verge
Over 500 ESXiArgs Ransomware infections in one day in Europe-Security Affairs
New ESXi ransomware strain spreads, foils decryption tools | TechTarget
North Korea Using Healthcare Ransomware To Fund More Hacking (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Cisco Talos spots new MortalKombat ransomware attacks | TechTarget
Hackers Target Israel’s Technion Demanding Huge Sum In Bitcoin - I24NEWS
City of Oakland systems offline after ransomware attack (bleepingcomputer.com)
MTU cyber breach: Probe after ransomware attacks 'like a murder investigation' (irishexaminer.com)
MTU data appears on dark web after cyber attack – The Irish Times
Oakland City Services Struggle to Recover From Ransomware Attack (darkreading.com)
Ransomware gang uses new zero-day to steal data on 1 million patients | TechCrunch
City of Oakland issued state of emergency after ransomware attack-Security Affairs
Glasgow Arnold Clark customers at risk after major cyber attack | HeraldScotland
No relief in sight for ransomware attacks on hospitals | TechTarget
Burton Snowboards cancels online orders after 'cyber incident' (bleepingcomputer.com)
Dallas Central Appraisal District paid $170,000 to ransomware attackers (bitdefender.com)
Phishing & Email Based Attacks
NameCheap's email hacked to send Metamask, DHL phishing emails (bleepingcomputer.com)
Spain, US dismantle phishing gang that stole $5 million in a year (bleepingcomputer.com)
BEC – Business Email Compromise
2FA/MFA
Malware
Experts Warn of Surge in Multipurpose Malware - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Microsoft OneNote Abuse for Malware Delivery Surges - Security Week
New TA886 group targets companies with Screenshotter malware-Security Affairs
Novel phishing campaign takes screenshots ahead of payload delivery | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
Great, hackers are now using ChatGPT to generate malware | Digital Trends
Devs targeted by W4SP Stealer malware in malicious PyPi packages (bleepingcomputer.com)
Pepsi distributor blames info-stealing malware for breach • The Register
Malware that can do anything and everything is on the rise - Help Net Security
New stealthy 'Beep' malware focuses heavily on evading detection (bleepingcomputer.com)
Thousands of WordPress sites have been infected by a mystery malware | TechRadar
Beep: New Evasive Malware That Can Escape Under The Radar (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Hackers start using Havoc post-exploitation framework in attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
Malware authors leverage more attack techniques that enable lateral movement | CSO Online
Mobile
Botnets
Denial of Service/DoS/DDOS
Cloudflare blocks record-breaking 71 million RPS DDoS attack (bleepingcomputer.com)
87% of largest DDoS attacks in Q4 targeted telecoms: Lumen (fiercetelecom.com)
The Tor network hit by wave of DDoS attacks for at least 7 months-Security Affairs
Internet of Things – IoT
Digital burglaries: The threat from your smart home devices | Fox News
Mirai V3G4 botnet exploits 13 flaws to target IoT devices-Security Affairs
New Mirai malware variant infects Linux devices to build DDoS botnet (bleepingcomputer.com)
Data Breaches
MP’s laptop and iPad stolen from pub in 'worrying' security breach | Metro News
Reddit was hit with a phishing attack. How it responded is a lesson for everyone | ZDNET
Reddit Hack Shows Limits of MFA, Strengths of Security Training (darkreading.com)
Highmark data breach affecting about 300,000 members exposed personal information to hackers – WPXI
Gulp! Pepsi hack sees personal information stolen by data-stealing malware (bitdefender.com)
Nearly 50 million Americans impacted by health data breaches in 2022 (chiefhealthcareexecutive.com)
My Password Manager was Hacked! How to Prevent a Catastrophe (bleepingcomputer.com)
After apparent hack, data from Australian tech giant Atlassian dumped online | CyberScoop
Atlassian: Leaked Data Stolen via Third-Party App (darkreading.com)
Health info for 1 million patients stolen using critical GoAnywhere vulnerability | Ars Technica
Scandinavian Airlines says cyber attack caused passenger data leak (bleepingcomputer.com)
Organised Crime & Criminal Actors
Cyber crime as a Service: A Subscription-based Model in The Wrong Hands | Splunk
A Hacker’s Mind — how the elites exploit the system | Financial Times (ft.com)
Dark Web Revenue Down Dramatically After Hydra's Demise (darkreading.com)
Russian hacker convicted of $90 million hack-to-trade charges (bleepingcomputer.com)
Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs/Blockchain
Enigma, Vector, and TgToxic: The New Threats to Cryptocurrency Users (thehackernews.com)
Lazarus hackers use new mixer to hide $100 million in stolen crypto (bleepingcomputer.com)
451 PyPI packages install Chrome extensions to steal crypto (bleepingcomputer.com)
Insider Risk and Insider Threats
Fraud, Scams & Financial Crime
Russian IT biz owner made $90M from stolen financial info • The Register
Refund and Invoice Scams Surge in Q4 - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Russian Hackers Disrupt NATO Earthquake Relief Operations (darkreading.com)
Romance scam targets security researcher, hilarity ensues • The Register
10 signs that scammers have you in their sights | WeLiveSecurity
AML/CFT/Sanctions
Insurance
Dark Web
Supply Chain and Third Parties
How to manage third-party cyber security risks that are too costly to ignore | TechCrunch
5 biggest risks of using third-party services providers | CSO Online
Cloud/SaaS
Cloud security: Where do CSP and client responsibilities begin and end? | VentureBeat
Application and cloud security is a shared responsibility - Help Net Security
Attack Surface Management
Open Source
Configuration Issues in SaltStack IT Tool Put Enterprises at Risk (darkreading.com)
Solving open-source security — from Alpha to Omega | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
New Mirai malware variant infects Linux devices to build DDoS botnet (bleepingcomputer.com)
Passwords, Credential Stuffing & Brute Force Attacks
Eek! You Can Steal Passwords From This Password Manager Using the Notepad App | PCMag
Eurostar forces 'password resets' — then fails and locks users out (bleepingcomputer.com)
My Password Manager was Hacked! How to Prevent a Catastrophe (bleepingcomputer.com)
Social Media
Metaverse Adds New Dimensions to Web 3.0 Cyber security | TechRepublic
Elon Musk Seems to Think His Own Employees Are Shadowbanning Him (gizmodo.com)
Malvertising
Training, Education and Awareness
High-risk users may be few, but the threat they pose is huge - Help Net Security
Reddit Hack Shows Limits of MFA, Strengths of Security Training (darkreading.com)
Regulations, Fines and Legislation
The Online Safety Bill: An attack on encryption (element.io)
As regulations skyrocket, is compliance even possible anymore? - Help Net Security
Governance, Risk and Compliance
Security buyers lack insight into threats, attackers, report finds | Computer Weekly
Cyber attacks Worldwide Increased to an All-Time High, Check Point Research Reveals - MSSP Alert
Actionable intelligence is the key to better security outcomes - Help Net Security
Build Cyber Resiliency With These Security Threat-Mitigation Considerations (darkreading.com)
Evolving cyber attacks, alert fatigue creating DFIR burnout, regulatory risk | CSO Online
As regulations skyrocket, is compliance even possible anymore? - Help Net Security
Storage security for compliance and cyberwar in 2023 • The Register
Backup and Recovery
Careers, Working in Cyber and Information Security
Get hired in cyber security: Expert tips for job seekers - Help Net Security
3 Ways CISOs Can Lead Effectively and Avoid Burnout (darkreading.com)
Cyber security Jobs Remain Secure Despite Recession Fears (darkreading.com)
Law Enforcement Action and Take Downs
Members of Russian cyber crime network unmasked by US and UK authorities - The Verge
Spain, US dismantle phishing gang that stole $5 million in a year (bleepingcomputer.com)
Privacy, Surveillance and Mass Monitoring
Artificial Intelligence
Russian hackers are trying to break into ChatGPT, says Check Point | ZDNET
Cyber criminals Bypass ChatGPT Restrictions to Generate Malicious Content - Check Point Software
Great, hackers are now using ChatGPT to generate malware | Digital Trends
Eric Schmidt Is Building the Perfect AI War-Fighting Machine | WIRED
A.I. in the military could be a game changer in warfare | Fortune US issues declaration on responsible use of AI in the military | Reuters
Misinformation, Disinformation and Propaganda
Spyware, Cyber Espionage & Cyber Warfare, including Russian Invasion of Ukraine
EU countries told to step up defence against state hackers | Reuters
Britain must ‘wake up’ to China security challenges, ex-MI6 head says | The Independent
Hacks, leaks and wipers: Google analyses a year of Russian cyber attacks on Ukraine | Cyber scoop
Google: Russia continues to set cyber sights on NATO nations | TechTarget
US shoots down ‘high-altitude object’ above Alaska | Financial Times (ft.com)
Military Organizations in Pakistan Targeted With Sophisticated Espionage Tool - security Week
SpaceX curbed Ukraine's use of Starlink terminals - Militarnyi
US shoots down ‘octagonal’ flying object near military sites in Michigan | US news | The Guardian
Six companies join US entity list after Chinese spy balloon • The Register
How Alan Turing still casts his genius in the age of cyberwar | Metro News
US warns its citizens in Russia to get out immediately over security fears | Euronews
Russian Hackers Disrupt NATO Earthquake Relief Operations (darkreading.com)
Ukraine’s use of SpaceX satellites risks starting World War Three, says Elon Musk (telegraph.co.uk)
Eric Schmidt Is Building the Perfect AI War-Fighting Machine | WIRED
Albanian gangs set up hundreds of spy cameras to keep ahead of police | Financial Times (ft.com)
A.I. in the military could be a game changer in warfare | Fortune
Chinese cameras leave British police vulnerable to spying, says watchdog | Espionage | The Guardian
China-based cyber espionage actor seen targeting South America | CSO Online
The Lessons From Cyberwar, Cyber-in-War and Ukraine - security Week
Storage security for compliance and cyberwar in 2023 • The Register
Nation State Actors
EU countries told to step up defence against state hackers | Reuters
Britain must ‘wake up’ to China security challenges, ex-MI6 head says | The Independent
Hacks, leaks and wipers: Google analyses a year of Russian cyber attacks on Ukraine | CyberScoop
Google: Russia continues to set cyber sights on NATO nations | TechTarget
Military Organizations in Pakistan Targeted With Sophisticated Espionage Tool - Security Week
MagicWeb Mystery Highlights Nobelium Attacker's Sophistication (darkreading.com)
Russian hackers are trying to break into ChatGPT, says Check Point | ZDNET
Six companies join US entity list after Chinese spy balloon • The Register
Lazarus hackers use new mixer to hide $100 million in stolen crypto (bleepingcomputer.com)
Russian Hackers Disrupt NATO Earthquake Relief Operations (darkreading.com)
Chinese Hackers Targeting South American Diplomatic Entities with ShadowPad (thehackernews.com)
Ukraine’s use of SpaceX satellites risks starting World War Three, says Elon Musk (telegraph.co.uk)
Chinese cameras leave British police vulnerable to spying, says watchdog | Espionage | The Guardian
China-based cyber espionage actor seen targeting South America | CSO Online
UK Policing Riddled with Chinese CCTV Cameras - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
A new operating system has been released in Russia! (gizchina.com)
Vulnerability Management
Vulnerabilities
Microsoft Patch Tuesday: 36 RCE bugs, 3 zero-days, 75 CVEs – Naked Security (sophos.com)
Citrix Patches High-Severity Vulnerabilities in Windows, Linux Apps - Security Week
Adobe Plugs Critical Security Holes in Illustrator, After Effects Software - Security Week
Apple releases new fix for iPhone zero-day exploited by hackers | TechCrunch
Firefox Updates Patch 10 High-Severity Vulnerabilities - Security Week
Critical RCE Vulnerability Discovered in ClamAV Open-Source Antivirus Software (thehackernews.com)
Microsoft says Intel driver bug crashes apps on Windows PCs (bleepingcomputer.com)
Serious Security: GnuTLS follows OpenSSL, fixes timing attack bug – Naked Security (sophos.com)
Splunk Enterprise Updates Patch High-Severity Vulnerabilities - Security Week
Dozens of Vulnerabilities Patched in Intel Products - Security Week
High-severity DLP flaw impacts Trellix for Windows | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
Critical Vulnerability Patched in Cisco Security Products - Security Week
Health info for 1 million patients stolen using critical GoAnywhere vulnerability | Ars Technica
Tools and Controls
A CISOs Practical Guide to Storage and Backup Ransomware Resiliency (thehackernews.com)
Combining identity and security strategies to mitigate risks - Help Net Security
Defending against attacks on Azure AD: Goodbye firewall, hello identity protection | CSO Online
Regular Pen Testing Is Key to Resolving Conflict Between SecOps and DevOps (thehackernews.com)
Attack surface management (ASM) is not limited to the surface - Help Net Security
How to filter Security log events for signs of trouble | TechTarget
Sector Specific
Industry specific threat intelligence reports are available.
Contact us to receive tailored reports specific to the industry/sector and geographies you operate in.
· 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
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 10 February 2023
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 10 February 2023:
-Companies Banned from Paying Hackers After Attacks on Royal Mail and Guardian
-Fraud Set to Be Upgraded as a Threat to National Security
-98% of Attacks are Not Reported by Employees to their Employers
-UK Second Most Targeted Nation Behind America for Ransomware
-Financial Institutions are Suffering from Increasingly Sophisticated Cyber Attacks
-An Email Attack Can End Up Costing You Over $1 Million
-Cyber Crime Shows No Signs of Slowing Down
-Surge of Swatting Attacks Targets Corporate Executive and Board Members
-Phishing Surges Ahead, as ChatGPT and Artificial Intelligence Loom
-Pro-Russian Hacktivist Group is Only Getting Started, Experts Warn
-Crypto Investors Lost Nearly $4 Billion to Hackers in 2022
-PayPal and Twitter Abused in Turkey Relief Donation Scams
-Mysterious Leak of Booking.com Reservation Data is Being Used to Scam Customers
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
UK Companies Banned from Paying Ransomware Hackers After Attacks on Royal Mail and Guardian
British companies have been banned from paying ransomware hackers after a spate of attacks on businesses including Royal Mail and the Guardian newspaper.
UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly on Thursday unveiled sanctions on seven Russian hackers linked to a gang called Conti, effectively banning any payments to the group.
Thursday’s sanctions are the first of their kind to be specifically targeted against Russian ransomware gang members.
The actions follow a spate of high-profile attacks on businesses and amid warnings from GCHQ that Russian and Iranian hackers are stepping up actions in Britain.
Fraud Set to Be Upgraded as a Threat to National Security
Fraud is to be reclassified as a threat to national security under UK government plans that will force police chiefs to devote more officers to solving the crime.
It will be elevated to the same status as terrorism, with chief constables mandated to increase resources and combine capabilities in a new effort to combat a fraud epidemic that now accounts for 30 per cent of all crime.
It will be added to the strategic policing requirement, which means that forces will be required by ministers to treat fraud as a major priority alongside not only terrorism, but also public disorder, civil emergencies, serious and organised crime, cyber attacks and child sexual abuse.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/02/04/fraud-set-upgraded-threat-national-security/
98% of Attacks are Not Reported by Employees to their Employers
Cyber attackers are increasingly using social engineering tactics to lure employees into opening malicious emails in an attempt to trick them into providing login credentials, updating bank account information and paying fraudulent invoices. Worryingly, research conducted by security provider Abnormal has found that 98% of attacks on organisations are not reported to the organisation’s security team. In addition to this, the report found that the volume of business email compromise attacks are spiking, growing by 175% over the past two years. The report also found that nearly two-thirds of large enterprises experiencing a supply chain compromise attack in the second half of 2022.
UK Second Most Targeted Nation Behind America for Ransomware
Security research team Kraken Labs released their report earlier this week, which found that of the 101 different countries that registered victims of ransomware, the UK had registered the second highest number of victims behind the US. Currently, there are over 60 ransomware groups, with the top 3 accounting for a third of all ransomware attacks.
Financial Institutions are Suffering from Increasingly Sophisticated Cyber Attacks
This week security provider Contrast Security released its Cyber Bank Heists report, an annual report that exposes cyber security threats facing the financial sector. The report warns financial institutions that security must be a top-of-mind issue amid rising geopolitical tensions, increased destructive attacks utilising wipers and a record-breaking year of zero-day exploits. The report involved a series of interviews with financial sector security leaders and found some notable results. Some of the results include 64% of leaders seeing an increase in application attacks, 72% of respondents planning to increase investment in application security in 2023, 60% of respondents falling victim to destructive attacks and 50% of organisations detecting campaigns which aimed to steal non-public market information.
An Email Attack Can End Up Costing You Over $1 Million
According to a report by security provider Barracuda Network, 75% of organisations had fallen victim to at least one successful email attack in the last 12 months, with those affected facing potential costs of over $1 million for their most expensive attack. The fallout from an email security attack can be significant, with the report finding 44% of those hit had faced significant downtime and business disruption. Additionally financial services greatly impacted by the loss of valuable data (59%) and payments made to attackers (51%). When it came to organisations preparation, 30% felt underprepared when dealing with account takeover and 28% felt unprepared for dealing with business email compromise.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/02/10/email-attack-damage-1-million/
Cyber Crime Shows No Signs of Slowing Down
Global risks from population pressures and climate change to political conflicts and industrial supply chain challenges characterised 2022. Cyber criminals used this turmoil to exploit these trending topics, including significant events, public affairs, social causes, and anywhere else opportunity appeared. According to security researchers at Zscaler TheatLabz, 2023 will see a rise in Crime-as-a-service (CaaS), supply chains will be bigger targets than ever, there will be a greater need for defence in depth as endpoint protection will not be enough and finally, there will be a decrease in the time between initial compromise and the final stage of an attack.
https://www.darkreading.com/zscaler/cybercrime-shows-no-signs-of-slowing-down
Surge of Swatting Attacks Targets Corporate Executive and Board Members
Swatting is the act of deceiving an emergency service with the purpose of the service then sending an emergency response, often armed, to a targeted persons address. Security provider Black Cloak has found that swatting incidents are now beginning to target C-suite executives and corporate board members, with the number of incidents increasing over the last few months. Malicious actors are using information from the dark web, company websites and property records to construct their swatting attacks.
Phishing Surges Ahead, as ChatGPT and Artificial Intelligence Loom
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is making it easier for threat actors to create sophisticated and malicious email campaigns. In their report, security provider Vade found that Q4 of 2022 saw a 36% volume increase in phishing campaigns compared to the previous quarter, with over 278.3 million unique phishing emails in that period. The researchers found in particular, new AI tools such as ChatGPT had made it easy for anyone, including those with limited skills, to conduct a sophisticated phishing campaign. Furthermore, the ability of ChatGPT to tailor phishing to different languages is an area for concern.
https://www.darkreading.com/vulnerabilities-threats/bolstered-chatgpt-tools-phishing-surged-ahead
Pro-Russian Hacktivist Group is Only Getting Started, Experts Warn
A pro-Russian hacktivist group's low-level distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks on US critical infrastructure could be a precursor to more serious cyber attacks, health care and security officials warned this week. A DDoS attack involves overwhelming a targeted service, service or network with traffic in an attempt to disrupt it. Earlier this week Killnet, a politically motivated Russian hacking group, overloaded and took down some US healthcare organisations. The attack came after threatening western healthcare organisations for the continued NATO support of Ukraine.
https://www.axios.com/2023/02/03/killnet-russian-hackers-attacks
Crypto Investors Lost Nearly $4 Billion to Hackers in 2022
Last year marked the worst year on record for cryptocurrency hacks, according to analytic firm Chainalysis’ latest report. According to the report, hackers stole $3.8 billion in 2022, up from $3.3 billion the previous year. De-centralised finance products, which are products that have no requirement for an intermediary or middle-man accounted for about 82% of all crypto stolen.
PayPal and Twitter Abused in Turkey Relief Donation Scams
Scammers are now exploiting the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Turkey and Syria. This time, stealing donations by abusing legitimate platforms such as PayPal and Twitter. It has been identified that multiple scams are running which call for fundraising, linking the victim to a legitimate PayPal site. The money however, is kept by the scammer.
Mysterious Leak of Booking.com Reservation Data is Being Used to Scam Customers
For almost 5 years, Booking.com customers have been on the receiving end of a continuous series of scams that demonstrate criminals have obtained travel plans amongst other personally identifiable information that were provided to Booking.com. The scams have involved users receiving fake emails purporting to be from Booking.com with genuine travel details that victims had provided. These emails contain links to malicious URL’s that look nearly identical to the Booking.com website. These then display the victim’s expected travel information, requiring them to input their card details. Some of the scams have developed and involve scammers sending WhatsApp messages after payment has been made, purporting to be from hotels which have been booked by the victims.
Threats
Ransomware, Extortion and Destructive Attacks
UK/US cyber crime crackdown sees 7 ransomware criminals sanctioned | CSO Online
US, UK Slap Sanctions on Trickbot Cyber crime Gang - SecurityWeek
UK second most targeted nation behind America for Ransomware - IT Security Guru
Hackers who breached ION say ransom paid; company declines comment | Reuters
New Wave of Ransomware Attacks Exploiting VMware Bug to Target ESXi Servers (thehackernews.com)
Massive ESXiArgs ransomware attack targets VMware ESXi servers worldwide (bleepingcomputer.com)
Royal Ransomware adds support for encrypting Linux, VMware ESXi systems-security affairs
Ongoing VMware ESXi Ransomware Attack Highlights Inherent Virtualisation Risks (darkreading.com)
Lessons Learned on Ransomware Prevention from the Rackspace Attack (bleepingcomputer.com)
ESXiArgs Ransomware Hits Over 3,800 Servers as Hackers Continue Improving Malware - SecurityWeek
Ransomware Revolution: 4 Types of Cyber Risks in 2023 (trendmicro.com)
Hypervisor patching struggles exacerbate ESXiArgs attacks | TechTarget
Linux version of Royal Ransomware targets VMware ESXi servers (bleepingcomputer.com)
Nevada Ransomware has released upgraded locker - Help Net Security
Italy, France and Singapore Warn of a Spike in ESXI Ransomware-security affairs
Massive ransomware attack targets VMware ESXi servers worldwide | CSO Online
LockBit ransomware gang claims Royal Mail cyber ttack (bleepingcomputer.com)
Medusa botnet returns as a Mirai-based variant with ransomware sting (bleepingcomputer.com)
New Linux variant of Clop Ransomware uses a flawed encryption-security affairs
After Hive takedown, could the LockBit ransomware crew be the next to fall? | CyberScoop
Russia-Linked Ransomware Gang Claims Responsibility for Royal Mail Attack (gizmodo.com)
Largest Canadian bookstore Indigo shuts down site after cyber ttack (bleepingcomputer.com)
Hackers hit Vesuvius, UK engineering company shuts down affected systems • Graham Cluley
MKS Instruments falls victim to ransomware attack | CSO Online
North Korea ransomware targets hospitals to fund digital spycraft, US agencies warn | CyberScoop
Phishing & Email Based Attacks
Phishing Surges Ahead, as ChatGPT & AI Loom (darkreading.com)
Employees Fail to Report 98% of Email Cyber Hacks To Security Teams, Study Finds - MSSP Alert
An email attack can end up costing you over $1 million - Help Net Security
What SOCs Need to Know About Water Dybbuk A BEC Actor Using Open-Source Toolkits (trendmicro.com)
How Can ChatGPT Make It Easier to Boost Phishing Scams? (analyticsinsight.net)
Cyber criminals exploit volatile job market for targeted email attacks - Help Net Security
'Phishing-as-a-service' kits drive uptick in theft: One business owner's story (cnbc.com)
Malicious Google ads sneak AWS phishing sites into search results (bleepingcomputer.com)
NewsPenguin Goes Phishing for Maritime & Military Secrets (darkreading.com)
BEC – Business Email Compromise
Malware
Hacker develops new 'Screenshotter' malware to find high-value targets (bleepingcomputer.com)
Threat group targets over 1,000 companies with screenshotting and infostealing malware | CSO Online
ESXiArgs Ransomware Hits Over 3,800 Servers as Hackers Continue Improving Malware - SecurityWeek
Android mobile devices from top vendors in China have pre-installed malware-security affairs
Hackers backdoor Windows devices in Sliver and BYOVD attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
GuLoader Malware Using Malicious NSIS Executables to Target E-Commerce Industry (thehackernews.com)
Novel Banking Trojan 'PixPirate' Targets Brazil - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
New QakNote attacks push QBot malware via Microsoft OneNote files (bleepingcomputer.com)
Gootkit Malware Adopts New Tactics to Attack Healthcare and Finance Firms (thehackernews.com)
Mobile
Android mobile devices from top vendors in China have pre-installed malware-security affairs
Fraudulent "CryptoRom" Apps Slip Through Apple and Google App Store Review Process - SecurityWeek
Android phones from Chinese vendors share private data • The Register
'Money Lover' Finance App Exposes User Data (darkreading.com)
Xiaomi, OnePlus, Top Android Phones in China Spy on You: Study (gizmodo.com)
Android 14 to block malware from abusing sensitive permissions (bleepingcomputer.com)
UK Proposes Making the Sale and Possession of Encrypted Phones Illegal (vice.com)
Android's February 2023 Updates Patch 40 Vulnerabilities - SecurityWeek
Denial of Service/DoS/DDOS
Here's a list of proxy IPs to help block KillNet's DDoS bots • The Register
Tor and I2P networks hit by wave of ongoing DDoS attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
Experts published a list of proxy IPs used by the group Killnet-security affairs
Internet of Things – IoT
Medusa botnet returns as a Mirai-based variant with ransomware sting (bleepingcomputer.com)
Security manufacturer’s smart cameras went dark for two hours (mybroadband.co.za)
Vulnerability Allows Hackers to Remotely Tamper With Dahua Security Cameras - SecurityWeek
NIST Picks IoT Standard for Small Electronics Cyber security (darkreading.com)
Data Breaches/Leaks
Swiss authorities open criminal probe into bank data breaches | Financial Times (ft.com)
Mysterious leak of Booking.com reservation data is being used to scam customers | Ars Technica
TruthFinder, Instant Checkmate confirm data breach affecting 20M customers (bleepingcomputer.com)
20 Million Users Impacted by Data Breach at Instant Checkmate, TruthFinder - SecurityWeek
Over 12% of analysed online stores expose private data, backups (bleepingcomputer.com)
'Money Lover' Finance App Exposes User Data (darkreading.com)
Reddit Suffers Security Breach Exposing Internal Documents and Source Code (thehackernews.com)
Organised Crime & Criminal Actors
Tracers in the Dark: The Global Hunt for the Crime Lords of Crypto – Naked Security (sophos.com)
Minister: Cyber crimes Now 20% of Spain’s Registered Offenses - SecurityWeek
Finland’s Most-Wanted Hacker Nabbed in France – Krebs on Security
Australian Man Sentenced for Scam Related to Optus Hack - SecurityWeek
Bungling Optus scammer was no criminal mastermind • Graham Cluley
Dark Web Market Revenues Sink 50% in 2022 - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs/Blockchain
Crypto investors lost nearly $4 billion to hackers in 2022 (cnbc.com)
Tracers in the Dark: The Global Hunt for the Crime Lords of Crypto – Naked Security (sophos.com)
Avraham Eisenberg in court accused of crypto exchange crash • The Register
Crypto Drainers Are Ready to Ransack Investor Wallets (darkreading.com)
How Cyber criminals Are Operationalising Money Laundering and What to Do About It (darkreading.com)
FTX Being Advised by Cyber security Firm Sygnia on Hack Inquiry, CEO Ray Says (coindesk.com)
Scammers steal $4 million in crypto during in-person meeting • The Register
Enigma Stealer Targets Cryptocurrency Industry with Fake Jobs (trendmicro.com)
Insider Risk and Insider Threats
Another RAC staffer nabbed for sharing road accident data • The Register
Ex-Ubiquiti worker pleads guilty to data theft, extortion, and smear plot (bitdefender.com)
Cyber Hygiene: How to get buy-in from employees (trendmicro.com)
Fraud, Scams & Financial Crime
PayPal and Twitter abused in Turkey relief donation scams (bleepingcomputer.com)
Working from home is fuelling fraud epidemic, warn managers (telegraph.co.uk)
Mysterious leak of Booking.com reservation data is being used to scam customers | Ars Technica
As V-Day nears: Romance scams cost victims $1.3B last year • The Register
What CISOs Can Do About Brand Impersonation Scam Sites (darkreading.com)
Father killed himself after falling victim to romance scam | News | The Times
'Brushing' scams send people free items, but could be a warning sign about a data breach - ABC News
Fraudulent "CryptoRom" Apps Slip Through Apple and Google App Store Review Process - SecurityWeek
How Cyber criminals Are Operationalising Money Laundering and What to Do About It (darkreading.com)
Banks leave doors open for scammers with flaws in online security | This is Money
Trio Arrested in COVID PPE Fraud Probe - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Twitter restricted in Turkey after the earthquake amid disinformation fear-security affairs
Impersonation Attacks
What CISOs Can Do About Brand Impersonation Scam Sites (darkreading.com)
HTML smuggling campaigns impersonate well-known brands to deliver malware | CSO Online
AML/CFT/Sanctions
How Cyber criminals Are Operationalising Money Laundering and What to Do About It (darkreading.com)
UK/US cyber crime crackdown sees 7 ransomware criminals sanctioned | CSO Online
US, UK Slap Sanctions on Trickbot Cyber crime Gang - SecurityWeek
Insurance
Tackling the New Cyber Insurance Requirements: Can Your Organisation Comply? (thehackernews.com)
How to Optimise Your Cyber Insurance Coverage (darkreading.com)
Dark Web
BlackSprut: Darknet Drug Market Advertises On Billboards In Moscow (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Dark Web Market Revenues Sink 50% in 2022 - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Supply Chain and Third Parties
Have we learnt nothing from SolarWinds supply chain attacks? • The Register
Vulnerability Provided Access to Toyota Supplier Management Network - SecurityWeek
Software Supply Chain
Cloud/SaaS
Cloud Apps Still Demand Way More Privileges Than They Use (darkreading.com)
Amazon S3 to apply security best practices for all new buckets - Help Net Security
Why Some Cloud Services Vulnerabilities Are So Hard to Fix (darkreading.com)
Malicious Google ads sneak AWS phishing sites into search results (bleepingcomputer.com)
7 Critical Cloud Threats Facing the Enterprise in 2023 (darkreading.com)
Hybrid/Remote Working
Working from home is fuelling fraud epidemic, warn managers (telegraph.co.uk)
Predictions For Securing Today's Hybrid Workforce (darkreading.com)
Identity and Access Management
Encryption
It Isn't Time to Worry About Quantum Computing Just Yet (darkreading.com)
UK Proposes Making the Sale and Possession of Encrypted Phones Illegal (vice.com)
API
Passwords, Credential Stuffing & Brute Force Attacks
Biometrics
Social Media
Twitter Implements API Paywall, but Will That Solve Its Enormous Bot Crisis? (darkreading.com)
Twitter restricted in Turkey after the earthquake amid disinformation fear-security affairs
Malvertising
Training, Education and Awareness
Cyber Hygiene: How to get buy-in from employees (trendmicro.com)
Infosec Launches New Office Comedy Themed Security Awareness Training Series (darkreading.com)
Parental Controls and Child Safety
Regulations, Fines and Legislation
Corporate ‘privacy’ concerns must not derail Europe’s Data Act | Financial Times (ft.com)
While governments pass privacy laws, companies struggle to change - Help Net Security
Prioritising Cyber security Regulation Harmonisation (darkreading.com)
Governance, Risk and Compliance
Quarter of CFOs Have Suffered $1m+ Breaches - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Swiss authorities open criminal probe into bank data breaches | Financial Times (ft.com)
Trends that impact on organisations' 2023 security priorities - Help Net Security
With TikTok Bans, the Time for Operational Governance Is Now (darkreading.com)
Optimising Cyber security Investments in a Constrained Spending Environment (darkreading.com)
Surge of swatting attacks targets corporate executives and board members | CSO Online
Lessons From the Cold War: How Quality Trumps Quantity in Cyber security (darkreading.com)
Cyber Hygiene: How to get buy-in from employees (trendmicro.com)
Models, Frameworks and Standards
Data Protection
Corporate ‘privacy’ concerns must not derail Europe’s Data Act | Financial Times (ft.com)
While governments pass privacy laws, companies struggle to change - Help Net Security
Regulator Halts AI Chatbot Over GDPR Concerns - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Law Enforcement Action and Take Downs
European Police Arrest 42 After Cracking Covert App - SecurityWeek
Eurocops shut down Exclu encrypted messaging app • The Register
Finnish psychotherapy extortion suspect arrested in France – Naked Security (sophos.com)
Privacy, Surveillance and Mass Monitoring
Xiaomi, OnePlus, Top Android Phones in China Spy on You: Study (gizmodo.com)
Steps To Planning And Implementation Of Data Privacy (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
ChatGPT is a data privacy nightmare, and we ought to be concerned | Ars Technica
Artificial Intelligence
Adversaries Using OpenAI’s ChatGPT Chatbot for Cyber Attacks? Here are Some Clues - MSSP Alert
Phishing Surges Ahead, as ChatGPT & AI Loom (darkreading.com)
IT Leaders Reveal Cyber Fears Around ChatGPT - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
How Can ChatGPT Make It Easier to Boost Phishing Scams? (analyticsinsight.net)
ChatGPT's potential to aid attackers puts IT pros on high alert - Help Net Security
Hackers are selling a service that bypasses ChatGPT restrictions on malware | Ars Technica
ChatGPT is a data privacy nightmare, and we ought to be concerned | Ars Technica
Jailbreak Trick Breaks ChatGPT Content Safeguards (darkreading.com)
Regulator Halts AI Chatbot Over GDPR Concerns - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Google's Bard AI bot mistake wipes $100bn off shares - BBC News
$120bn wiped off Google after Bard AI chatbot gives wrong answer (telegraph.co.uk)
Why ChatGPT Isn't a Death Sentence for Cyber Defenders (darkreading.com)
Spyware, Cyber Espionage & Cyber Warfare, including Russian Invasion of Ukraine
Pro-Russian hacktivist group Killnet could just be getting started (axios.com)
Yes, CISOs should be concerned about the types of data spy balloons can intercept | CSO Online
Android mobile devices from top vendors in China have pre-installed malware-security affairs
China sharply rebukes US over decision to shoot down spy balloon | Financial Times (ft.com)
Here's a list of proxy IPs to help block KillNet's DDoS bots • The Register
What is hybrid warfare? Inside the centre dealing with modern threats - BBC News
DPRK Using Unpatched Zimbra Devices to Spy on Researchers (darkreading.com)
Russian hackers using new Graphiron information stealer in Ukraine (bleepingcomputer.com)
The impact of Russia's Ukraine invasion on digital threats - Help Net Security
Russian Hackers Steal Data In Ukraine With New Graphiron Malware (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Spies, Hackers, Informants: How China Snoops on the US - SecurityWeek
US teases new China tech sanctions to deflate balloon-makers • The Register
Nation State Actors
Pro-Russian hacktivist group Killnet could just be getting started (axios.com)
With TikTok Bans, the Time for Operational Governance Is Now (darkreading.com)
Yes, CISOs should be concerned about the types of data spy balloons can intercept | CSO Online
Android mobile devices from top vendors in China have pre-installed malware-security affairs
China sharply rebukes US over decision to shoot down spy balloon | Financial Times (ft.com)
Microsoft: Iran Unit Behind Charlie Hebdo Hack-and-Leak Op - SecurityWeek
Here's a list of proxy IPs to help block KillNet's DDoS bots • The Register
Android phones from Chinese vendors share private data • The Register
DPRK Using Unpatched Zimbra Devices to Spy on Researchers (darkreading.com)
SNP MP Stewart McDonald's emails hacked by Russian group - BBC News
Australia to remove Chinese surveillance cameras amid security fears - BBC News
Russian hackers using new Graphiron information stealer in Ukraine (bleepingcomputer.com)
Xiaomi, OnePlus, Top Android Phones in China Spy on You: Study (gizmodo.com)
UN Experts: North Korean Hackers Stole Record Virtual Assets - SecurityWeek
Mysterious Russian satellites are now breaking apart in low-Earth orbit | Ars Technica
The impact of Russia's Ukraine invasion on digital threats - Help Net Security
Russian Hackers Steal Data In Ukraine With New Graphiron Malware (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Experts published a list of proxy IPs used by the group Killnet-security affairs
NewsPenguin Goes Phishing for Maritime & Military Secrets (darkreading.com)
US teases new China tech sanctions to deflate balloon-makers • The Register
North Korea ransomware targets hospitals to fund digital spycraft, US agencies warn | Cyber scoop
Vulnerability Management
Vulnerabilities and exposures to rise to 1,900 a month in 2023: Coalition | CSO Online
Patching & Passwords Lead the Problem Pack for Cyber-Teams (darkreading.com)
Hypervisor patching struggles exacerbate ESXiArgs attacks | TechTarget
How to fix the top 5 cyber security vulnerabilities | TechTarget
20 Powerful Vulnerability Scanning Tools In 2023 (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Vulnerabilities
High-Severity Privilege Escalation Vulnerability Patched in VMware Workstation - SecurityWeek
New Wave of Ransomware Attacks Exploiting VMware Bug to Target ESXi Servers (thehackernews.com)
GoAnywhere MFT Users Warned of Zero-Day Exploit - SecurityWeek
Serious security hole plugged in infosec tool binwalk | The Daily Swig (portswigger.net)
Cisco fixed command injection bug in IOx Application Hosting Environment-security affairs
Vulnerability In F5 BIG-IP May Cause DoS And Code Execution (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
GoAnywhere MFT zero-day flaw actively exploited-security affairs
Exploitation attempts for Oracle E-Business Suite flaw observed after PoC release-security affairs
Critical vulnerability patched in Jira Service Management Server and Data Center | CSO Online
Warning: Hackers Actively Exploiting Zero-Day in Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT (thehackernews.com)
Exploit released for actively exploited GoAnywhere MFT zero-day (bleepingcomputer.com)
Patch Released for Actively Exploited GoAnywhere MFT Zero-Day - SecurityWeek
Unpatched Security Flaws Disclosed in Multiple Document Management Systems (thehackernews.com)
SonicWall warns web content filtering is broken on Windows 11 22H2 (bleepingcomputer.com)
OpenSSL Fixes Multiple New Security Flaws with Latest Update (thehackernews.com)
Android's February 2023 Updates Patch 40 Vulnerabilities - SecurityWeek
Tools and Controls
Other News
Yes, CISOs should be concerned about the types of data spy balloons can intercept | CSO Online
How to Think Like a Hacker and Stay Ahead of Threats (thehackernews.com)
Surge of swatting a attacks targets corporate executives and board members | CSO Online
Bermuda: Major Internet And Power Outage Strikes (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Sector Specific
Industry specific threat intelligence reports are available.
Contact us to receive tailored reports specific to the industry/sector and geographies you operate in.
· 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 Cyber Advisory 06/02/2023 – New Wave of Ransomware Exploiting VMware ESXi Hypervisors - updated 09/02/2023 and 10/02/2023
Black Arrow Cyber Advisory 06/02/2023 – New Wave of Ransomware Exploiting VMware ESXi Hypervisors
Updated 10/02/2023
Reports indicate that at least 18,500 ESXi servers are still vulnerable to VMware bug behind initial ransomware spree, after last week’s ransomware infections hit more than 3,800 organisations across the United States, France, Italy and more.
Updated 09/02/2023
It has now been found that there is a second wave of the ransomware campaign and reports from administrators are that they are being breached, even though SLP was disabled. There is also a script released by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency (CISA) which will attempt to recover files from an impacted VMware ESXi hypervisor. It should be noted however, that it will likely not work if the VMware ESXi hypervisor was hit by the second wave of ransomware.
CISA’s advice and link to their recovery script can be found here: https://www.cisa.gov/uscert/ncas/current-activity/2023/02/08/cisa-and-fbi-release-esxiargs-ransomware-recovery-guidance
Executive Summary
A large ransomware campaign is targeting VMware ESXi hypervisors around the world, according to the French government’s computer emergency readiness team (CERT-FR). Although not officially confirmed by VMware, multiple sources report that the ransomware exploits a vulnerability known as CVE-2021-21974, which is a heap-overflow vulnerability in which exploitation can result in remote code execution. A patch was made available by VMware in February 2021.
What’s the risk to me or my business?
According to VMware, the malicious actor needs to reside within the same network segment as VMware ESXi and have access to port 427 to be able to exploit CVE-2021-21974 and remotely execute code. This exploit only impacts organisations with VMware ESXi where OpenSLP services are in use. OpenSLP is an open-source implementation of the Service Location Protocol (SLP), which is used to allow networking applications to discover the existence, location and configuration of network services within enterprise networks. The impacted versions of VMware ESXi are as follows:
· ESXi 7.x versions earlier than ESXi70U1c-17325551
· ESXi 6.7.x versions earlier than ESXi670-202102401-SG
· ESXi 6.5.x versions earlier than ESXi650-202102101-SG
What can I do?
Organisations should look to apply the available patches from VMware as soon as possible. It is recommended that organisations disable the SLP service on ESXi hypervisors that have not been patched for the mean time. Where a patch has been applied recently, a system scan should be performed to detect any indicators of compromise.
Further information on the vulnerability can be found through the original security advisory from VMware, which was published in February 2021: https://www.vmware.com/security/advisories/VMSA-2021-0002.html
Need help understanding your gaps, or just want some advice? Get in touch with us.
#threatadvisory #threatintelligence #cybersecurity
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 03 February 2023
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 03 February 2023:
-Business Leaders Need a Hands-on Approach to Stop Cyber Crime, Says Spy Chief
-Rising ‘Firebrick Ostrich’ BEC Group Launches Industrial Scale Cyber Attacks
-The Corporate World is Losing its Grip on Cyber Risk
-Microsoft Reveals Over 100 Threat Actors are Deploying Ransomware in Attacks
-Greater Incident Complexity, a Shift in How Threat Actors Use Stolen Data Will Drive the Cyber Threat Landscape in 2023
-The Threat from Within: 71% of Business Leaders Surveyed Think Next Cyber Security Breach Will come from the Inside
-98% of Organisations Have a Supply Chain Relationship That Has Been Breached
-New Survey Reveals 40% of Companies Experienced a Data Leak in the Past Year
-Russian Hackers Launch Cyber Attack on Germany in Leopard Tank Retaliation
-Financial Services Targeted in 28% of UK Cyber Attacks Last Year
-Phishing Attacks are Getting Scarily Sophisticated. Here’s what to Watch Out For
-City of London on High Alert After Ransomware Attack
-Ransomware Conversations: Why the CFO is Pivotal to Discussing and Preparing for Risk
-JD Sports Warns of 10 Million Customers Put at Risk in Cyber Attack
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
Business Leaders Need a Hands-on Approach to Stop Cyber Crime, Says Spy Chief
Business leaders must not see cyber crime as “just a technical issue” that can be left up to IT departments, said Lindy Cameron, chief executive of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC). Ms Cameron later commented that “In the world of cyber security, the new year has brought with it some sadly familiar themes - a continuation of cyber incidents affecting organisations large and small as well as the British public”.
Along with this, came the urge for business leaders to step up their efforts in combating cyber crime by taking an active interest and educating themselves on the subject. When commenting upon board members’ level of understanding, Ms Cameron said “I’d also encourage board members to develop a basic understanding of cyber security, which can help when seeking assurances from IT teams about the resilience of an organisation - in a similar way that leaders have a certain level of understanding of finance to assess financial health”.
Rising ‘Firebrick Ostrich’ BEC Group Launches Industrial Scale Cyber Attacks
Business email compromise (BEC) has become one of the most popular methods of financially motivated hacking. And over the past year, one group in particular has demonstrated just how quick, easy, and lucrative it really is.
"Firebrick Ostrich" is a threat actor that's been performing BEC at a near-industrial scale. Since April 2021, the group has carried out more than 350 BEC campaigns, impersonating 151 organisations and utilising 212 malicious domains in the process. This volume of attacks is made possible by the group's wholesale gunslinging approach. Firebrick Ostrich doesn't discriminate much when it comes to targets, or gather exceptional intelligence in order to craft the perfect phishing bait. It throws darts at a wall because, evidently, when it comes to BEC at scale, that's enough.
BEC is attractive to bad actors due to the lower barriers to entry than malware, less risk, faster scaling opportunities, and way more profit potential to higher echelons than other methods of attack. These factors may explain why such attacks are absolutely the emerging trend, potentially even leaving even ransomware in the dust. There are literally hundreds, if not thousands, of these groups out there.
The Corporate World is Losing its Grip on Cyber Risk
Lloyd's of London’s insurance market prides itself on being able to put a price on anything, from Tina Turner’s legs or Bruce Springsteen’s vocal cords, to the risk that a bounty hunter might claim the reward from Cutty Sark Whisky in the 1970s for capturing the Loch Ness monster.
But from the end of March, there will be something it won’t price: systemic cyber risk, or the type of major, catastrophic disruption caused by state-backed cyber warfare. In one sense, this isn’t surprising. Insurance policies typically exclude acts of war. Russia’s NotPetya attack on Ukraine in 2017 showed how state-backed cyber assaults can surpass traditional definitions of armed conflict and overspill their sovereign target to hit global businesses. It caused an estimated $10bn in damages and years of wrangling between companies like pharma group Merck and snack maker Mondelez and their insurers.
But the move is prompting broader questions about the growing pains in this corner of the insurance world. “Cyber insurance isn’t working anywhere at the moment as a public good for society,” says Ciaran Martin, former head of the UK National Cyber Security Centre. “It has a huge role to play in improving defences in a market-based economy and it has been a huge disappointment in that sense so far.”
The Lloyd’s move is designed, say insurers, to clarify rather than restrict coverage. Whether it succeeds is another matter: this is a murky world, where cyber crime groups operate with impunity in certain jurisdictions.
https://www.ft.com/content/78bfdf29-1e20-4c12-a348-06e98d5ae906
Microsoft Reveals Over 100 Threat Actors are Deploying Ransomware in Attacks
Microsoft revealed this week that its security teams are tracking over 100 threat actors deploying ransomware during attacks. In all, the company says it monitors over 50 unique ransomware families, with some of the most prominent ransomware payloads in recent campaigns including Lockbit, BlackCat (aka ALPHV), Play, Vice Society, Black Basta, and Royal.
Microsoft said that defence strategies should focus less on payloads themselves but more on the chain of activities that lead to their deployment, since ransomware gangs are still targeting servers and devices not yet patched against common or recently addressed vulnerabilities.
Furthermore, while new ransomware families launch all the time, most threat actors utilise the same tactics when breaching and spreading through networks, making the effort of detecting such behaviour even more helpful in thwarting their attacks.
Attackers are increasingly relying on tactics beyond phishing to conduct their attacks, with threat actors for example capitalising on recently patched Exchange Server vulnerabilities to hack vulnerable servers and deploy Cuba and Play ransomware.
Ransomware Conversations: Why the CFO is Pivotal to Discussing and Preparing for Risk
With the amount of cyber attacks in all industries, organisations are beginning to grasp the significance of cyber risk and how it is integral to protecting and maintaining an efficient business. In fact, the first half of 2022 alone saw 236.1 million cases of ransomware.
Whilst the expectation for responsibility has typically fallen on Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs), Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) are just as vital in managing cyber risk, which is now inherently also business risk. The CFO plays an important part in determining whether cyber security incidents will become material and affect the business more seriously. Their insight is critical across many areas which include ransomware, cyber insurance, regulatory compliance and budget management.
Greater Incident Complexity, a Shift in How Threat Actors Use Stolen Data Will Drive the Cyber Threat Landscape in 2023
Insurance provider Beazley released their Cyber Services Snapshot Report which claims the cyber security landscape will be influenced by greater complexity and the way threat actors use stolen data. The report also found that as a category, fraudulent instruction experienced a growth as a cause of loss in 2022, up 13% year-over year.
In response to vulnerabilities such as fraudulent instructions, the report suggests organisations must get smarter about educating users to spot things such as spoofed emails or domain names. The report also cautions organisations to watch for social engineering, spear phishing, bypassing of multi-factor authentication (MFA), targeting of managed service providers (MSP) and the compromise of cloud environments as areas of vulnerability.
The Threat from Within: 71% of Business Leaders Surveyed Think Next Cyber Security Breach Will Come from the Inside
A survey conducted by IT provider EisnerAmper found that 71% of business executives worry about accidental internal staff error as one of the top threats facing their organisation and 23% of these worried about malicious intent by an employee. In comparison, 75% of business executives had concerns about external hackers. The survey also asked about current safety measures, with 51% responding that they were “somewhat prepared”. Despite this, only 50% of respondents reported conducting regular cyber security training.
98% of Organisations Have a Supply Chain Relationship That Has Been Breached
A report from SecurityScorecard found that 98% of organisations have a relationship with at least one third party that has experienced a breach in the last two years, while more than 50% have an indirect relationship with more than 200 fourth parties that have been breached. Of course, this is keeping in mind that not all organisations disclose or even know they have been breached.
New Survey Reveals 40% of Companies Experienced a Data Leak in the Past Year
Software provider SysKit has published a report on the effects of digital transformation on IT administrators and the current governance landscape. The report found that 40% of organisations experienced a data leak in the previous year. A data leak can have severe consequences on an organisation's efficiency and the impact can lead to large fines, downtime, and loss of business-critical certifications and customers.
In addition, the Survey found that the biggest challenge for IT administrators was a lack of understanding from superiors, huge workloads and misalignment of IT and business strategies.
Russian Hackers Launch Cyber Attack on Germany in Leopard Tank Retaliation
The websites of key German administrations, including companies and airports, have been targeted by cyber attacks, the German Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) stated.
The BSI commented they had been informed of DDoS (distributed denial of service) attacks “currently in progress against targets in Germany". This was followed by the statement that “Individual targets in the financial sector” and federal government sites were also attacked, with some websites becoming temporarily unavailable. It is believed that this is due to the approved deployment of Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, with Russian hacker site Killnet taking credit.
Financial Services Targeted in 28% of UK Cyber Attacks Last Year
Based on data from security provider Imperva, security researchers have identified that over a quarter (28%) of all cyber attacks in the UK hit the financial services and insurance (FSI) industry in the last 12 months. The data also found that Application Programme Interface (API) attacks, malicious automated software and distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks were the most challenging for the industry. In addition, the data found that roughly 40% of all account takeover attempts were targeted at the FSI industry.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/quarter-cyber-attacks-uk-financial/
Phishing Attacks are Getting Scarily Sophisticated. Here’s What to Watch Out For
Hackers are going to great lengths, including mimicking real people and creating and updating fake social media profiles, to trick victims into clicking phishing links and handing over usernames and passwords. The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) warns that these phishing attacks are targeting a range of sectors.
The NCSC has also released mitigation advice to help organisations and individuals protect themselves online. The mitigation advice included the use of strong passwords, separate to other accounts; enabling multi-factor authentication (MFA); and applying the latest security updates.
City of London on High Alert After Ransomware Attack
A suspected ransomware attack on a key supplier of trading software to the City of London this week appears to have disrupted activity in the derivatives market. The company impacted, Ion Cleared Derivatives, is investigating. It is reported that 42 clients were impacted by the attack.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/city-of-london-high-alert/
JD Sports Warns of 10 Million Customers Put at Risk in Cyber Attack
Sportswear retailer JD Sports said it was the victim of a cyber attack that exposed the data of 10 million customers, in the latest spate of hacks on UK companies.
JD Sports explained that the attack involved unauthorised access to a system that contained “the name, billing address, delivery address, phone number, order details and the final four digits of payment cards”. The data related to customers’ orders made between November 2018 and October 2020, with outdoor gear companies Millets and Blacks also impacted. A full review with cyber security and external specialists is underway.
https://www.ft.com/content/afe00f2f-afcd-478f-9e4d-1cf9c943fa79
Threats
Ransomware, Extortion and Destructive Attacks
City Of London Traders Hit By Russia-Linked Cyber Attack (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
New Nevada Ransomware targets Windows and VMware ESXi systems (bleepingcomputer.com)
US puts a $10m bounty on Hive while Russia shuts down access • The Register
Copycat Criminals mimicking Lockbit gang in northern Europe security affairs
Most criminal cryptocurrency is funneled through just 5 exchanges | Ars Technica
Cyber Attack Hits Derivatives Unit of Trading Software Firm ION - Bloomberg
Regulators weigh in on ION attack as LockBit takes credit • The Register
New Mimic Ransomware Abuses Windows Search Engine (cyber securitynews.com)
Stratford University discloses ransomware attack — but which ransomware attack? (databreaches.net)
Schools don't pay, but ransomware attacks still increasing | TechTarget
Poser Hackers Impersonate LockBit in SMB Cyber attacks (darkreading.com)
Risk & Repeat: The FBI's Hive ransomware takedown | TechTarget
Nevada Ransomware Has Released Upgraded Locker security affairs
LockBit Green ransomware variant borrows code from Conti one security affairs
Arnold Clark customer data stolen in attack claimed by Play ransomware (bleepingcomputer.com)
Ransomware attacks on public sector persist in January | TechTarget
Ransomware attack on data firm ION could take days to fix -sources | Reuters
APT groups use ransomware TTPs as cover for intelligence gathering and sabotage | CSO Online
Phishing & Email Based Attacks
Phishing attacks are getting scarily sophisticated. Here's what to watch out for | ZDNET
Rising ‘Firebrick Ostrich’ BEC Group Launches Industrial-Scale Cyber attacks (darkreading.com)
Porsche halts NFT launch, phishing sites fill the void (bleepingcomputer.com)
Phishers Trick Microsoft Into Granting Them 'Verified' Cloud Partner Status (darkreading.com)
BEC – Business Email Compromise
Other Social Engineering; Smishing, Vishing, etc
2FA/MFA
Malware
How Can Disrupting DNS Communications Thwart a Malware Attack? (darkreading.com)
Hackers use new IceBreaker malware to breach gaming companies (bleepingcomputer.com)
New Threat: Stealthy HeadCrab Malware Compromised Over 1,200 Redis Servers (thehackernews.com)
PoS malware can block contactless payments to steal credit cards (bleepingcomputer.com)
HeadCrab malware targets Redis to mine cryptocurrency | TechTarget
Malvertising attacks are distributing .NET malware loaders • The Register
Hackers weaponize Microsoft Visual Studio add-ins to push malware (bleepingcomputer.com)
Mobile
Google Fi data breach let hackers carry out SIM swap attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
Over 1,800 Android phishing forms for sale on cyber crime market (bleepingcomputer.com)
Mobile phone fraud: 'They stole £22,500 using my banking app' - BBC News
Botnets
Denial of Service/DoS/DDOS
Killnet Attackers DDoS US and Dutch Hospitals - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
New DDoS-as-a-Service platform used in recent attacks on hospitals (bleepingcomputer.com)
Internet of Things – IoT
IoT, connected devices biggest contributors to expanding application attack surface | CSO Online
European IoT Manufacturers Lag in Vulnerability Disclosure (databreachtoday.co.uk)
Anker finally comes clean about its Eufy security cameras - The Verge
Data Breaches/Leaks
JD Sports warns data of 10mn customers put at risk in cyber attack | Financial Times (ft.com)
New Survey Reveals 40% of Companies Experienced a Data Leak in the Past Year (darkreading.com)
Planet Ice hacked! 240,000 skating fans' details stolen (bitdefender.com)
Organised Crime & Criminal Actors
Cyber crime job ads on the dark web pay up to $20k per month (bleepingcomputer.com)
Most criminal cryptocurrency is funneled through just 5 exchanges | Ars Technica
Cyber crime Ecosystem Spawns Lucrative Underground Gig Economy (darkreading.com)
Cyber crime job ads on the dark web pay up to $20k per month (bleepingcomputer.com)
Developers, Attackers Top List of Most In Demand Dark Web Jobs, Kaspersky Reports - MSSP Alert
Report on hackers' salaries shows poor wages for developers • The Register
6 Examples of the Evolution of a Scam Site (darkreading.com)
Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs/Blockchain
Most criminal cryptocurrency is funneled through just 5 exchanges | Ars Technica
FBI: North Korea’s Lazarus Group behind $100m crypto attack • The Register
Oxford student jailed for £2m crypto theft after PhD blunder | News | The Times
Porsche halts NFT launch, phishing sites fill the void (bleepingcomputer.com)
Crypto theft: North Korea-linked hackers stole $1.7b in 2022 - BBC News
HeadCrab malware targets Redis to mine cryptocurrency | TechTarget
Insider Risk and Insider Threats
Insider attacks becoming more frequent, more difficult to detect - Help Net Security
Are Your Employees Thinking Critically About Their Online Behaviours? (darkreading.com)
The next cyber threat may come from within - Help Net Security
Insider threats: The cyber risks lurking in the dark (betanews.com)
Former Ubiquiti dev pleads guilty to data theft, extortion • The Register
Fraud, Scams & Financial Crime
FBI: North Korea’s Lazarus Group behind $100m crypto attack • The Register
Oxford student jailed for £2m crypto theft after PhD blunder | News | The Times
Porsche halts NFT launch, phishing sites fill the void (bleepingcomputer.com)
Russian Millionaire on Trial in Hack, Insider Trade Scheme - SecurityWeek
6 Examples of the Evolution of a Scam Site (darkreading.com)
Mobile phone fraud: 'They stole £22,500 using my banking app' - BBC News
Crypto theft: North Korea-linked hackers stole $1.7b in 2022 - BBC News
Romance fraud losses rose 91% during the pandemic, claims UK's TSB bank | Tripwire
Romance Fraudsters Have Stolen £65m From Brits Since 2020 (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Impersonation Attacks
AML/CFT/Sanctions
Insurance
Dark Web
There’s a Wild Scramble for Control of the Dark Web Taking Place in Russia (vice.com)
Cyber crime job ads on the dark web pay up to $20k per month (bleepingcomputer.com)
Developers, Attackers Top List of Most In Demand Dark Web Jobs, Kaspersky Reports - MSSP Alert
Report on hackers' salaries shows poor wages for developers • The Register
Supply Chain and Third Parties
98% of Firms Have a Supply Chain Relationship That Has Been Breached: Analysis - SecurityWeek
Cyber attack Impact “Catastrophic” for Third Parties, New Study Finds MSSPs at Risk? - MSSP Alert
New “MITRE ATT&CK-like” framework outlines software supply chain attack TTPs | CSO Online
CISA to Open Supply Chain Risk Management Office (darkreading.com)
Cloud/SaaS
Misconfiguration and vulnerabilities biggest risks in cloud security: Report | CSO Online
Hybrid cloud storage security challenges - Help Net Security
Short-staffed SOCs struggle to gain visibility into cloud activities - Help Net Security
Containers
Encryption
Serious Security: The Samba logon bug caused by outdated crypto – Naked Security (sophos.com)
Encryption Explained: At Rest, In Transit & End-To-End Encryption | Splunk
Cyber Insights 2023 | Quantum Computing and the Coming Cryptopocalypse - SecurityWeek
API
The emergence of trinity attacks on APIs - Help Net Security
API management (APIM): What It Is and Where It’s Going security affairs
Open Source
Passwords, Credential Stuffing & Brute Force Attacks
Bitwarden Password Manager users are being targeted by phishing ads on Google- gHacks Tech News
KeePass disputes vulnerability allowing stealthy password theft (bleepingcomputer.com)
Social Media
Inside TikTok’s proposal to address US national security concerns | CyberScoop
Facebook Bug Allows 2FA Bypass Via Instagram (darkreading.com)
Malvertising
Training, Education and Awareness
Regulations, Fines and Legislation
Regulators weigh in on ION attack as LockBit takes credit • The Register
New UN cyber crime convention has a long way to go in a tight timeframe | CSO Online
Governance, Risk and Compliance
Business leaders need hands-on approach to stop cyber crime, says spy chief (telegraph.co.uk)
New Survey Reveals 40% of Companies Experienced a Data Leak in the Past Year (darkreading.com)
70% of CIOs anticipate their involvement in cyber security to increase - Help Net Security
Cyber security Budgets Are Going Up. So Why Aren't Breaches Going Down? (thehackernews.com)
The corporate world is losing its grip on cyber risk | Financial Times (ft.com)
Careers, Working in Cyber and Information Security
The Effect of Cyber security Layoffs on Cyber security Recruitment - SecurityWeek
Economic headwinds could deepen the cyber security skills shortage | CSO Online
Law Enforcement Action and Take Downs
7 Ways Hive Ransomware Gang Caused Chaos Before FBI Hacked It (gizmodo.com)
US puts a $10m bounty on Hive while Russia shuts down access • The Register
Hacker accused of having stolen personal data of all Austrians security affairs
Risk & Repeat: The FBI's Hive ransomware takedown | TechTarget
Privacy, Surveillance and Mass Monitoring
On Data Privacy Day, Organisations Fail Data Privacy Expectations (darkreading.com)
Hacker accused of having stolen personal data of all Austrians security affairs
Enterprises Need to Do More to Assure Consumers About Privacy (darkreading.com)
Artificial Intelligence
Foreign states already using ChatGPT maliciously, UK IT leaders believe | CSO Online
OpenAI releases tool to detect AI-written text (bleepingcomputer.com)
Reality check: Is ChatGPT really the next big cyber security threat? | CyberScoop
Misinformation, Disinformation and Propaganda
Spyware, Cyber Espionage & Cyber Warfare, including Russian Invasion of Ukraine
Iranian APT Leaks Data From Saudi Arabia Government Under New Persona - SecurityWeek
Ukraine Links Media Centre Attack to Russian Intelligence (govinfosecurity.com)
Russia-Linked APT29 Uses New Malware in Embassy Attacks - SecurityWeek
Russia's Sandworm APT Launches Swarm of Wiper Attacks in Ukraine (darkreading.com)
Russia-linked Hackers Launch DDoS Attacks on Germany and US. Hospitals, Threaten Canada - MSSP Alert
Latvia says Russian hackers tried to phish its Ministry of Defence (bitdefender.com)
Inside Killnet: Pro-Russia Hacktivist Group's Support and Influence Grows (darkreading.com)
Crypto theft: North Korea-linked hackers stole $1.7b in 2022 - BBC News
North Korean hackers stole research data in two-month-long breach (bleepingcomputer.com)
APT groups use ransomware TTPs as cover for intelligence gathering and sabotage | CSO Online
Nation State Actors
Nation State Actors – Russia
Russian Nuisance Hacking Group KillNet Targets Germany (govinfosecurity.com)
Russian hackers launch cyber attack on Germany in Leopard retaliation | Euronews
Ukraine Links Media Centre Attack to Russian Intelligence (govinfosecurity.com)
A Link to News Site Meduza Can (Technically) Land You in Russian Prison | WIRED
Russia-Linked APT29 Uses New Malware in Embassy Attacks - SecurityWeek
Russia's Sandworm APT Launches Swarm of Wiper Attacks in Ukraine (darkreading.com)
Russia-linked Hackers Launch DDoS Attacks on Germany and US. Hospitals, Threaten Canada - MSSP Alert
Latvia says Russian hackers tried to phish its Ministry of Defence (bitdefender.com)
Killnet Attackers DDoS US and Dutch Hospitals - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
IT Army of Ukraine gained access to 1.5GB archive from Gazprom security affairs
There’s a Wild Scramble for Control of the Dark Web Taking Place in Russia (vice.com)
Inside Killnet: Pro-Russia Hacktivist Group's Support and Influence Grows (darkreading.com)
Nation State Actors – China
Google deletes 50,000 pro-China fake-news vids and blogs • The Register
TikTok CEO to testify before US. Congress over security concerns | Reuters
Nation State Actors – North Korea
FBI: North Korea’s Lazarus Group behind $100m crypto attack • The Register
Crypto theft: North Korea-linked hackers stole $1.7b in 2022 - BBC News
North Korean hackers stole research data in two-month-long breach (bleepingcomputer.com)
Nation State Actors – Iran
Nation State Actors – Misc
Vulnerability Management
The future of vulnerability management and patch compliance - Help Net Security
What is the CVSS (Common Vulnerability Scoring System)? (techtarget.com)
Vulnerabilities
Researchers to release VMware vRealize Log RCE exploit, patch now (bleepingcomputer.com)
Patch management is crucial to protect Exchange servers, Microsoft warns security affairs
QNAP Fixes Critical Vulnerability in NAS Devices with Latest Security Updates (thehackernews.com)
Over 29,000 QNAP devices unpatched against new critical flaw (bleepingcomputer.com)
Firmware Flaws Could Spell 'Lights Out' for Servers (darkreading.com)
Why you might not be done with your January Microsoft security patches | CSO Online
HPE, NetApp warn of critical open-source bug | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
High-severity bug in F5 BIG-IP can lead to code execution and DoS security affairs
Cisco fixes bug allowing backdoor persistence between reboots (bleepingcomputer.com)
CISA Alert: Oracle E-Business Suite and SugarCRM Vulnerabilities Under Attack (thehackernews.com)
Threat activity increasing around Fortinet VPN vulnerability | TechTarget
Remote code execution exploit chain available for VMware vRealize Log Insight | CSO Online
Tools and Controls
Other News
We can't rely on goodwill to protect our critical infrastructure - Help Net Security
Playing Military Sim War Thunder May Get You Classed as a National Security Risk
Cyber attacks in space: How safe are our satellites? | Metro News
Massive Microsoft 365 outage caused by WAN router IP change (bleepingcomputer.com)
Sector Specific
Industry specific threat intelligence reports are available.
Contact us to receive tailored reports specific to the industry/sector and geographies you operate in.
· 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 Cyber Advisory 19/10/2022 – Support for VMware ESXi 6.5 and 6.7 reaches end-of-life
Black Arrow Cyber Advisory 19/10/2022 – Support for VMware ESXi 6.5 and 6.7 reaches end-of-life
Executive Summary
VMware is a large supplier of virtualisation products which are used to run a variety of different services. On October 15th, VMware ESXi 6.5 and 6.7 reached end-of-life, meaning that VMware will no longer provide security or software updates to those who do not have an extended support contract. The extended support is limited to one annual security patch, which only includes catastrophic/critical security fixes.
What’s the risk to me or my business?
VMware is the biggest player within the hosted virtualisation platform market. It is highly likely that services purchased through third party suppliers, excluding AWS and Azure, will be using VMware under the hood. So far this year VMware products have been targeted by different ransomware groups, with various exploits being made public which affect this software. It is very important that security updates are still being provided for this critical infrastructure to help to mitigate and address these growing threats.
What can I do?
Ensure that if VMware ESXi is being used either internally or externally through a service provider, that the version is one which is currently supported by VMware, which are versions 7 and above. It is important to note that VMware often drops support for older hardware with newer versions of it’s vSphere ESXi software, meaning that an upgrade to supported hardware may also be required.
Further technical information on supported versions of VMware ESXi can be found here: Product Lifecycle Matrix (vmware.com), with details on the extended support package listed here: VMware Extended Support Datasheet
Need help understanding your gaps, or just want some advice? Get in touch with us.
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 16 September 2022
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 16 September 2022
-CFOs’ Overconfidence in Cyber Security Can Cost Millions
-Cyber Security Outflanks Inflation, Talent, Logistics in Business Worries
-Attackers Can Compromise Most Cloud Data in Just 3 Steps
-Cyber Insurance Premiums Soar 80% As Claims Surge
-One In 10 Employees Leaks Sensitive Company Data Every 6 Months
-Business Application Compromise & the Evolving Art of Social Engineering
-SMBs Are Hardest-Hit By Ransomware
-65% Say Legacy Backup Solutions Aren’t Up To Ransomware Challenges
-Four-Fifths of Firms Hit by Critical Cloud Security Incident
-Homeworkers Putting Home and Business Cyber Safety at Risk
-Uber Hacked, Internal Systems Breached and Vulnerability Reports Stolen
-IHG hack: 'Vindictive' couple deleted hotel chain data for fun
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
CFOs’ Overconfidence in Cyber Security Can Cost Millions
Kroll announced its report entitled ‘Cyber Risk and CFOs: Over-Confidence is Costly’ which found chief financial officers (CFOs) to be woefully in the dark regarding cyber security, despite confidence in their company’s ability to respond to an incident.
The report, conducted by StudioID of Industry Dive, exposed three key themes among the 180 senior finance executives surveyed worldwide:
Ignorance is bliss. Eighty-seven percent of CFOs are either very or extremely confident in their organisation’s cyber attack response. This is at odds with the level of visibility CFOs have into cyber risk issues, given only four out of 10 surveyed have regular briefings with their cyber teams.
Wide-ranging damages. 71% of the represented organisations suffered more than $5 million in financial losses stemming from cyber incidents in the previous 18 months, and 61% had suffered at least three significant cyber incidents in that time. Eighty-two percent of the executives in the survey said their companies suffered a loss of 5% or more in their valuations following their largest cyber security incident in the previous 18 months.
Increasing investment in cyber security. Forty-five percent of respondents plan to increase the percentage of their overall IT budget dedicated to information security by at least 10%.
According to Kroll: “We often see that CFOs are not aware enough of the financial risk presented by cyber threats until they face an incident. At that point, it’s clear that they need to be involved not only in the recovery, including permitting access to emergency funds and procuring third-party suppliers, but also in the strategy and investment around cyber both pre- and post-incident.”
“Ultimately, cyber attacks represent a financial risk to the business, and incidents can have a significant impact on value. It is, therefore, critical that this is included in wider business risk considerations. A CFO and CISO should work side-by-side, helping the business navigate the operational and financial risk of cyber.”
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2022/09/14/cfos-cybersecurity-confidence/
Cyber Security Outflanks Inflation, Talent, Logistics in Business Worries
Nearly six in 10 IT leaders in a new study view cyber security as their top business concern, ranking it higher than inflation, retaining talent and supply chain/logistics management.
Less than half of respondents (43%) believe their critical data and assets are protected from cyber threats despite increased cyber security investments by their organisations, greater board visibility and increased collaboration between the security team and the C-suite, Rackspace said in its new survey of 1,420 IT professionals worldwide.
The multi-cloud technology services specialist said that a “large majority” of the survey respondents report being either unprepared or only “somewhat prepared” to respond to major threats, such as identifying and mitigating threats and areas of concern (62%), recovering from cyber attacks (61%) or preventing lapses and breaches (63%).
Cloud native security is where organisations are most likely to rely on an outside partner, such as a managed security service provider, for expertise.
Here are more of the survey’s findings:
The top three cyber security challenges their organisation is facing: migrating and operating apps (45%); shortage of workers with cyber security skills (39%); lack of visibility of vulnerabilities across all infrastructure (38%).
70% of survey respondents report that their cyber security budgets have increased over the past three years.
The leading recipients of new investment are cloud native security (59%); data security (50%), consultative security services (44%); and application security (41%).
Investments align closely with the areas where organisations perceive their greatest concentration of threats, led by network security (58%), closely followed by web application attacks (53%) and cloud architecture attacks (50%).
70% of respondents said there has been an increase in board visibility for cyber security over the past five years, while 69% cite better collaboration between the security team and members of the C-suite.
Only 13% of respondents said there were significant communications gaps between the security team and C-suite, while 69% of IT executives view their counterparts in the C-suite as advocates for their concerns.
The authors stated “We are seeing a major shift in how organisations are allocating resources to address cyber threats, even as budgets increase. The cloud brings with it a new array of security challenges that require new expertise, and often reliance on external partners who can help implement cloud native security tools, automate security, provide cloud native application protection, offer container security solutions and other capabilities”.
Attackers Can Compromise Most Cloud Data in Just 3 Steps
An analysis of cloud services finds that known vulnerabilities typically open the door for attackers, while insecure cloud architectures allow them to gain access to the crown jewels.
Companies and their cloud providers often leave vulnerabilities open in their system and services, gifting attackers with an easy path to gain access to critical data.
According to an Orca Security analysis of data collected from major cloud services, attackers only need on average three steps to gain access to sensitive data, the so-called "crown jewels," starting most often — in 78% of cases — with the exploitation of a known vulnerability.
While much of the security discussion has focused on the misconfigurations of cloud resources by companies, cloud providers have often been slow to plug vulnerabilities.
The key is to fix the root causes, which is the initial vector, and to increase the number of steps that they attacker needs to take. Proper security controls can make sure that even if there is an initial attack vector, you are still not able to reach the crown jewels.
The report analysed data from Orca's security research team using data from a "billions of cloud assets on AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud," which the company's customers regularly scan. The data included cloud workload and configuration data, environment data, and information on assets collected in the first half of 2022.
https://www.darkreading.com/cloud/cyberattackers-compromise-most-cloud-data-3-steps
Cyber Insurance Premiums Soar 80% As Claims Surge
Cyber insurance premiums have soared in the past year as claims surged in response to a rise in damaging attacks by hackers.
The cost of taking out cyber cover had doubled on average every year for the past three years, said global insurance broker Marsh. Honan Group, another broker, pointed to an 80 per cent rise in premiums in the past 12 months, following a 20 per cent increase in the cost of cover in each of the previous two years.
Brokers are calling cyber “the new D&O”, referring to sharp rises in directors and officers insurance premiums since 2018. Brokers were hopeful premiums would ease, but have warned insurers would continue to demand companies prove they had strong security systems and policies in place before agreeing to sell them insurance.
There’ll be a number of insurance companies that won’t even look at a business that doesn’t have a bunch of security measures in place. They’ll just turn around and say, ‘we’re not going to insure you’. The chief reason for the price rises is the increase in the number and size of claims relating to ransomware, where criminals use malicious software to block access to an organisation’s computer system until a sum of money is paid. In addition, some insurers left the market, while remaining players attempted to recoup the cost of under-priced contracts written in previous years.
The rise in the premiums is mainly due to ransomware and cyber attacks across the board have risen sharply over the past few years.
One In 10 Employees Leaks Sensitive Company Data Every 6 Months
Departing employees are most likely to leak sensitive information to competitors, criminals or the media in exchange for cash.
Insider threats are an ongoing menace that enterprise security teams need to handle. It's a global problem but especially acute in the US, with 47 million Americans quitting their jobs in 2021. The threat of ex-employees taking sensitive information to competitors, selling it to criminals in exchange for cash, and leaking files to media is making data exfiltration a growing concern.
About 1.4 million people who handle sensitive information in their organisation globally were tracked over the period from January to June 30 this year by cyber security firm Cyberhaven to find out when, how and who is involved in data exfiltration.
On average, 2.5% of employees exfiltrate sensitive information in a month, but over a six-month period, nearly one in 10, or 9.4% of employees, do so, Cyberhaven noted in its report. Data exfiltration incidents occur when data is transferred outside the organisation in unapproved ways.
Among employees that exfiltrated data, the top 1% most prolific “super stealers” were responsible for 7.7% of incidents, and the top 10% were responsible for 34.9% of incidents.
North America accounted for the highest number of incidents at 44%, followed by the Asia Pacific region at 27%. Europe, the Middle East, and Africa accounted for 24% of incidents while 5% of incidents were recorded in South America.
Business Application Compromise and the Evolving Art of Social Engineering
Social engineering is hardly a new concept, even in the world of cyber security. Phishing scams alone have been around for nearly 30 years, with attackers consistently finding new ways to entice victims into clicking a link, downloading a file, or providing sensitive information.
Business email compromise (BEC) attacks iterated on this concept by having the attacker gain access to a legitimate email account and impersonate its owner. Attackers reason that victims won't question an email that comes from a trusted source — and all too often, they're right.
But email isn't the only effective means cyber criminals use to engage in social engineering attacks. Modern businesses rely on a range of digital applications, from cloud services and VPNs to communications tools and financial services. What's more, these applications are interconnected, so an attacker who can compromise one can compromise others, too. Organisations can't afford to focus exclusively on phishing and BEC attacks — not when business application compromise (BAC) is on the rise.
SMBs Are Hardest-Hit By Ransomware
Coalition announced the mid-year update to its 2022 Cyber Claims Report detailing the evolution of cyber trends, revealing that small businesses have become bigger targets, overall incidents are down, and ransomware attacks are declining as demands go unpaid.
During the first half of 2022, the average cost of a claim for a small business owner increased to $139,000, which is 58% higher than levels during the first half of 2021.
“Across industries, we continue to see high-profile attacks targeting organisations with weak or exposed infrastructure — which has become exacerbated by today’s remote working culture and companies’ dependence on third-party vendors,” said Coalition’s Head of Claims.
“Small businesses are especially vulnerable because they often lack resources. For these businesses, avoiding downtime and disruption is essential, and they must understand that Active Insurance is accessible.”
The good news: both Coalition and the broader insurance industry observed a decrease in ransomware attack frequency and the amount of ransom demanded between the second half of 2021 and the first half of 2022. Ransomware demands decreased from $1.37M in H2 2021 to $896,000 in H1 2022.
“Organisations are increasingly aware of the threat ransomware poses. They have started to implement controls such as offline data backups that allow them to refuse to pay the ransom and restore operations through other means,” said Coalition’s Head of Incident Response. “As ransomware is on the decline, attackers are turning to reliable methods. Phishing, for example, has skyrocketed – and only continues to grow.”
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2022/09/15/small-businesses-ransomware-targets/
65% Say Legacy Backup Solutions Aren’t Up To Ransomware Challenges
HYCU researchers are reporting 65% of respondents lack full confidence in their legacy backup solutions (HYCU is a multi-cloud backup-as-a-service provider).
According to the report, 65% of surveyed enterprise organisations are increasing spending on detection, prevention and recovery, and respondents are beginning to understand that air-gapped or immutable backups are the only ways to ensure that the backups themselves don’t fall prey to encryption worms when ransomware hits.
Key findings include:
52% of ransomware victims suffered data loss
63% of victims suffered an operational disruption
Just 41% air gap their backups
Just 47% routinely test their backups
Only 35% of respondents believe their current backup and recovery tools are sufficient.
Four-Fifths of Firms Hit by Critical Cloud Security Incident
Some 80% of organisations suffered a “severe” cloud security incident over the past year, while a quarter worry they’ve suffered a cloud data breach and aren’t aware of it, according to new research from Snyk.
The developer security specialist polled 400 cloud engineering and security practitioners from organisations of various sizes and sectors, to compile its State of Cloud Security Report.
Among the incidents flagged by respondents over the past 12 months were breaches, leaks, intrusions, crypto-mining, compliance violations, failed audits and system downtime in the cloud.
Startups (89%) and public sector organisations (88%) were the most likely to have suffered such an incident over the period.
The bad news is that 58% of respondents predict they will suffer another severe incident in the cloud over the coming year. Over three-quarters (77%) of those questioned cited poor training and collaboration as a major challenge in this regard.
“Many cloud security failures result from a lack of effective cross-team collaboration and team training. When different teams use different tools or policy frameworks, reconciling work across those teams and ensuring consistent enforcement can be challenging,” the report argued.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/fourfifths-firms-critical-cloud/
Homeworkers Putting Home and Business Cyber Safety at Risk
BlackBerry published a European research report exposing the cyber security risk created by cost-conscious homeworkers who prioritise security behind price, usability and ease of set up in their purchase of domestic smart devices.
32% of European home workers who own a smart device surveyed said security was a top three factor when choosing a smart device, compared to 50% who prioritised price. 28% of businesses aren’t putting adequate security provisions in place to extend cyber protection as far as homes. This heightens the risk of cyber attacks for businesses and their employees, as hybrid and home working become the norm.
The survey of 4,000 home workers in the UK, France, Germany, and the Netherlands revealed that 28% of people say that their employer has not done or communicated anything about protecting their home network or smart devices, or they don’t know if they are protected.
Furthermore, 75% of Europeans say their employers have taken no steps to secure the home internet connection or provide software protection for home devices. This failure to extend network security to home devices increases risk of the vulnerabilities created by hybrid and home working being successfully exploited. These are particularly sobering findings for small and mid-sized businesses who face upwards of eleven cyber attacks per device, per day, according to the research.
Through even the most innocent of devices, bad actors can access home networks with connections to company devices – or company data on consumer devices – and seize the opportunity to steal data and intellectual property worth millions. It’s likely businesses will bear the brunt of cyber attacks caused by unsecured home devices, with knock-on effects to employees themselves.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2022/09/12/homeworkers-smart-devices-security/
Uber Hacked, Internal Systems Breached and Vulnerability Reports Stolen
Uber suffered a cyber attack Thursday afternoon with an allegedly 18-year-old hacker downloading HackerOne vulnerability reports and sharing screenshots of the company's internal systems, email dashboard, and Slack server.
The screenshots shared by the hacker and seen by BleepingComputer show what appears to be full access to many critical Uber IT systems, including the company's security software and Windows domain.
Other systems accessed by the hacker include the company's Amazon Web Services console, VMware vSphere/ESXi virtual machines, and the Google Workspace admin dashboard for managing the Uber email accounts.
The threat actor also breached the Uber Slack server, which he used to post messages to employees stating that the company was hacked. However, screenshots from Uber's slack indicate that these announcements were first met with memes and jokes as employees had not realised an actual cyber attack was taking place.
Uber has since confirmed the attack, tweeting that they are in touch with law enforcement and will post additional information as it becomes available. "We are currently responding to a cyber security incident. We are in touch with law enforcement and will post additional updates here as they become available," tweeted the Uber Communications account.
The New York Times, which first reported on the breach, said they spoke to the threat actor, who said they breached Uber after performing a social engineering attack on an employee and stealing their password. The threat actor then gained access to the company's internal systems using the stolen credentials.
IHG Hack: 'Vindictive' Couple Deleted Hotel Chain Data for Fun
Hackers have told the BBC they carried out a destructive cyber-attack against Holiday Inn owner Intercontinental Hotels Group (IHG) "for fun".
Describing themselves as a couple from Vietnam, they say they first tried a ransomware attack, then deleted large amounts of data when they were foiled. They accessed the FTSE 100 firm's databases thanks to an easily found and weak password, Qwerty1234. An expert says the case highlights the vindictive side of criminal hackers.
UK-based IHG operates 6,000 hotels around the world, including the Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza and Regent brands. On Monday last week, customers reported widespread problems with booking and check-in. For 24 hours IHG responded to complaints on social media by saying that the company was "undergoing system maintenance".
Then on the Tuesday afternoon it told investors that it had been hacked.
Threats
Ransomware and Extortion
How prepared are organisations to tackle ransomware attacks? - Help Net Security
Lorenz ransomware breaches corporate network via phone systems (bleepingcomputer.com)
3 Iranian nationals are accused of ransomware attacks on US victims (cnbc.com)
Emotet botnet now pushes Quantum and BlackCat ransomware (bleepingcomputer.com)
Cisco confirms Yanluowang ransomware leaked stolen company data (bleepingcomputer.com)
DEV-0270 Hacker Group Uses Windows BitLocker Feature to Encrypt Systems (gbhackers.com)
New York ambulance service discloses data breach after ransomware attack (bleepingcomputer.com)
The ransomware problem won't get better until we change one thing | ZDNET
Iranian Hackers Used Victims’ Printers to Issue Ransom Demands, DOJ Says (vice.com)
Transparency, disclosure key to fighting ransomware (techtarget.com)
Cisco Data Breach Attributed to Lapsus$ Ransomware Group (darkreading.com)
Ransomware Group Leaks Files Stolen From Cisco | SecurityWeek.Com
Phishing & Email Based Attacks
Revolut hit by ‘phishing’ cyber attack | Business | The Times
Phishing page embeds keylogger to steal passwords as you type (bleepingcomputer.com)
Hackers now use ‘sock puppets’ for more realistic phishing attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
Phishers take aim at Facebook page owners - Help Net Security
Real Estate Phish Swallows 1,000s of Microsoft 365 Credentials (darkreading.com)
Death of Queen Elizabeth II exploited to steal Microsoft credentials (bleepingcomputer.com)
Other Social Engineering; Smishing, Vishing, etc
Malware
Hackers Are Using WeTransfer Links To Spread Malware (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
New malware bundle self-spreads through YouTube gaming videos (bleepingcomputer.com)
Linux variant of the SideWalk backdoor discovered - Help Net Security
Malware on Pirated Content Sites a Major WFH Risk for Enterprises (darkreading.com)
How to spot and avoid scams and malware in search results - The Washington Post
Gay hookup site typosquatted to push dodgy Chrome extensions, scams (bleepingcomputer.com)
Mobile
Google Patches Critical Vulnerabilities in Pixel Phones | SecurityWeek.Com
Apple patches iPhone and macOS flaws under active attack • The Register
Internet of Things – IoT
Securing your IoT devices against cyber attacks in 5 steps (bleepingcomputer.com)
EU Wants to Toughen Cyber Security Rules for Smart Devices | SecurityWeek.Com
Data Breaches/Leaks
Uber hacked, internal systems breached and vulnerability reports stolen (bleepingcomputer.com)
LastPass says hackers had internal access for four days (bleepingcomputer.com)
Hacker sells stolen Starbucks data of 219,000 Singapore customers (bleepingcomputer.com)
U-Haul discloses data breach exposing customer driver licenses (bleepingcomputer.com)
Organised Crime & Criminal Actors
Chinese-linked cyber crims nab $529 million from India • The Register
Cyber Crime Forum Admins Steal from Site Users - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs/Blockchain
Police arrest man for laundering tens of millions in stolen crypto (bleepingcomputer.com)
Hackers Targeting WebLogic Servers and Docker APIs for Mining Cryptocurrencies (thehackernews.com)
Fake cryptocurrency giveaway sites have tripled this year (bleepingcomputer.com)
A Post-exploitation Look at Coinminers Abusing WebLogic Vulnerabilities (trendmicro.com)
DOJ drops report on cryptocurrency crime efforts (techtarget.com)
76% Of Financial Institutions Plan On Using Crypto In The Next 3 Years (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
How Can You Tell if a Cryptocurrency is Legitimate? Read Our Guide To Find Out - IT Security Guru
Insider Risk and Insider Threats
5 Ways to Mitigate Your New Insider Threats in the Great Resignation (thehackernews.com)
Ex-Broadcom engineer asks for no prison in trade secret case • The Register
Fraud, Scams & Financial Crime
Microsoft Edge’s News Feed ads abused for tech support scams (bleepingcomputer.com)
Cops Raid Suspected Fraudster Penthouses - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
How to spot and avoid scams and malware in search results - The Washington Post
Tax fraud ring leader jailed for selling children’s stolen identities (bleepingcomputer.com)
AML/CFT/Sanctions
Insurance
Dark Web
Supply Chain and Third Parties
Hackers breach software vendor for Magento supply-chain attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
WordPress sites backdoored after FishPig supply chain attack • The Register
Denial of Service DoS/DDoS
Cloud/SaaS
5 ways to improve your cloud security posture (techtarget.com)
Excess privilege in the cloud is a universal security problem, IBM says | CSO Online
Organisations lack visibility into unauthorised public cloud data access - Help Net Security
One-third of enterprises don’t encrypt sensitive data in the cloud | CSO Online
Attack Surface Management
Cyber attack trends vs. growing IT complexity - Help Net Security
Outdated infrastructure remains a problem against sophisticated cyber attacks - Help Net Security
Shadow IT
Encryption
API
Hackers Targeting WebLogic Servers and Docker APIs for Mining Cryptocurrencies (thehackernews.com)
API security—and even visibility—isn’t getting handled by enterprises | CSO Online
Bad bots are coming at APIs! How to beat the API bot attacks? - Help Net Security
Open Source
When It Comes to Security, Don’t Overlook Your Linux Systems | SecurityWeek.Com
40% of pros scaled back back open source use over security • The Register
You never walk alone: The SideWalk backdoor gets a Linux variant | WeLiveSecurity
Passwords, Credential Stuffing & Brute Force Attacks
Social Media
Thwarting attackers in their favourite new playground: Social media - Help Net Security
Cyber attackers Abuse Facebook Ad Manager in Savvy Credential-Harvesting Campaign (darkreading.com)
Training, Education and Awareness
Parental Controls and Child Safety
Regulations, Fines and Legislation
Models, Frameworks and Standards
Spyware, Cyber Espionage & Cyber Warfare, including Russian Invasion of Ukraine
Nation State Actors
Nation State Actors – Russia
Montenegro Wrestles With Massive Cyber Attack, Russia Blamed | SecurityWeek.Com
Russia’s cyber future connected at the waist to Soviet military industrial complex | CSO Online
Nation State Actors – North Korea
Nation State Actors – Iran
Iranian cyber spies use multi-persona impersonation in phishing threads | CSO Online
Albania says Iranian hackers hit the country with another cyber attack - CyberScoop
US, UK, Canada and Australia Link Iranian Government Agency to Ransomware Attacks | SecurityWeek.Com
Iranian Hackers Used Victims’ Printers to Issue Ransom Demands, DOJ Says (vice.com)
Vulnerability Management
Vulnerabilities
Adobe Patches 63 Security Flaws in Patch Tuesday Bundle | SecurityWeek.Com
CISA orders agencies to patch vulnerability used in Stuxnet attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
Chrome 105 Update Patches High-Severity Vulnerabilities | SecurityWeek.Com
Microsoft Teams stores auth tokens as cleartext in Windows, Linux, Macs (bleepingcomputer.com)
Microsoft Quashes Actively Exploited Zero-Day, Wormable Critical Bugs (darkreading.com)
Apple fixed the eighth actively exploited zero-day this year - Security Affairs
Cisco Patches High-Severity Vulnerability in SD-WAN vManage | SecurityWeek.Com
Over 280,000 WordPress sites may have been hijacked by zero-day hiding in popular plugin | TechRadar
High-Severity Firmware Security Flaws Left Unpatched in HP Enterprise Devices (thehackernews.com)
CISA added 2 more security flaws to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog - Security Affairs
ManageEngine Password Management Vulnerability and Patch: Details for MSPs, MSSPs - MSSP Alert
Reports Published in the Last Week
Other News
MSPs and cyber security: The time for turning a blind eye is over - Help Net Security
Organisations should fear misconfigurations more than vulnerabilities - Help Net Security
Companies need data privacy plan before joining metaverse (techtarget.com)
Lens reflections may betray your secrets in Zoom video calls • The Register
US Government Wants Security Guarantees From Software Vendors | SecurityWeek.Com
The Cyber Security Head Game | Psychology Today South Africa
Cyber Security Report: Average Data Breach in US Costs $9.4 Million - MSSP Alert
5 Best Practices for Building Your Data Loss Prevention Strategy (darkreading.com)
Hands-on cyber attacks jump 50%, CrowdStrike reports | CSO Online
Penetration Testing Report: Security Misconfiguration Is "Top Vulnerability" - MSSP Alert
Twitter whistleblower: Lack of access, data controls invite exploitation | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
Cost of Living Crisis Impact on Online Activity - IT Security Guru
Attacker Apparently Didn't Have to Breach a Single System to Pwn Uber (darkreading.com)
Zoom outage left users unable to sign in or join meetings (bleepingcomputer.com)
Five ways your data may be at risk — and what to do about it (bleepingcomputer.com)
Twitter's ex-security boss Zatko disses biz as dysfunctional • The Register
Don't Let Your Home Wi-Fi Get Hacked. Here's What to Do - CNET
How serious are organisations about their data sovereignty strategies? - Help Net Security
Undermining Microsoft Teams Security By Mining Tokens (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Sector Specific
Industry specific threat intelligence reports are available.
Contact us to receive tailored reports specific to the industry/sector and geographies you operate in.
· 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 Cyber Threat Briefing 10 June 2022
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 10 June 2022
-Business Email Compromise (BEC) Attacks Have Risen 53% Year-Over-Year
-Ransomware Attacks Setting New Records
-Hackers Are Now Hiding Inside Networks for Longer. That's Not a Good Sign
-Paying Ransomware Paints Bigger Bullseye on Target’s Back
-Organisations Fix Only 1 in 10 Vulnerabilities Monthly
-Cyber Attack Surface "Spiralling Out of Control"
-Phishing Hits All-Time High in Q1 2022
-Ransomware's ROI Retreat Will Drive More BEC Attacks
-The Real Cost of Cyber Attacks: What Organisations Should Be Prepared For
-Why Smishing and Vishing Attempts Surged In 2021?
-Know Your Enemy! Learn How Cyber Crime Adversaries Get In…
-Small Businesses Struggle with an Increase in Cyber Attacks
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
Business Email Compromise (BEC) Attacks Have Risen 53% Year-Over-Year
Armorblox released a report which highlights the use of language-based attacks that bypass existing email security controls. The report uncovers how the continued increase in remote working has made critical business workflows even more vulnerable to new forms of email-based attacks, often resulting in financial fraud or credential theft.
Language-based attacks have become the new normal for business email compromise (BEC) with 74% of these attacks using language as the main attack vector.
Security teams spend a massive amount of time configuring rules and exceptions in their email security solutions to block impersonation emails – both for executives and other employees. Despite all of that manual work and rule writing, 70% of impersonation emails evaded email security controls.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2022/06/06/language-based-attacks-email-video/
Ransomware Attacks Setting New Records
Zscaler released the findings of its annual ThreatLabz Ransomware Report, which revealed an 80 percent increase in ransomware attacks year-over-year.
In 2022, the most prevalent ransomware trends include double-extortion, supply chain attacks, ransomware-as-a-service, ransomware rebranding, and geo-political incited ransomware attacks. The report details which industries are being targeted the most by cyber criminals, explains the damage caused by double-extortion and supply chain attacks, and catalogues the most active ransomware groups operating today.
Modern ransomware attacks require a single successful asset compromise to gain initial entry, move laterally, and breach the entire environment, making legacy VPN and flat networks extremely vulnerable. Attackers are finding success exploiting weaknesses across businesses’ supply chains as well as critical vulnerabilities like Log4Shell, PrintNightmare, and others. And with ransomware-as-a-service available on the darkweb, more and more criminals are turning to ransomware, realising that the odds of receiving a big payday are high.
The tactics and scope of ransomware attacks have been steadily evolving, but the end goal continues to be a disruption of the target organisation and theft of sensitive information for the purposes of ransom. The size of the ransom often depends on the number of systems infected and the value of the data stolen: the higher the stakes, the higher the payment. In 2019, many ransomware groups updated their tactics to include data exfiltration, commonly referred to as a ‘double extortion’ ransomware.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2022/06/07/ransomware-attacks-increase/
Hackers Are Now Hiding Inside Networks for Longer. That's Not a Good Sign
Cyber criminals are spending more time inside networks before they're discovered, and that's allowing them to do more damage.
The amount of time cyber criminal intruders are spending inside victims' networks is increasing, providing them with the ability to carry out higher complexity campaigns and more damaging cyber attacks.
According to analysis by cyber security researchers at Sophos, who examined incidents targeting organisations around the world and across a wide range of industry sectors, the median dwell time that cyber criminals spend inside compromised networks is now 15 days, up from 11 days the previous year.
Dwell time is the amount of time hackers are inside the network before they're discovered or before they leave – and being able to spend an increased amount of time inside a compromised network undetected means they're able to more carefully conduct malicious activity, such as monitoring users, stealing data or laying the foundations for a malware or ransomware attack.
Paying Ransomware Paints Bigger Bullseye on Target’s Back
Ransomware attackers often strike targets twice, regardless of whether the ransom was paid.
Paying ransomware attackers doesn’t pay off and often paints a bigger target on a victim’s back. Eighty percent of ransomware victims that paid their attackers were hit a second time by the malware scourge.
New ransomware numbers come from a Cybereason’s April ransomware survey of 1,456 cyber security professionals. According to the gated report (registration required), victims that were successfully extorted were not only targeted a second time, but frequently data encrypted by criminals later became unusable during the decryption process because of corruption issues.
The fact that ransomware gangs strike so quickly a second and third time isn’t surprising, because they will try to profit in any possible way so why not hit the same company, demand a higher ransom, and get paid again?
https://threatpost.com/paying-ransomware-bullseye-back/179915/
Organisations Fix Only 1 in 10 Vulnerabilities Monthly
New research from SecurityScorecard features a couple of eye-popping “only” findings: Only 10 percent of vulnerabilities are remediated each month, and only 60 percent of companies have improved their security profile despite a 15-fold increase in the number of cyber incidents in the last three years.
That’s not good. The research, which sought to measure how long it took the 1.6 million organisations assessed to remediate vulnerabilities in the three-year period from 2019 to 2022, also found the following:
· 53% had at least one exposed vulnerability to the internet, while 22% of organisations amassed more than 1,000 vulnerabilities each, confirming more progress is required to protect organisations’ critical assets.
· The financial sector is among the slowest remediation rates (median to fix 50% = 426 days), while utilities ranked among the fastest (median = 270 days).
· Despite a 15-fold increase in exploitation activity for vulnerabilities with published exploit code, there was little evidence that organisations in the financial sector fixed exploited flaws faster.
· The IT sector (62.6%) and public sector (61.6%) had the highest prevalence of open vulnerabilities.
· The financial sector (48.6%) exhibited the lowest proportion of open vulnerabilities; however, there is less than a 10% difference between this and other sectors in terms of industries with the most open vulnerabilities.
· It typically takes organisations 12 months to remediate half of the vulnerabilities in their internet-facing infrastructure.
· When firms have fewer than 10 open vulnerabilities, it can take about a month to close just half of them, but when the list grows into the hundreds, it takes up to a year to reach the halfway point.
Cyber Attack Surface "Spiralling Out of Control"
Global organisations are still beset with cyber visibility and control challenges, with two-fifths (43%) admitting their digital attack surface is out of control as a result, according to new Trend Micro research.
The security vendor polled over 6200 IT and business decision-makers to compile its new study, ‘Mapping the digital attack surface: Why global organisations are struggling to manage cyber risk’.
It revealed that nearly three-quarters (73%) are concerned about the increasing size of their attack surface. Over a third (37%) said it is “constantly evolving and messy,” and just half (51%) thought they were able to fully define its extent.
These visibility challenges are greatest in cloud environments, although problems persist across the board. The report highlights complex supply chains, tool bloat and home working-driven shadow IT as additional contributory factors.
On average, respondents estimated having just 62% visibility of their attack surface.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/cyberattack-surface-out-of-control/
Phishing Hits All-Time High in Q1 2022
The first quarter of 2022 saw phishing attacks hit a record high, topping one million for the first time, according to data from the Anti Phishing Working Group (APWG).
The industry, law enforcement and government coalition’s new Phishing Activity Trends Report also revealed that March was the worst month on record for phishing, with 384,291 attacks detected.
The financial sector was the worst hit, accounting for 24% of all detected attacks, although webmail and SaaS providers were also popular targets.
Attacks spoofing retailers dropped 17% from the previous quarter to 15% following the busy holiday shopping season, while those against social media services rose significantly, from nearly 9% percent of all attacks to 13% over the same period.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/phishing-hits-all-time-high-q1/
Ransomware's ROI Retreat Will Drive More BEC Attacks
Law enforcement crackdowns, tighter cryptocurrency regulations, and ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) operator shutdowns are driving down the return on investment for ransomware operations across the globe.
A presentation at the RSA Conference last week laid out analysis of the ransomware threat landscape, predicting that there will be a pivot from ransomware toward renewed interest in basic business email compromise (BEC) attacks in the next 6 to 12 months.
Ransomware attacks grab headlines and have been supercharged by a few prolific RaaS operators, but crackdowns on just one group can make an enormous dent.
Ransomware is a centralised ecosystem with small numbers of operators responsible for the majority of attacks.
The recent disappearance of Pysa, left just two groups, Conti and Lockbit, with more than 50% of the share of the total ransomware attacks in the first half of 2022. BEC groups, on the other hand, are diffuse and scattered, making them much harder to eradicate.
Although they're not as quick to make the headlines, BEC attacks have cost business more than $43 billion since 2016, according to the FBI, and make up $1 out of every $3 lost to cyber attacks, far outpacing ransomware losses.
Ransomware has had a moment over the past couple of years, in part because once threat actors were able to abandon arcane wire transfers to collect ransoms and rely on cryptocurrency, caps on transactions were lifted and it became simple to collect much larger amounts. But new crypto regulations are chilling the ability of these cyber criminals to rely on its infrastructure to do business, adding "friction" to the transactions.
BEC attacks, by comparison, rely on social engineering to corrupt a business's financial supply chain to get employees to willingly part with the cash, making them exponentially harder to track and stop.
The Real Cost of Cyber Attacks: What Organisations Should Be Prepared For
With each passing year, hackers and cyber criminals of all kinds are becoming more sophisticated, malicious, and greedy conducting brazen and often destructive cyber-attacks that can severely disrupt a company’s business operations. And this is a big problem, because, first and foremost, customers rely on a company’s ability to deliver services or products in a timely manner. Cyber attacks not only can affect customers’ data, but they can impact service delivery.
Data breaches and costs associated with them have been on the rise for the past few years, but, according to a 2021 report, the average cost per breach increased from $3.86 million in 2020 to $4.24 million in 2021. The report also identified four categories contributing most global data breach costs – Lost business cost (38%), Detection and escalation (29%), Post breach response (27%), and Notification (6%).
Ransomware attacks cost an average of $4.62 million (the cost of a ransom is not included), and destructive wiper-style attacks cost an average of $4.69 million, the report said.
For a business, a data breach is not just a loss of data, it can also have a long-lasting impact on operations and undermine customers’ trust in the company. In fact, a survey revealed that 87% of consumers are willing to take their business elsewhere if they don’t trust a company is handling their data responsibly. Therefore, the reputational damage might be detrimental to a business’ ability to attract new customers.
Why Smishing and Vishing Attempts Surged In 2021
In The Human Factor Report 2022, security vendor Proofpoint found that SMS phishing (smishing) attacks more than doubled year-on-year in 2021. The report is based on their analysis of over 2.6 billion email messages, 49 billion URLs, 1.9 billion attachments, 28 million cloud accounts and 1.7 billion mobile messages.
The study details the most common attack surfaces and methods including categories of risk, vulnerabilities, attacks, Russian Aligned APT’s, and Privilege as a vector.
Key Findings:
Managers and executives make up only 10% of users, but almost 50% of the most severe attack risk
Attackers attempt to initiate more than 100,000 telephone-oriented attacks every day.
Malicious URLS are 3-4x more common than malicious attachments.
Smishing attempts more than doubled in the US over the year, while in the UK over 50% of lures are themed around delivery notification.
More than 20 million messages attempted to deliver malware linked to eventual ransomware attack
Data loss prevention alerts have stabilised as businesses adopt permanent hybrid work models.
80% of businesses are attacked by a compromised supplier account in any given month.
35% of cloud tenants that received a suspicious login also saw suspicious post-access activity.
Know Your Enemy! Learn How Cyber Crime Adversaries Get In…
Cyber security vendor Sophos dug into the incident reports of 144 real-life cyber attacks investigated by its Rapid Response team during 2021.
What they found might not surprise you, but it’s vital information nevertheless, because it’s what really happened, not merely what might have.
Notably:
Unpatched vulnerabilities were the entry point for close to 50% of the attackers.
Attackers stuck around for more than a month on average when ransomware wasn’t their primary goal.
Attackers were known to have stolen data in about 40% of incidents. (Not all data thefts can be proved, of course, given that there isn’t a gaping hole where your copy of the data used to be, so the true number could be much higher.)
RDP was abused to circumnavigate the network by more than 80% of attackers once they’d broken in.
Intriguingly, if perhaps unsurprisingly, the smaller the organisation, the longer the crooks had generally been in the network before anyone noticed and decided it was time to kick them out.
In businesses with 250 staff and below, the crooks stuck around (in the jargon, this is known by the quaintly archaic automotive metaphor of dwell time) for more than seven weeks on average.
This compared with an average dwell time of just under three weeks for organisations with more than 3000 employees.
As you can imagine, however, ransomware criminals typically stayed hidden for much shorter periods (just under two weeks, instead of just over a month), not least because ransomware attacks are inherently self-limiting.
After all, once ransomware crooks have scrambled all your data, they’re out of hiding and straight into their in-your-face blackmail phase.
https://nakedsecurity.sophos.com/2022/06/07/know-your-enemy-learn-how-cybercrime-adversaries-get-in/
Small Businesses Struggle with an Increase in Cyber Attacks
Part of the problem: They don’t believe they are targets, so they don’t make security a priority. Cyber attacks are becoming more common for small businesses, and many aren’t prepared to deal with an attack.
As small businesses have accelerated their adoption of new technologies for remote work, communication, production and sales during the pandemic, their expanded computer networks have created new vulnerabilities to phishing and ransomware attacks. But many small businesses still don’t expect to be targeted by hackers, so preparing for a cyber attack is well down their list of priorities.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/small-business-cyberattacks-increase-11654540786
Threats
Ransomware
Ransomware attacks have increased by 80% year-over-year - Help Net Security
How the Russia-Ukraine war makes ransomware payments harder | CSO Online
How Poor Communication Opens the Door to Ransomware and Extortion (darkreading.com)
Cuba ransomware returns to extorting victims with updated encryptor (bleepingcomputer.com)
Vice Society gang adds the Italian City of Palermo to its data leak site - Security Affairs
Qbot - known channel for ransomware - delivered via phishing and Follina exploit - Help Net Security
Black Basta Ransomware Targets ESXi Servers in Active Campaign (darkreading.com)
Mandiant: Cyber extortion schemes increasing pressure to pay (techtarget.com)
Roblox Game Pass store used to sell ransomware decryptor (bleepingcomputer.com)
Costa Rican government held up by ransomware … again • The Register
BEEF ALERT: Ransomware Group Very Mad at Being Associated with Lavish Russian Hackers (vice.com)
Ransomware Pressure Forcing UK CISOs to Consider Quitting - Infosecurity Magazine
BEC – Business Email Compromise
Phishing & Email Based Attacks
Evasive phishing mixes reverse tunnels and URL shortening services (bleepingcomputer.com)
Proofpoint: We Block Up to Two Million Extortion Emails Daily - Infosecurity Magazine
Massive Facebook Messenger phishing operation generates millions (bleepingcomputer.com)
Facebook phishing campaign nets millions in IDs and cash • The Register
Other Social Engineering
Malware
Symantec sees more malware operators exploiting Follina • The Register
Potent Emotet Variant Spreads Via Stolen Email Credentials | Threatpost
Symbiote Malware Poses Stealthy, Linux-Based Threat to Financial Industry (darkreading.com)
This advanced new malware strain leaves you practically defenceless | TechRadar
MacOS malware attacks slipping through the cracks (techtarget.com)
11 infamous malware attacks: The first and the worst | CSO Online
9 types of computer virus and how they do their dirty work | CSO Online
Mobile
IoT
New Privacy Framework for IoT Devices Gives Users Control Over Data Sharing (thehackernews.com)
How to Compromise a Printer in Three Simple Steps | CrowdStrike
Data Breaches/Leaks
Organised Crime & Criminal Actors
Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs
Researchers Detail How Cyber Criminals Targeting Cryptocurrency Users (thehackernews.com)
7 NFT Scams That Could Be Targeting Your Brand (darkreading.com)
Hackers stole +$250,000 in Ethereum from Bored Ape Yacht ClubSecurity Affairs
Fraud, Scams & Financial Crime
Pandemic-related identity fraud: How serious is it? - Help Net Security
Apple Release 2021 Fraud Prevention Analysis- IT Security Guru
AML/CFT/Sanctions
Insurance
Dark Web
Software Supply Chain
82% of CIOs believe their software supply chains are vulnerable - Help Net Security
Boards, CEOs demand software supply chain security improvements - Help Net Security
Denial of Service DoS/DDoS
Cloud/SaaS
Cloud Security Tops Ransomware As Primary RSA Conference Attendee Concern - MSSP Alert
Only 13.5% of IT pros have mastered security in the cloud native space - Help Net Security
OMIGOD: Cloud providers still using secret middleware • The Register
Attack Surface Management
Open Source
Privacy
Researchers Find Bluetooth Signals Can be Fingerprinted to Track Smartphones (thehackernews.com)
New Privacy Framework for IoT Devices Gives Users Control Over Data Sharing (thehackernews.com)
Parental Controls and Child Safety
Law Enforcement Action and Take Downs
Spyware, Espionage & Cyber Warfare, including Russian Invasion of Ukraine
“Cyber Spetsnaz” is Attacking Government Agencies - Security Affairs
Russian Ministry Website Reportedly Hacked- IT Security Guru
Ordinary Ukrainians wage war with digital tools and drones | Financial Times (ft.com)
Ukraine's secret cyber-defence: Excellent backups • The Register
Major DDoS attacks increasing after invasion of Ukraine (techtarget.com)
Nation State Actors
Nation State Actors – Russia
Russia escalates threats against West in response to cyber attacks - CyberScoop
Russia, China, oppose US cyber support of Ukraine • The Register
Nation State Actors – China
Russia, China, oppose US cyber support of Ukraine • The Register
Chinese hacking group Aoqin Dragon quietly spied orgs for a decade (bleepingcomputer.com)
People’s Republic of China State-Sponsored Cyber Actors Exploit Network Providers and Devices | CISA
US: Chinese govt hackers breached telcos to snoop on network traffic (bleepingcomputer.com)
Nation State Actors – Iran
Microsoft seized 41 domains used by Iran-linked Bohrium APT - Security Affairs
Iranian hackers target energy sector with new DNS backdoor (bleepingcomputer.com)
Nation State Actors – Misc APT
Vulnerability Management
Vulnerabilities
Windows zero-day exploited in US local govt phishing attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
DogWalk zero-day Windows bug receives patch - but not from Microsoft (bitdefender.com)
Chrome 102 Update Patches High-Severity Vulnerabilities | SecurityWeek.Com
NSA, FBI warning: Hackers are using these flaws to target VPNs and network devices | ZDNet
Ubuntu Users Get a Massive Linux Kernel Update, 35 Security Vulnerabilities Patched - 9to5Linux
Critical U-Boot Vulnerability Allows Rooting of Embedded Systems | SecurityWeek.Com
Sector Specific
Financial Services Sector
Telecoms
US: Chinese govt hackers breached telcos to snoop on network traffic (bleepingcomputer.com)
People’s Republic of China State-Sponsored Cyber Actors Exploit Network Providers and Devices | CISA
Health/Medical/Pharma Sector
Healthcare-specific cyber security problems and how to address them - Help Net Security
Data for 2 million patients stolen in largest healthcare breach so far of 2022 (scmagazine.com)
Retail/eCommerce
Energy & Utilities
Iranian hackers target energy sector with new DNS backdoor (bleepingcomputer.com)
US Water Utilities Prime Cyber Attack Target, Experts | Threatpost
Education and Academia
Reports Published in the Last Week
Other News
This hacking group quietly spied on their targets for 10 years | ZDNet
Identity-based Attacks and Living-of-the-land Tactics Represent Top Threats - MSSP Alert
Over Half of CISOs Struggling for Board Investment - Infosecurity Magazine
Cisco EVP: Cyber security poverty line is human-rights issue • The Register
Top three most critical areas of web security - Help Net Security
How the Colonial Pipeline attack has changed cyber security | CSO Online
Five Eyes alliance’s top cop: tech is the future of Policing • The Register
An Emerging Threat: Attacking 5G Via Network Slices (darkreading.com)
How AI Is Useful — and Not Useful — for Cyber security (darkreading.com)
Only 43% of security pros can respond to critical alerts in less than an hour - Help Net Security
Now Is the Time to Plan for Post-Quantum Cryptography (darkreading.com)
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 Cyber Threat Briefing 27 May 2022
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 27 May 2022
-How Confident Are Companies in Managing Their Current Threat Exposure?
-'There's No Ceiling': Ransomware's Alarming Growth Signals a New Era, Verizon DBIR Finds
-Paying Ransom Doesn’t Guarantee Data Recovery
-Report: Frequency of Cyber Attacks in 2022 Has Increased by Almost 3M
-New Zoom Flaws Could Let Attackers Hack Victims Just by Sending them a Message
-VMware, Airline Targeted as Ransomware Chaos Reigns
-Crypto Hacks Aren't a Niche Concern; They Impact Wider Society
-State of Cyber Security Report 2022 Names Ransomware and Nation-State Attacks as Biggest Threats
-Vishing (Voice Phishing) Cases Reach All Time High
-DeFi (Decentralised Finance) Is Getting Pummelled by Cyber Criminals
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
How Confident Are Companies In Managing Their Current Threat Exposure?
Crossword Cybersecurity has released a report based on the findings of a survey of over 200 CISOs and senior UK cyber security professionals. The paper reveals companies are more concerned and exposed to cyber threats than ever before, with 61 percent describing themselves as at best only “fairly confident” at managing their current cyber security threat exposure, which should raise some eyebrows around the boardroom.
Respondents also feared their cyber strategy would not keep pace with the rate of tech innovation and changes in the threat landscape. 40 percent of organisations believe their existing cyber strategy will be outdated in two years, and a further 37 percent within three years. Additional investment is needed to address longer term planning, with 44 percent saying they only have sufficient resources in their organisation to focus on the immediate and mid-term cyber threats and tech trends.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2022/05/26/organizations-cyber-strategy/
'There's No Ceiling': Ransomware's Alarming Growth Signals A New Era, Verizon DBIR Finds
Ransomware has become so efficient, and the underground economy so professional, that traditional monetisation of stolen data may be on its way out.
The past year has seen a staggering acceleration in ransomware incidents, with 25% of all breaches containing a ransomware component.
That's the top-line finding in the 2022 Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report (DBIR), which found that ransomware events in conjunction with breaches ballooned 13% in the past year — last year's report found that just 12% of incidents were ransomware-related. That translates into a rate of increase that's more than the previous five years of growth combined.
The 15th annual DBIR analysed 23,896 security incidents, of which 5,212 were confirmed breaches. About four in five of those were the handiwork of external cyber criminal gangs and threat groups, according to Verizon. And according to Alex Pinto, manager of the Verizon Security Research team, these nefarious types are finding it easier and easier to earn an ill-gotten living with ransomware, making other types of breaches increasingly obsolete.
"Everything in cyber crime has become so commoditised, so much like a business now, and it's just too darn efficient of a methodology for monetising their activity," he tells Dark Reading, noting that with the emergence of ransomware as-a-service (RaaS) and initial-access brokers, it takes very little skill or effort to get into the extortion game.
"Before, you had to get in somehow, look around, and find something worth stealing that would have a reseller on the other end," he explains. "In 2008 when we started the DBIR, it was by and large payment-card data that was stolen. Now, that has fallen precipitously because they can just pay for access someone else established and install rented ransomware, and it's so much simpler to reach the same goal of getting money."
https://www.darkreading.com/attacks-breaches/ransomware-alarming-growth-verizon-dbir
Paying Ransom Doesn’t Guarantee Data Recovery
A Veeam report has found that 72% of organisations had partial or complete attacks on their backup repositories, dramatically impacting the ability to recover data without paying the ransom.
Additionally, 76% of organisations admitted to paying the ransom. But while 52% paid the ransom and were able to recover data, 24% paid the ransom but were still not able to recover data.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2022/05/24/paying-ransom-recover-data-video/
Report: Frequency Of Cyber Attacks in 2022 Has Increased By Almost 3M
Kaspersky has released a new report revealing a growing number of cyber attacks on small businesses in 2022 so far. Researchers compared the period between January and April 2022 to the same period in 2021, finding increases in the numbers of Trojan-PSW detections, internet attacks and attacks on Remote Desktop Protocol.
In 2022, the number of Trojan-PSW (Password Stealing Ware) detections increased globally by almost a quarter compared to the same period in 2021 一 4,003,323 to 3,029,903. Trojan-PSW is a malware that steals passwords, along with other account information, which then allows attackers to gain access to the company network and steal sensitive information.
Internet attacks grew from 32,500,000 globally in the analysed period of 2021 to almost 35,400,000 in 2022. These can include web pages with redirects to exploits, sites containing exploits and other malicious programs, botnet command & control centres and more.
The number of attacks on Remote Desktop Protocol grew in the U.S. (while dropping slightly globally), going from 47.5 million attacks in the first trimester of 2021 to 51 million in the same period of 2022. With the widespread shift toward remote work, many companies have introduced Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP), a technology that enables computers on the same corporate network to be linked together and accessed remotely, even when the employees are at home.
With small business owners typically handling numerous responsibilities at the same time, cyber security is often an afterthought. However, this disregard for IT security is being exploited by cyber criminals. The Kaspersky study sought to assess the threats that pose an increasing danger to entrepreneurs.
New Zoom Flaws Could Let Attackers Hack Victims Just By Sending Them A Message
Popular video conferencing service Zoom has resolved as many as four security vulnerabilities, which could be exploited to compromise another user over chat by sending specially crafted Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol (XMPP) messages and execute malicious code.
With Zoom's chat functionality built on top of the XMPP standard, successful exploitation of the issues could enable an attacker to force a vulnerable client to masquerade a Zoom user, connect to a malicious server, and even download a rogue update, resulting in arbitrary code execution stemming from a downgrade attack.
https://thehackernews.com/2022/05/new-zoom-flaws-could-let-attackers-hack.html
VMware, Airline Targeted As Ransomware Chaos Reigns
Global ransomware incidents target everything from enterprise servers to grounding an airline, with one India-based group even taking a Robin Hood approach to extortion with the "GoodWill" strain.
Ransomware incidents are on the rise and this week proved no exception, with the discovery of a Linux-based ransomware family called Cheerscrypt targeting VMware ESXi servers and an attack on SpiceJet, India’s second largest airline.
Meanwhile, an oddball "GoodWill" variant purports to help the needy.
The Cheerscrypt ransomware variant was uncovered by Trend Micro and relies on the double-extortion scheme to coerce victims to pay the ransom – i.e., stealing data as well and threatening to leak it if victims don’t pay up.
Because of the popularity of ESXi servers for creating and running multiple virtual machines (VMs) in enterprise settings, the Cheerscrypt ransomware could be appealing to malicious actors looking to rapidly distribute ransomware across many devices.
Meanwhile, low-cost carrier SpiceJet faced a ransomware attack this week, causing flight delays of between two and five hours as well as rendering unavailable online booking systems and customer service portals.
While the company’s IT team announced on Twitter that it had successfully prevented the attempted attack before it was able to fully breach all internal systems and take them over, customers and employees are still experiencing the ramifications.
https://www.darkreading.com/attacks-breaches/vmware-airline-targeted-as-ransomware-chaos-reigns
Crypto Hacks Aren't A Niche Concern; They Impact Wider Society
Million-dollar crypto heists are becoming more common as the currency starts to go mainstream; prevention and enforcement haven't kept pace.
The attack against the Ronin Network in March was quickly speculated to be one of the largest cryptocurrency hacks of all time. Approximately $540 million was stolen from the cryptocurrency and NFT games company in a combination of USDC and Etherium, with $400 million of the stolen funds owned by customers playing the game Axie Infinity.
This attack was the latest in a string of thefts perpetrated against crypto and should be a jolt to both the digital asset and cyber security communities to bring the security of cryptocurrencies into line.
The current vogue of large-scale crypto heists goes as far back as the 2014 Mt. Gox hack (another cryptocurrency exchange built around a game, Magic: The Gathering), which went into bankruptcy after losing $460 million of assets.
However, the trend has been gathering pace. In the months leading up to the Ronin Network attack, cyber criminals stole nearly $200 million worth of cryptocurrency from the crypto trading platform BitMart, attacked 400 Crypto.com users, and orchestrated NFT-related scams, to name but a few incidents.
There is often an uncomfortable tendency to see these attacks as something that takes place in isolation in a remote part of the Internet when they actually have a huge impact on thousands of people.
State Of Cyber Security Report 2022 Names Ransomware And Nation-State Attacks As Biggest Threats
Ransomware is the biggest concern for cyber security professionals, according to results of the Infosecurity Group’s 2022 State of Cybersecurity Report, produced by Infosecurity Europe and Infosecurity Magazine.
Cyber Security Professionals' Number One Concern: Ransomware.
This attack vector was voted as the biggest cyber security trend (28%) by the survey respondents (including CISOs, CTOs, CIOs and academics), marking a significant change from the previous report in 2020, where ransomware did not break the top three. This follows surging ransomware incidents in 2021, with ransom demands and payments growing significantly last year. A number of these attacks have also impacted critical industries, for example, taking down the US’ largest fuel pipeline.
The survey respondents also highlighted the evolving tactics and capabilities of ransomware attackers. This includes threat actors becoming more sophisticated as they evolve into loosely coupled service-based operations.
A number of cyber security professionals believe that cyber-criminal groups will become more guarded in their approach due to new initiatives by governments and law enforcement to tackle these activities.
Cyber Security Professionals' Number Two Concern: Nation-State Attacks.
The second biggest concern for survey respondents was geopolitics/nation-state attacks (24%), particularly the shifting hostilities from the Russia-Ukraine conflict into cyberspace. Russia already had a reputation for conducting offensive cyber operations prior to the conflict, and the Ukrainian government and critical services have experienced numerous attacks both before and since the war began.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/2022-state-industry-report/
Vishing (Voice Phishing) Cases Reach All Time High
Vishing (voice phishing) cases have increased almost 550 percent over the last twelve months (Q1 2021 to Q1 2022), according to the latest Quarterly Threat Trends & Intelligence Report from Agari and PhishLabs.
In Q1 2022, Agari and PhishLabs detected and mitigated hundreds of thousands of phishing, social media, email, and dark web threats targeting a broad range of enterprises and brands. The report provides an analysis of the latest findings and insights into key trends shaping the threat landscape.
According to the findings, vishing attacks have overtaken business email compromise (BEC) as the second most reported response-based email threat since Q3 2021. By the end of the year, more than one in four of every reported response-based threat was a vishing attack, and this makeup continued through Q1 2022.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2022/05/24/vishing-cases-increased/
DeFi (Decentralised Finance) Is Getting Pummelled By Cyber Criminals
Decentralised finance lost $1.8 billion to cyber attacks last year — and 80% of those events were the result of vulnerable code, analysts say.
Decentralised finance (DeFi) platforms — which connect various cryptocurrency blockchains to create a decentralised infrastructure for borrowing, trading, and other transactions — promise to replace banks as a secure and convenient way to invest in and spend cryptocurrency. But in addition to attracting hordes of new users with dreams of digital fortune, cyber criminals have discovered them to be an easy target, wiping out wallets to zero balances in a moment, tanking whole markets while profiting, and more, according to a new report.
Analysts with Bishop Fox found that DeFi platforms lost $1.8 billion to cyber attacks in 2021 alone. With a total of 65 events observed, 90% of the losses came from unsophisticated attacks, according to the report, which points to the lax cyber security practices of the sector.
DeFi averaged five attacks per week last year, with most of them (51%) coming from the exploitation of "smart contracts" bugs, the analysts found. Smart contracts are essentially records of transactions, stored on the blockchain.
Other top DeFi attack vectors include cryptowallets, protocol design flaws, and so-called "rug-pull" scams (where investors are lured to a new cryptocurrency project that is then abandoned, leaving targets with a worthless currency). But taken together, 80% of all events were caused by the use (and re-use) of buggy code, according to the report.
https://www.darkreading.com/attacks-breaches/defi-pummeled-by-cybercriminals
Threats
Ransomware
Ransomware Attacks Increasing at “Alarming” Rate - Infosecurity Magazine
VMware, Airline Targeted as Ransomware Chaos Reigns (darkreading.com)
Clop ransomware gang is back, hits 21 victims in a single month (bleepingcomputer.com)
Link Found Connecting Chaos, Onyx and Yashma Ransomware | Threatpost
Ransomware demands three good demands to restore files • The Register
Ransomware Cheerscrypt targets VMware ESXi systems • The Register
New Chaos Malware Variant Ditches Wiper for Encryption (darkreading.com)
Industrial Spy data extortion market gets into the ransomware game (bleepingcomputer.com)
BlackCat/ALPHV ransomware asks $5 million to unlock Austrian state (bleepingcomputer.com)
Conti Ransomware Operation Shut Down After Splitting into Smaller Groups (thehackernews.com)
Suspected phishing email crime boss arrested in Nigeria • The Register
BEC – Business Email Compromise
Interpol arrests alleged leader of the SilverTerrier BEC gang (bleepingcomputer.com)
Cyber security breach at the city of Portland led to fraudulent $1.4M transaction | KATU
Phishing & Email Based Attacks
Intuit warns of QuickBooks phishing threatening to suspend accounts (bleepingcomputer.com)
Suspected phishing email crime boss arrested in Nigeria • The Register
Other Social Engineering
Malware
BPFDoor malware uses Solaris vulnerability to get root privileges (bleepingcomputer.com)
New Windows Subsystem for Linux malware steals browser auth cookies (bleepingcomputer.com)
This Windows malware uses PowerShell to subvert Chrome • The Register
Hackers have found a new way to smuggle malware onto your device | TechRadar
Cyber Security Community Warned of Fake PoC Exploits Delivering Malware | SecurityWeek.Com
Popular Python and PHP libraries hijacked to steal AWS keys (bleepingcomputer.com)
New Attack Shows Weaponized PDF Files Remain a Threat (darkreading.com)
Mobile
Microsoft finds severe bugs in Android apps from large mobile providers (bleepingcomputer.com)
Google warns Android smartphones targeted by dangerous Predator spyware | TechRadar
New ERMAC 2.0 Android malware steals accounts, wallets from 467 apps (bleepingcomputer.com)
BYOD
Data Breaches/Leaks
GM Discloses Data Breach of Cars' Locations, Mileage, Service (gizmodo.com)
MGM Resorts' customer data now leaked on Telegram for free • The Register
Organised Crime & Criminal Actors
REvil prosecutions reach a 'dead end,' Russian media reports - CyberScoop
Scammer Behind $568M International Cyber Crime Syndicate Gets 4 Years (darkreading.com)
Multi-Continental Operation Leads to Arrest of Cyber Crime Gang Leader - Infosecurity Magazine
Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs
Insider Risk and Insider Threats
68% of Legal Sector Data Breaches Caused by Insider Threats - Infosecurity Magazine
Verizon Report: Ransomware, Human Error Among Top Security Risks | Threatpost
Dark Web
Military cyber weapons could become available on dark web: Interpol (cnbc.com)
Darknet market Versus shuts down after hacker leaks security flaw (bleepingcomputer.com)
Supply Chain and Third Parties
Denial of Service DoS/DDoS
Cybergang Claims REvil is Back, Executes DDoS Attacks | Threatpost
DDoS Extortion Attack Flagged as Possible REvil Resurgence (darkreading.com)
Anatomy of a DDoS amplification attack - Microsoft Security Blog
Cloud/SaaS
Attack Surface Management
Open Source
Privacy
Passwords & Credential Stuffing
Strong Password Policy Isn't Enough, Study Shows (darkreading.com)
Verizon DBIR: Stolen credentials led to nearly 50% of attacks (techtarget.com)
Regulations, Fines and Legislation
GDPR Anniversary, Expert Insight On What Lead To GDPR Fines – Information Security Buzz
Indian stock markets given ten day deadline to file reports • The Register
Spyware, Espionage & Cyber Warfare, including Russian Invasion of Ukraine
Network of hyperlocal Russian Telegram channels spew disinformation in occupied Ukraine - CyberScoop
Predator spyware uses in Chrome, Android zero-day exploits • The Register
Unknown APT group is targeting Russian government entities - Security Affairs
Hackers target Russian govt with fake Windows updates pushing RATs (bleepingcomputer.com)
Remote bricking of Ukrainian tractors raises agriculture security concerns | CSO Online
Anonymous Declares Cyber-War On Pro-Russian Hacker Gang Killnet – Information Security Buzz
Ex-spymaster and fellow Brexiteers' emails stolen, leaked • The Register
Nation State Actors
Nation State Actors – Russia
Russian Hackers Believed to Be Behind Leak of Hard Brexit Plans - Infosecurity Magazine
Russian Gamaredon APT could fuel a new round of DDoS attacks - Security Affairs
Putin aimed cyber attack at me, says former MI6 chief Sir Richard Dearlove | News | The Times
Nation State Actors – China
Trend Micro Patches Vulnerability Exploited by Chinese Cyber Spies | SecurityWeek.Com
Chinese "Twisted Panda" Hackers Caught Spying on Russian Defense Institutes (thehackernews.com)
Nation State Actors – Iran
Vulnerabilities
CISA ‘Strongly Urges’ You To Patch 75 Actively Exploited Security Bugs (forbes.com)
CISA adds 41 vulnerabilities to list of bugs used in cyber attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
Exploit released for critical VMware auth bypass bug, patch now (bleepingcomputer.com)
Zyxel addresses four flaws affecting APs, AP controllers, and firewalls - Security Affairs
Critical New Google Chrome Security Warning For All Users, Update Now (forbes.com)
Patching the latest Active Directory vulnerabilities is not enough | CSO Online
Microsoft Elevation-of-Privilege Vulnerabilities Spiked Again in 2021 (darkreading.com)
Sector Specific
SMBs – Small and Medium Businesses
Legal
Health/Medical/Pharma Sector
teiss - News - American healthcare tech giant Omnicell suffers a major ransomware attack
Web app attacks on the rise in healthcare as insider challenges remain (scmagazine.com)
Retail/eCommerce
Microsoft: Credit card stealers are getting much stealthier (bleepingcomputer.com)
Microsoft warns of new highly evasive web skimming campaigns - Security Affairs
Transport and Aviation
Hundreds Stranded After Ransomware Attack on Indian Airline | SecurityWeek.Com
SpiceJet airline passengers stranded after ransomware attack (bleepingcomputer.com)
CNI, OT, ICS, IIoT and SCADA
Taking the Danger Out of IT/OT Convergence (darkreading.com)
Critical Flaws in Popular ICS Platform Can Trigger RCE | Threatpost
Energy & Utilities
Oil, Gas and Mining
Education and Academia
Other News
IP and cyber security disputes are top legal concerns for tech companies | TechCrunch
Verizon DBIR: Stolen credentials led to nearly 50% of attacks (techtarget.com)
Managed Detection and Response (MDR): Who's Responsible for the R? - MSSP Alert
Survey Evidences Leaders Lack Confidence in Cyber-Risk Management - Infosecurity Magazine
Flaw in PayPal can allow attackers to steal money from users' account - Security Affairs
Most organisations do not follow data backup best practices - Help Net Security
Why are current cyber security incident response efforts failing? - Help Net Security
Nation-state malware will be a commodity on dark web soon, Interpol warns - Security Affairs
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 Cyber Advisory 27/05/2022 – Trend Micro identified a new Ransomware strain specifically targeting VMware servers
Black Arrow Cyber Advisory 27/05/2022 – Trend Micro identified a new Ransomware strain specifically targeting VMware servers
Executive Summary
Ransomware specifically designed to target VMware systems has been found to be in use by malicious attackers. VMware systems have been a prime target for attackers, as many different services which organisations rely on run on these systems. By compromising these systems, all of the hosted services can also be impacted.
Executive Summary
Ransomware specifically designed to target VMware systems has been found to be in use by malicious attackers. VMware systems have been a prime target for attackers, as many different services which organisations rely on run on these systems. By compromising these systems, all of the hosted services can also be impacted.
What’s the risk to me or my business?
This attack works by shutting down virtual machines running on a VMware system, and encrypting them before demanding a ransom. If the ransom is not paid within three days, then there is a further threat to release the data which the attacker has exfiltrated. This requires an attacker to be able to gain prior access to the system, and to enable ‘Shell’ access to run the malicious script.
What can I do?
Ensure that appropriate security measures are applied to these critical systems, to prevent an attacker from being able to access them. This includes up to date patching of the systems, and appropriate network segregation to prevent end user devices from being able to access the systems. Ensure that Shell access to the server is not left enabled.
The adoption of a security framework such as NIST CSF would greatly assist with applying appropriate controls to prevent this type of attack.
Technical Summary
Trend Micro has conducted the research into this specific strain of ransomware. This strain works by accessing VMware Servers using Secure Shell (SSH), and running a script which shuts down all active virtual machines in order to encrypt them, with the file extension ‘.cheers’. It is worth noting that the renaming of the files happens before the encryption starts, so it is possible that a file is renamed but is in fact not encrypted due to a permissions issue on the account logged in via SSH.
A full break down of the attack can be read here: New Linux-Based Ransomware Cheerscrypt Targets ESXi Devices (trendmicro.com)
Need help understanding your gaps, or just want some advice? Get in touch with us.
#threatadvisory #threatintelligence #cybersecurity
Black Arrow Cyber Advisory – LockBit Ransomware Now Actively Targeting VMware ESXi Hosts
Black Arrow Cyber Advisory – LockBit Ransomware Now Actively Targeting VMware ESXi Hosts
Executive Summary
LockBit, a ransomware gang that first came to prominence in 2021, has made improvements to its Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS), advertising that it will now actively target VMware ESXi virtual machines. VMware ESXi is a highly popular virtualisation platform and is found in most business environments globally and allows for the consolidation of software servers and services onto a single physical machine, saving both space and costs. The new LockBit features include the ability to find all running Virtual Machines (VMs) and manipulate their power states to ensure they are encrypted successfully.
What’s the risk to me or my business?
Due to the popularity of ESXi, there is an increased risk to those running the platform. The changes demonstrate that RaaS operators are keenly aware that businesses present lucrative targets, actively implementing features that have the greatest potential for harm in an enterprise environment.
What can I do?
Ensure that your systems and services across your network remain up-to-date and current. Attackers will often use a combination of bugs, vulnerabilities and misconfigurations to breach an environment before going on to exploit other devices. For ESXi specifically, consider disabling Secure Shell (SSH) if enabled, and ensure the use of TLS (HTTPS) on any exposed web interfaces.
Need help understanding your gaps, or just want some advice? Get in touch with us.
Black Arrow Cyber Advisory – LockBit Ransomware Now Actively Targeting VMware ESXi Hosts
Executive Summary
LockBit, a ransomware gang that first came to prominence in 2021, has made improvements to its Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS), advertising that it will now actively target VMware ESXi virtual machines. VMware ESXi is a highly popular virtualisation platform and is found in most business environments globally and allows for the consolidation of software servers and services onto a single physical machine, saving both space and costs. The new LockBit features include the ability to find all running Virtual Machines (VMs) and manipulate their power states to ensure they are encrypted successfully.
What’s the risk to me or my business?
Due to the popularity of ESXi, there is an increased risk to those running the platform. The changes demonstrate that RaaS operators are keenly aware that businesses present lucrative targets, actively implementing features that have the greatest potential for harm in an enterprise environment.
What can I do?
Ensure that your systems and services across your network remain up-to-date and current. Attackers will often use a combination of bugs, vulnerabilities and misconfigurations to breach an environment before going on to exploit other devices. For ESXi specifically, consider disabling Secure Shell (SSH) if enabled, and ensure the use of TLS (HTTPS) on any exposed web interfaces.
Need help understanding your gaps, or just want some advice? Get in touch with us.
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 07 January 2022
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 07 January 2022:
-Microsoft Sees Rampant Log4j Exploit Attempts, Testing
-Warning: Log4j Still Lurks Where Dependency Analysis Can’t Find It
-Hackers Sending Malware-Filled USB Sticks to Companies Disguised as Presents
-Patch Systems Vulnerable To Critical Log4j Flaws, UK And US Officials Warn
-‘Elephant Beetle’ Lurks For Months In Networks
-Sonicwall: Y2k22 Bug Hits Email Security, Firewall Products
-Hackers Use Video Player To Steal Credit Cards From Over 100 Sites
-Cyber World Is Starting 2022 In Crisis Mode With The Log4j Bug
-Everything You Need To Know About Ransomware Attacks and Gangs In 2022
-Why the Log4j Vulnerability Makes Endpoint Visibility and Zero Trust Security More Important Than Ever
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
Microsoft Sees Rampant Log4j Exploit Attempts, Testing
Microsoft says it’s only going to get worse: It’s seen state-sponsored and cyber-criminal attackers probing systems for the Log4Shell flaw through the end of December.
No surprise here: The holidays bought no Log4Shell relief.
Threat actors vigorously launched exploit attempts and testing during the last weeks of December, Microsoft said on Monday, in the latest update to its landing page and guidance around the flaws in Apache’s Log4j logging library.
“We have observed many existing attackers adding exploits of these vulnerabilities in their existing malware kits and tactics, from coin miners to hands-on-keyboard attacks,” according to Microsoft.
https://threatpost.com/microsoft-rampant-log4j-exploits-testing/177358/
Warning: Log4j Still Lurks Where Dependency Analysis Can’t Find It
The best programming practice to include a third-party library in source code is to use the import command. It is the easiest way to do it, and it is also the way that most dependency analysis programs work to determine if a vulnerable library is in play. But any time code is included without calling it as an external package, traditional dependency analysis might not be enough to find it — including when Java coders use a common trick to resolve conflicting dependencies during the design process.
A new study by jFrog found that 400 packages on repository Maven Central used Log4j code without calling it as an external package. Around a third of that came from fat jars — jar files that include all external dependencies to make a more efficient product. The remainder came from directly inserting Log4j code into the source code, including shading, a work-around used when two or more dependencies call different versions of the same library in a way that might conflict.
While 400 may not seem like a lot for Maven Central, where Google found 17,000 packages implementing the vulnerable Log4j library, some of the 400 packages unearthed by JFrog are widely used.
Hackers Sending Malware-Filled USB Sticks to Companies Disguised as Presents
The "malicious USB stick" trick is old but apparently it's still wildly popular with the crooks.
Word to the wise: If a stranger ever offers you a random USB stick as a gift, best not to take it.
On Thursday, the FBI warned that a hacker group has been using the US mail to send malware-laden USB drives to companies in the defence, transportation and insurance industries. The criminals’ hope is that employees will be gullible enough to stick them into their computers, thus creating the opportunity for ransomware attacks or the deployment of other malicious software, The Record reports.
The hacker group behind this bad behaviour—a group called FIN7—has gone to great lengths to make their parcels appear innocuous. In some cases, packages were dressed up as if they were sent by the US Department of Health and Human Services, with notes explaining that the drives contained important information about COVID-19 guidelines. In other cases, they were delivered as if they had been sent via Amazon, along with a “decorative gift box containing a fraudulent thank you letter, counterfeit gift card, and a USB,” according to the FBI warning.
https://gizmodo.com/hackers-have-been-sending-malware-filled-usb-sticks-to-1848323578
Patch Systems Vulnerable To Critical Log4j Flaws, UK And US Officials Warn
One of the highest-severity vulnerabilities in years, Log4Shell remains under attack.
Criminals are actively exploiting the high-severity Log4Shell vulnerability on servers running VMware Horizon in an attempt to install malware that allows them to gain full control of affected systems, the UK’s publicly funded healthcare system is warning.
CVE-2021-44228 is one of the most severe vulnerabilities to come to light in the past few years. It resides in Log4J, a system-logging code library used in thousands if not millions of third-party applications and websites. That means there is a huge base of vulnerable systems. Additionally, the vulnerability is extremely easy to exploit and allows attackers to install Web shells, which provide a command window for executing highly privileged commands on hacked servers.
The remote-code execution flaw in Log4J came to light in December after exploit code was released before a patch was available. Malicious hackers quickly began actively exploiting CVE-2021-44228 to compromise sensitive systems.
‘Elephant Beetle’ Lurks For Months In Networks
The group blends into an environment before loading up trivial, thickly stacked, fraudulent financial transactions too tiny to be noticed but adding up to millions of dollars.
Researchers have identified a threat group that’s been quietly siphoning off millions of dollars from financial- and commerce-sector companies, spending months patiently studying their targets’ financial systems and slipping in fraudulent transactions amongst regular activity.
The Sygnia Incident Response team has been tracking the group, which it named Elephant Beetle, aka TG2003, for two years.
In a Wednesday report, the researchers called Elephant Beetle’s attack relentless, as the group has hidden “in plain sight” without the need to develop exploits.
https://threatpost.com/elephant-beetle-months-networks-financial/177393/
Sonicwall: Y2k22 Bug Hits Email Security, Firewall Products
SonicWall has confirmed today that some of its Email Security and firewall products have been hit by the Y2K22 bug, causing message log updates and junk box failures starting with January 1st, 2022.
The company says that email users and administrators will no longer be able to access the junk box or un-junk newly received emails on affected systems.
They will also no longer be able to trace incoming/outgoing emails using the message logs because they're no longer updated.
On January 2nd, SonicWall deployed updates to North American and European instances of Hosted Email Security, the company's cloud email security service.
It also released fixes for its on-premises Email Security Appliance (ES 10.0.15) and customers using firewalls with the Anti-Spam Junk Store functionality toggled on (Junk Store 7.6.9).
Hackers Use Video Player To Steal Credit Cards From Over 100 Sites
Hackers used a cloud video hosting service to perform a supply chain attack on over one hundred real estate sites that injected malicious scripts to steal information inputted in website forms.
These scripts are known as skimmers or formjackers and are commonly injected into hacked websites to steal sensitive information entered into forms. Skimmers are commonly used on checkout pages for online stores to steal payment information.
In a new supply chain attack discovered by Palo Alto Networks Unit42, threat actors abused a cloud video hosting feature to inject skimmer code into a video player. When a website embeds that player, it embeds the malicious script, causing the site to become infected.
Cyber World Is Starting 2022 In Crisis Mode With The Log4j Bug
The cyber security world is starting off 2022 in crisis mode.
The newest culprit is the log4j software bug, which cyber security and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Director Jen Easterly called “the most serious vulnerability I have seen in my decades-long career.” It forced many cyber security pros to work through the holidays to protect computer systems at Big Tech firms, large and small companies and government agencies.
But crises like log4j have become the norm rather than the exception during the past few years.
Last year kicked off with the SolarWinds hack — a Russian government operation that compromised reams of sensitive information from U.S. government agencies and corporations.
Digital threats of all sorts are growing far faster than the capability to defend against them. If past is prologue, 2022 is likely to be a year of big hacks, big threats and plenty more crises.
“We’re always in crisis is the long and short of it,” Jake Williams, a former National Security Agency (NSA) cyber operator and founder of the firm Rendition Infosec, told me. “Anyone looking for calm rather than the storm in cyber is in the wrong field.”
Everything You Need To Know About Ransomware Attacks and Gangs In 2022
Ransomware is a lucrative business for criminals. It is paying off, and it is working.
According to a recent Trend Micro report, a staggering 84% of US organisations experienced either a phishing or ransomware attack in the last year. The average ransomware payment was over $500,000.
Bad actors want to keep cashing in. So they’re going as far as creating ransomware kits as a service (Ransomware as a Service) to be sold on the dark web and even setting up fake companies to recruit potential employees.
Many ransomware gangs function like real companies — with marketing teams, websites, software development, user documentation, support forums and media relations.
If the “companies” run by ransomware gangs can operate with minimal expenses and mind-blowing revenues, what’s stopping them from growing in number and size?
https://securityintelligence.com/articles/ransomware-attacks-gangs-2022/
Why the Log4j Vulnerability Makes Endpoint Visibility and Zero Trust Security More Important Than Ever
The Apache Log4j vulnerability is one of the most serious vulnerabilities in recent years—putting millions of devices at risk.
IT organisations worldwide are still reeling from the discovery of a major security vulnerability in Apache Log4j, an open-source logging utility embedded in countless internal and commercial applications.
By submitting a carefully constructed variable string to log4j, attackers can take control of any application that includes log4j. Suddenly, cyber criminals around the world have a blueprint for launching attacks on everything from retail store kiosks to mission-critical applications in hospitals.
If security teams overlook even one instance of log4j in their software, they give attackers an opportunity to issue system commands at will. Attackers can use those commands to install ransomware, exfiltrate data, shut down operations — the list goes on.
How should enterprises respond to this pervasive threat?
Threats
Ransomware
Night Sky Is The Latest Ransomware Targeting Corporate Networks (bleepingcomputer.com)
Counties In New Mexico, Arkansas Begin 2022 With Ransomware Attacks | ZDNet
Ransomware Attack Affects The Websites Of 5,000 Schools - CNNPolitics
Phishing
Google Docs Comments Weaponized in New Phishing Campaign (darkreading.com)
US Arrests Suspect Who Stole Unpublished Books In Phishing Attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
Malware
FluBot Malware Now Targets Europe Posing As Flash Player App (bleepingcomputer.com)
New Mac Malware Samples Underscore Growing Threat (darkreading.com)
Purple Fox Rootkit Now Bundled With Telegram Installer | Malwarebytes Labs
‘Malsmoke’ Exploits Microsoft’s E-Signature Verification | Threatpost
Mobile
IoT
Data Breaches/Leaks
List Of Data Breaches And Cyber Attacks In December 2021 | 219M records (itgovernance.co.uk)
Have I Been Pwned Warns Of DatPiff Data Breach Impacting Millions (bleepingcomputer.com)
Morgan Stanley To Pay $60 Million To Resolve Data Security Lawsuit (Yahoo.Com)
Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking
Report: $2.2 Billion In Cryptocurrency Stolen From DeFi Platforms In 2021 | ZDNet
UK Police Seize £322m of Cryptocurrency in Past Five Years - Infosecurity Magazine
Fraud, Scams & Financial Crime
DoS/DDoS
OT, ICS, IIoT and SCADA
Nation State Actors
Should Businesses Be Concerned About APT-Style Attacks? - Help Net Security
MI6 Chief Thanks China For ‘Free Publicity’ After James Bond Spoof | China | The Guardian
Log4j Vulnerabilities: New Patches And Nation-State Exploitation. (thecyberwire.com)
North Korea-Linked Konni APT Targets Russian Diplomatic Bodies - Security Affairs
Privacy
Passwords & Credential Stuffing
Spyware and Espionage
Vulnerabilities
Emergency Windows Server Update Fixes Remote Desktop Issues (bleepingcomputer.com)
Microsoft Rolled Out Emergency Fix For Y2k22 Bug In Exchange Servers - Security Affairs
VMware Fixed CVE-2021-22045 Heap-Overflow In Workstation, Fusion and ESXi - Security Affairs
Latest WordPress Security Release Fixes XSS, SQL Injection Bugs | The Daily Swig (portswigger.net)
New Ubuntu Linux Kernel Security Updates Fix 9 Vulnerabilities, Patch Now - 9to5Linux
JFrog Researchers Find JNDI Vulnerability In H2 Database Consoles Similar To Log4Shell | ZDNet
Unpatched HomeKit Vulnerability Exposes iPhones, iPads to DoS Attacks | SecurityWeek.Com
Sector Specific
Defence
Health/Medical/Pharma Sector
Estate Agents
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