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Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 28 January 2022
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 28 January 2022
-UK Warned To Bolster Defences Against Cyber Attacks As Russia Threatens Ukraine - BBC News
-Cyber Attacks And Ransomware Hit A New Record In 2021, Says Report
-Ransomware Families Becoming More Sophisticated With Newer Attack Methods
-More Than 90% Of Enterprises Surveyed Have Been Hit By Successful Cyberattacks
-Ransomware Gangs Increase Efforts To Enlist Insiders For Attacks
-Shipment-Delivery Scams Become the Favoured Way to Spread Malware
-Most Ransomware Infections Are Self-Installed
-Staff Negligence Is Now A Major Reason For Insider Security Incidents
-22 Cyber Security Myths Organisations Need To Stop Believing In 2022
-Android Malware Can Factory-Reset Phones After Draining Bank Accounts
-GDPR Fines Surged Sevenfold to $1.25 Billion in 2021: Study
-Cyber Security In 2022 – A Fresh Look At Some Very Alarming Stats
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 Warned To Bolster Defences Against Cyber Attacks As Russia Threatens Ukraine - BBC News
UK organisations are being urged to bolster their defences amid fears cyber attacks linked to the conflict in Ukraine could move beyond its borders.
The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has issued new guidance, saying it is vital companies stay ahead of a potential threat.
The centre said it was unaware of any specific threats to UK organisations.
It follows a series of cyber attacks in Ukraine which are suspected to have involved Russia, which Moscow denies.
In December 2015, engineers in Ukrainian power stations saw cursors on their computer screens moving by themselves. They had been hacked. Hundreds of thousands of people lost power for hours.
It was the first time a power station had been taken offline, a sign that cyber intrusions were moving beyond stealing information into disrupting the infrastructure on which everyday life depends. Russia was blamed.
"It was a complex operation," says John Hultquist, an expert on Russian cyber operations at the US security firm Mandiant. "They even disrupted the telephone lines so that the engineers couldn't make calls."
Ukraine has been on the front line of a cyber conflict for years. But if Russia does invade the country soon, tanks and troops will still be at the forefront.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-60158874
Cyber Attacks And Ransomware Hit A New Record In 2021, Says Report
Ransomware attacks have doubled for the past two years, says a new report—but a lot of people aren’t bothering to change their passwords.
Hackers made up for some lost time last year.
After seeing the number of data breaches decline in 2020, the Identity Theft Resource Center’s 16th Annual Data Breach Report says the number of security compromises was up more than 68% in 2021. That tops the all-time high by a shocking 23%.
All told, there were 1,862 breaches last year, says the ITRC, 356 more than in 2017, the previous busiest year on record.
“Many of the cyber attacks committed were highly sophisticated and complex, requiring aggressive defences to prevent them,” Eva Velasquez, ITRC president and CEO, said in a statement. “If those defences failed, too often we saw an inadequate level of transparency for consumers to protect themselves from identity fraud.”
https://www.fastcompany.com/90715622/cyberattacks-ransomware-data-breach-new-record-2021
Ransomware Families Becoming More Sophisticated With Newer Attack Methods
Ivanti, Cyber Security Works and Cyware announced a report which identified 32 new ransomware families in 2021, bringing the total to 157 and representing a 26% increase over the previous year.
The report also found that these ransomware groups are continuing to target unpatched vulnerabilities and weaponize zero-day vulnerabilities in record time to instigate crippling attacks. At the same time, they are broadening their attack spheres and finding newer ways to compromise organisational networks and fearlessly trigger high-impact assaults.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2022/01/28/new-ransomware-families/
More Than 90% Of Enterprises Surveyed Have Been Hit By Successful Cyber Attacks
Cyber attacks can impact any organisation, big or small. But large enterprises are often more tempting targets due to the vast amount of lucrative data they hold. A new report from cyber security firm Anomali reveals an increase in successful cyber attacks and offers ideas on how organisations can better protect themselves.
Published on Thursday, the "2022 Anomali Cyber security Insights Report" is based on a survey of 800 cyber security decision makers commissioned by Anomali and conducted by Harris between September 9 and October 13 of 2021. The survey elicited responses from professionals in the US, UK, Canada and other countries who work full time in such industries as manufacturing, telecommunications and financial services.
Among the respondents, 87% said that their organisations were victims of successful cyber attacks sometime over the past three years. In this case, a successful attack is one that caused damage, disruption or a data breach. Since the pandemic started almost two years ago, 83% of those polled have experienced an increase in attempted cyber attacks, while 87% have been hit with a rise in phishing emails, many of them exploiting coronavirus-related themes.
Ransomware Gangs Increase Efforts To Enlist Insiders For Attacks
A recent survey of 100 large (over 5,000 employees) North American IT firms shows that ransomware actors are making greater effort to recruit insiders in targeted firms to aid in attacks.
The survey was conducted by Hitachi ID, which performed a similar study in November 2021. Compared to the previous survey, there has been a 17% rise in the number of employees offered money to aid in ransomware attacks against their employer.
Most specifically, 65% of the survey respondents say that they or their employees were approached between December 7, 2021, and January 4, 2022, to help hackers establish initial access.
Shipment-Delivery Scams Become the Favoured Way to Spread Malware
Attackers increasingly are spoofing the courier DHL and using socially engineered messages related to packages to trick users into downloading Trickbot and other malicious payloads.
Threat actors are increasingly using scams that spoof package couriers like DHL or the U.S. Postal Service in authentic-looking phishing emails that attempt to dupe victims into downloading credential-stealing or other malicious payloads, researchers have found.
Researchers from Avanan, a Check Point company, and Cofense have discovered recent phishing campaigns that include malicious links or attachments aimed at infecting devices with Trickbot and other dangerous malware, they reported separately on Thursday.
The campaigns separately relied on trust in widely used methods for shipping and employees’ comfort with receiving emailed documents related to shipments to try to elicit further action to compromise corporate systems, researchers said.
https://threatpost.com/shipment-delivery-scams-a-fav-way-to-spread-malware/178050/
Most Ransomware Infections Are Self-Installed
New research from managed detection and response (MDR) provider Expel found that most ransomware attacks in 2021 were self-installed.
The finding was included in the company’s inaugural annual report on cyber security trends and predictions, Great eXpeltations, published on Thursday.
Researchers found eight out of ten ransomware infections occurred after victims unwittingly opened a zipped file containing malicious code. Abuse of third-party access accounted for 3% of all ransomware incidents, and 4% were caused by exploiting a software vulnerability on the perimeter.
The report was based on the analysis of data aggregated from Expel’s security operations center (SOC) concerning incidents spanning January 1 2021 to December 31 2021.
Other key findings were that 50% of incidents were BEC (business email compromise) attempts, with SaaS apps a top target.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/most-ransomware-infections-self/
Staff Negligence Is Now A Major Reason For Insider Security Incidents
Insider threats cost organisations approximately $15.4 million every year, with negligence a common reason for security incidents, new research suggests.
Enterprise players today are facing cyber security challenges from every angle. Weak endpoint security, unsecured cloud systems, vulnerabilities -- whether unpatched or zero-days -- the introduction of unregulated internet of things (IoT) devices to corporate networks and remote work systems can all become conduits for a cyber attack to take place.
When it comes to the human element of security, a lack of training or cyber security awareness, mistakes, or deliberate, malicious actions also needs to be acknowledged in managing threat detection and response.
22 Cyber Security Myths Organisations Need To Stop Believing In 2022
Security teams trying to defend their organisations need to adapt quickly to new challenges. Yesterday’s buzzwords and best practices have become today’s myths.
The past few years have seen a dramatic shift in how organisations protect themselves against attackers. The hybrid working model, fast-paced digitalization, and increased number of ransomware incidents have changed the security landscape, making CISOs' jobs more complex than ever.
This convoluted environment requires a new mindset to defend, and things that might have held true in the past might no longer be useful. Can digital certificates' expiration dates still be managed in a spreadsheet? Is encryption 'magic dust'? And are humans actually the weakest link?
Security experts weigh in the 22 cyber security myths that we finally need to retire in 2022.
Android Malware Can Factory-Reset Phones After Draining Bank Accounts
A banking-fraud trojan that has been targeting Android users for three years has been updated to create even more grief. Besides draining bank accounts, the trojan can now activate a kill switch that performs a factory reset and wipes infected devices clean.
Brata was first documented in a post from security firm Kaspersky, which reported that the Android malware had been circulating since at least January 2019. The malware spread primarily through Google Play but also through third-party marketplaces, push notifications on compromised websites, sponsored links on Google, and messages delivered by WhatsApp or SMS. At the time, Brata targeted people with accounts from Brazil-based banks.
GDPR Fines Surged Sevenfold to $1.25 Billion in 2021: Study
Fines issued for GDPR non-compliance increased sevenfold from 2020 to 2021, analysis shows
In its latest annual GDPR summary, international law firm DLA Piper focuses attention in two areas: fines imposed and the evolving effect of the Schrems II ruling of 2020. Fines are increasing and Schrems II issues are becoming more complex.
Fines issued for GDPR non-compliance increased significantly (sevenfold) in 2021, from €158.5 million (approximately $180 million) in 2020 to just under €1.1 billion (approximately $1.25 billion) in 2021. The largest fines came from Luxembourg against Amazon (€746 million / $846 million), and Ireland against WhatsApp (€225 million / $255 million). Both are currently being appealed.
The WhatsApp fine is interesting. The original fine proposed by the Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC) was for €30 million to €50 million. However, other European regulators objected, and the European Data Processing Board (EDPB) adjudicated – instructing Ireland to increase the fine by 350%.
https://www.securityweek.com/gdpr-fines-surged-sevenfold-125-billion-2021-study
Cyber Security In 2022 – A Fresh Look At Some Very Alarming Stats
Last year Forbes wrote a couple of articles that highlighted some of the more significant cyber statistics associated with our expanding digital ecosystem. In retrospect, 2021 was a very trying year for cyber security in so many areas. There were high profile breaches such as Solar Winds, Colonial Pipeline and dozens of others that had major economic and security related impact. Ransomware came on with a vengeance targeting many small and medium businesses.
Perhaps most worrisome was how critical infrastructure and supply chains security weaknesses were targeted and exploited by adversaries at higher rates than in the past. Since it is only January, we are just starting to learn of some of the statistics that certainly will trend in 2022. By reviewing the topics below, we can learn what we need to fortify and bolster in terms of cyber security throughout the coming year.
Buy now, pay later fraud, romance and cryptocurrency schemes top the list of threats this year
Experian released its annual forecast, which reveals five fraud threats for the new year. With consumers continuing to take a digital-first approach to everything from shopping, dating and investing, fraudsters are finding new and innovative ways to commit fraud.
The main areas they are predicting seeing rises in fraud are:
-Buy now, pay never
-Cryptocurrency scams
-Doubling ransomware attacks
-More increases in romance fraud
-Digital elder abuse will rise
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2022/01/26/fraud-threats-this-year/
Threats
Ransomware
Ransomware: More Families, More Vulnerabilities, More Weaponry Dominate 2021 - MSSP Alert
Linux Version Of LockBit Ransomware Targets VMware ESXi Servers (bleepingcomputer.com)
BlackCat Ransomware Targeting US, European Retail, Construction And Transportation Orgs | ZDNet
Conti Ransomware Hits Apple, Tesla Supplier - The Record by Recorded Future
Phishing
There's Been A Big Rise In Phishing Attacks Using Microsoft Excel XLL Add-Ins | ZDNet
Microsoft warns of multi-stage phishing campaign leveraging Azure AD (bleepingcomputer.com)
Other Social Engineering
Malware
Trickbot Injections Get Harder to Detect & Analyze (darkreading.com)
Log4j: Mirai Botnet Found Targeting ZyXEL Networking Devices | ZDNet
Hackers Infect macOS with New DazzleSpy Backdoor in Watering-Hole Attacks (thehackernews.com)
TrickBot Malware Using New Techniques to Evade Web Injection Attacks (thehackernews.com)
Mobile
105 Million Android Users Targeted By Subscription Fraud Campaign (bleepingcomputer.com)
2FA App With 10,000 Google Play Downloads Loaded Well-Known Banking Trojan | Ars Technica
New FluBot And TeaBot Campaigns Target Android Devices Worldwide (bleepingcomputer.com)
Latest Version Of Android RAT BRATA Wipes Devices After Stealing Data - Security Affairs
IoT
As IoT Attacks Increase, Experts Fear More Serious Threats (darkreading.com)
Millions of Routers, IoT Devices at Risk as Malware Source Code Surfaces on GitHub (darkreading.com)
19-Year-Old Describes How He Remotely Hacked 25+ Teslas (businessinsider.com)
Data Breaches/Leaks
Organised Crime & Criminal Actors
Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking
Supply Chain
DoS/DDoS
Microsoft Mitigates Largest DDoS Attack 'Ever Reported In History' (bleepingcomputer.com)
Nobel Foundation Site Hit By DDoS Attack On Award Day (bleepingcomputer.com)
CNI, OT, ICS, IIoT and SCADA
Over 20,000 Data Center Management Systems Exposed To Hackers (bleepingcomputer.com)
Energy Sector Still Needs to Shut the Barn Door (darkreading.com)
Nation State Actors
North Korean Hackers Using Windows Update Service to Infect PCs with Malware (thehackernews.com)
Russian APT29 Hackers' Stealthy Malware Undetected For Years (bleepingcomputer.com)
North Korean Hackers Return with Stealthier Variant of KONNI RAT Malware (thehackernews.com)
German Intel Warns Of APT27 Targeting Commercial Organisations - Security Affairs
Threat Actors Use Microsoft OneDrive for Command-and-Control in Attack Campaign (darkreading.com)
Cloud
Top 5 Cloud Security Data Breaches in Recent Years (makeuseof.com)
Molerats Group Uses Public Cloud Services As Attack Infrastructure - Security Affairs
Privacy
Passwords & Credential Stuffing
65% Of Organisations Continue To Rely On Shared Logins - Help Net Security
Strong Security Starts With The Strengthening Of The Weakest Link: Passwords - Help Net Security
Spyware, Espionage & Cyber Warfare
Vulnerabilities
Ubiquitous Linux Bug: ‘An Attacker’s Dream Come True’ | Threatpost
Outlook Security Feature Bypass Allowed Sending Malicious Links | SecurityWeek.Com
Attackers Now Actively Targeting Critical SonicWall RCE Bug (bleepingcomputer.com)
Patching the CentOS 8 Encryption Bug is Urgent – What Are Your Plans? (thehackernews.com)
Apple Fixes New Zero-Day Exploited To Hack macOS, iOS Devices (bleepingcomputer.com)
F5 Fixes 25 Flaws In BIG-IP, BIG-IQ, and NGINX Products - Security Affairs
Sector Specific
Health/Medical/Pharma Sector
Education and Academia
Reports Published in the Last Week
Aqua Security Reports Large Increase in Supply Chain Attacks (infoq.com)
Other News
Cyber Security: 11 Steps To Take As Threat Levels Increase | ZDNet
Right of Boom: Can Your MSP Really Survive A Cyber Attack? - MSSP Alert
Are You Prepared to Defend Against a USB Attack? (darkreading.com)
VW Fired Senior Employee After They Raised Cyber Security Concerns | Financial Times
Microsoft Outlook RCE Zero-Day Exploits Now Selling For $400,000 (bleepingcomputer.com)
Hackers Are Taking Over CEO Accounts With Rogue OAuth Apps (bleepingcomputer.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 22 January 2021
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 22 January 2021: Ransomware Biggest Cyber Concern; Ransomware Payments Grew 311% In 2020; Cyber Security Spending To Soar In 2021; Ransomware Provides The Perfect Cover For Other Attacks; Gdpr Fines Skyrocket As Eu Gets Tough On Data Breaches; Popular Pdf Reader Has Database Of 77 Miliion Users Leaked Online; Malware Incidents On Remote Devices Increase
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 Headlines of the Week
Ransomware is now the biggest Cyber Security concern for CISOs
Ransomware is the biggest cyber security concern facing businesses, according to those responsible for keeping organisations safe from hacking and cyberattacks. A survey of chief information security officers (CISOs) and chief security officers (CISOs found that ransomware is now viewed as the main cyber security threat to their organisation over the course of the next year. Almost half – 46% – of CISOs and CISOs surveyed said that ransomware or other forms of extortion by outsiders represents the biggest cyber security threat.
https://www.zdnet.com/article/ransomware-is-now-the-biggest-cybersecurity-concern-for-cisos/
Crypto ransomware payments grew 311% in 2020
Crypto payments associated with ransomware grew at least 311% in 2020. “Ransomware” refers to a category of malicious computer programs that force users into paying ransoms. Just 0.34% of all cryptocurrency transactions last year were criminal, down from 2.1% in 2019. But that number is bound to go up, said the firm.
https://decrypt.co/54648/crypto-crime-ransomware-chainalysis-report-2020
The SolarWinds hackers used tactics other groups will copy
One of the most chilling aspects of Russia's recent hacking spree—which breached numerous United States government agencies among other targets—was the successful use of a “supply chain attack” to gain tens of thousands of potential targets from a single compromise at the IT services firm SolarWinds. But this was not the only striking feature of the assault. After that initial foothold, the attackers bored deeper into their victims' networks with simple and elegant strategies. Now researchers are bracing for a surge in those techniques from other attackers.
https://www.wired.com/story/solarwinds-hacker-methods-copycats/
Global Cyber Security spending to soar in 2021
The worldwide cyber security market is set to grow by up to 10% this year to top $60bn, as the global economy slowly recovers from the pandemic. Double-digit growth from $54.7bn in 2020 would be its best-case scenario. However, even in the worst case, cyber security spending would reach 6.6%. That would factor in a deeper-than-anticipated economic impact from lockdowns, although the security market has proven to be remarkably resilient thus far to the pandemic-induced global economic crisis. That said, SMB spending was hit hard last year, along with certain sectors like hospitality, retail and transport.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/global-cybersecurity-spending-to/
Cyber criminals publish more than 4,000 stolen Sepa files
Sepa rejected a ransom demand for the attack, which has been claimed by the international Conti ransomware group. Contracts, strategy documents and databases are among the 4,000 files released. The data has been put on the dark web - a part of the internet associated with criminality and only accessible through specialised software.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-55757884
Ransomware provides the perfect cover for other attacks
Look at any list of security challenges that CISOs are most concerned about and you’ll consistently find ransomware on them. It’s no wonder: ransomware attacks cripple organizations due to the costs of downtime, recovery, regulatory penalties, and lost revenue. Unfortunately, cybercriminals have added an extra sting to these attacks: they are using ransomware as a smokescreen to divert security teams from other clandestine activities behind the scenes
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2021/01/21/ransomware-cover/
Popular PDF reader has database of 77 million users hacked and leaked online
A threat actor has leaked a 14 GB database online containing over 77 million records relating to thousands of users of the Nitro PDF reader software, with users' email addresses, full names, hashed passwords, company names, IP addresses, and other system-related information.
Ransomware victims that have backups are paying ransoms to stop hackers leaking their stolen data
Some organisations that fall victim to ransomware attacks are paying ransoms to cyber-criminal gangs despite being able to restore their own networks from backups, in order to prevent hackers publishing stolen data. Over the course of the past year, many of the most successful ransomware gangs have added an additional technique in an effort to coerce victims into paying ransoms after compromising their networks – publishing stolen data if a payment isn't received.
GDPR fines skyrocket as EU gets tough on data breaches
Europe’s new privacy protection regime has led to a surge in fines for bad actors, according to research published today. Law firm DLA Piper says that, since January 28th, 2020, the EU has issued around €158.5 million (around $192 million) in financial penalties. That’s a 39-percent increase on the previous 20-month period Piper examined in its report, published this time last year. And as well as the increased fines, the number of breach notifications has shot up by 19 percent across the same 12-month period.
https://www.engadget.com/gdpr-fines-dla-piper-report-144510440.html
Malware incidents on remote devices increase
Devices compromised by malware in 2020, 37% continued accessing corporate emails after being compromised and 11% continued accessing cloud storage, highlighting a need for organizations to better determine how to configure business tools to ensure fast and safe connectivity for all users in 2021.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2021/01/18/malware-incidents-remote-devices/
Threats
Phishing
Malware
Vulnerabilities
Signal and other video chat apps found to have some major security flaws
Automated exploit of critical SAP SolMan vulnerability detected in the wild
List of DNSpooq vulnerability advisories, patches, and update
Dnsmasq vulnerabilities open networking devices, Linux distros to DNS cache poisoning
New FreakOut botnet targets Linux systems running unpatched software
Data Breaches
Denial of Service
Cloud
Privacy
Other News
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 weekly ‘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 13 November 2020
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 13 November 2020
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 Headlines of the Week
Five Emerging Cyber-Threats to Watch Out for in 2021
What was the driving force behind your company’s digital strategy in 2020? Was it your CEO? Probably not. Your CTO or CISO? Perhaps.
For most organisations, it was COVID-19. In 2019, one company after another said: “work-from-home isn’t an option for us” or “we aren’t interested in shifting operations to the cloud.”
Then everything changed. The pandemic drove a massive shift towards remote work. For many companies, this wasn’t even an option — it was a case of ‘do or die.’
By April 2020, almost half of the American workforce was working from home. As organisations and employees become more comfortable with this, we shouldn’t expect a full return to the traditional in-office model anytime soon, if ever. Work-from-anywhere is the new way of doing business, with employees accessing cloud services, collaborative tools and remote systems from home and public networks – and not always through the safety of a VPN.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/blogs/five-cyber-threats-2021/
Guernsey law firm fined £10,000 for data security breach
Trinity Chambers LLP sent private details about an individual and their family via emails and post, the Data Protection Authority (ODPA) found.
It said a lack of security had given "unconnected" third parties access to the data.
The breach of data by Trinity was the result of "repeated human error", an investigation found.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-guernsey-54854333
Every employee has a cyber security blind spot
80% of companies say that an increased cyber security risk caused by human factors has posed a challenge during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly in times of heightened stress.
This is a new report that explores the role employees and their personality play in keeping organisations safe from cyber threats. Including that:
· Cyber crime has increased by 63% since the COVID-19 lockdown was introduced
· Human error has been the biggest cyber security challenge during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to CISOs
· Just a quarter of businesses consider their remote working strategy effective
· 47% of people are concerned about their ability to manage stress during the coronavirus crisis
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2020/11/09/cybersecurity-blind-spot/
Zoom settles FTC charges for misleading users about security features
Video conferencing software maker Zoom has reached a deal today with the US Federal Trade Commission to settle accusations that its misled users about some of its security features.
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Zoom had attracted users to its platform with misleading claims that its product supported "end-to-end, 256-bit encryption" and that its service would store recorded calls in an encrypted format.
However, in a complaint filed earlier this year, the investigators found that Zoom's claims were deceptive.
Despite claiming to support end-to-end encrypted (E2EE) calls, Zoom didn't support E2EE calls in the classic meaning of the word.
https://www.zdnet.com/article/zoom-settles-ftc-charges-for-misleading-users-about-security-features/
Threats
Ransomware
How Ryuk Ransomware operators made $34 million from one victim
One hacker group that is targeting high-revenue companies with Ryuk ransomware received $34 million from one victim in exchange for the decryption key that unlocked their computers.
The threat actor is highly proficient at moving laterally inside a compromised network and erasing as much of their tracks as possible before detonating Ryuk ransomware.
Ransomware hits e-commerce platform X-Cart
E-commerce software vendor X-Cart suffered a ransomware attack at the end of October that brought down customer stores hosted on the company's hosting platform.
The incident is believed to have taken place after attackers exploited a vulnerability in a third-party software to gain access to X-Cart's store hosting systems.
https://www.zdnet.com/article/ransomware-hits-e-commerce-platform-x-cart
Linux version of RansomEXX ransomware discovered
A Linux version of the RansomEXX ransomware, marking the first time a major Windows ransomware strain has been ported to Linux to aid in targeted intrusions.
RansomEXX is a relatively new ransomware strain that was first spotted earlier this year in June.
https://www.zdnet.com/article/linux-version-of-ransomexx-ransomware-discovered/
Laptop mega-manufacturer Compal hit by DoppelPaymer ransomware – same one that hit German hospital
Compal, the world’s second-largest white-label laptop manufacturer, has been hit by the file-scrambling DoppelPaymer ransomware gang – and the hackers want $17m in cryptocurrency before they'll hand over the decryption key.
The Taiwanese factory giant, which builds systems for Apple, Lenovo, Dell, and HP, finally admitted malware infected its computers and encrypted its documents after first insisting it had suffered no more than an IT "abnormality" and that its staff had beaten off a cyber-attack.
https://www.theregister.com/2020/11/09/compal_ransomware_report/
Capcom hit by ransomware attack, is reportedly being extorted for $11 million
Earlier this week it emerged that third-party giant Capcom's internal systems had been hacked, though the company claimed that no customer data was affected.
It has now emerged that the publisher was targeted by the Ragnar Locker ransomware, software designed to exfiltrate information from internal networks before encrypting the lot: at which point the victim is locked-out, contacted, and extorted.
Business Email Compromise (BEC)
Jersey business targeted in £130,000 invoice scam
A Jersey building company has been targeted by a sophisticated impersonation scam, which saw fraudsters intercept more than £130,000 in invoice payments.
The owners, who wish to remain anonymous, said they were "left reeling" after realising their email correspondence with a customer had been hacked, and payments diverted to a scam bank account.
After taking swift action, they were able to recover all their money, but they now want to make sure other islanders do not fall victim. They are encouraging businesses in particular to be "extra vigilant".
https://www.itv.com/news/channel/2020-11-13/jersey-business-targeted-in-130000-invoice-scam
Phishing
Smishing attack tells you “mobile payment problem” – don’t fall for it!
As we’ve warned before, phishing via SMS, or smishing for short, is still popular with cybercriminals.
Sure, old-fashioned text messages have fallen out of favour for personal communications, superseded round the world by instant messaging apps such as WhatsApp, WeChat, Instagram, Telegram and Signal.
But for brief, one-off business communications such as “Your home delivery will arrive at 11:30 today” or “Your one-time login code is 217828”, SMS is still a popular and useful messaging system.
That’s because pretty much every mobile phone in the world can receive text messages, regardless of its age, feature set or ability to access the internet.
Even if you’ve got no credit to send messages or make calls, no third-party apps installed, and no Wi-Fi connectivity, SMSes sent to you will still show up.
Malware
Play Store identified as main distribution vector for most Android malware
The official Google Play Store has been identified as the primary source of malware installs on Android devices in a recent academic study — considered the largest one of its kind carried out to date.
Using telemetry data, researchers analysed the origin of app installations on more than 12 million Android devices for a four-month period between June and September 2019.
In total, researchers looked at more than 34 million APK (Android application) installs for 7.9 million unique apps.
This new malware wants to add your Linux servers and IoT devices to its botnet
A new form of malware is targeting Linux servers and Internet of Things (IoT) devices and adding them to a botnet in what appears to be the first stage of a hacking campaign targeting cloud-computing infrastructure – although the purpose of the attacks remains unclear.
The malicious worm has been dubbed Gitpaste-12, reflecting on how it uses GitHub and Pastebin for housing component code and has 12 different means of compromising Linux-based x86 servers, as well as Linux ARM- and MIPS-based IoT devices.
New 'Ghimob' malware can spy on 153 Android mobile applications
Security researchers have discovered a new Android banking trojan that can spy and steal data from 153 Android applications.
Named Ghimob, the trojan is believed to have been developed by the same group behind the Astaroth (Guildma) Windows malware, according to a report published.
Distribution was never carried out via the official Play Store.
Instead, the Ghimob group used emails or malicious sites to redirect users to websites promoting Android apps.
https://www.zdnet.com/article/new-ghimob-malware-can-spy-on-153-android-mobile-applications/
Microsoft Teams Users Under Attack in ‘Fake Updates’ Malware Campaign
Attackers are using ads for fake Microsoft Teams updates to deploy backdoors, which use Cobalt Strike to infect companies’ networks with malware.
The campaign is targeting various types of companies, with recent targets in the K-12 education sector, where organisations are currently dependent on using apps like Teams for videoconferencing due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Cobalt Strike is a commodity attack-simulation tool that’s used by attackers to spread malware, particularly ransomware. Recently, threat actors were seen using Cobalt Strike in attacks exploiting Zerologon, a privilege-elevation flaw that allows attackers to access a domain controller and completely compromise all Active Directory identity services.
https://threatpost.com/microsoft-teams-fakeupdates-malware/161071/
DDoS
DDoS attacks are cheaper and easier to carry out than ever before
DDoS attacks are getting more complex and more sophisticated while also getting cheaper and easier to carry out as cyber criminals take advantage of the sheer number of insecure internet-connected devices.
Distributed Denial of Service attacks have been a problem for many years, with cyber attackers gaining control of armies of devices and directing their internet traffic at targets in order to take the victim offline.
The disruption causes problems for both businesses and individual users who are prevented from accessing digital services they require – and that's especially a problem as 2020's coronavirus pandemic has forced people to be more reliant on digital services than ever before.
https://www.zdnet.com/article/ddos-attacks-are-cheaper-and-easier-to-carry-out-than-ever-before/
IoT
IoT security is a mess. These guidelines could help fix that
The supply chain around the Internet of Things (IoT) has become the weak link in cyber security, potentially leaving organisations open to cyber attacks via vulnerabilities they're not aware of. But a newly released set of guidelines aims to ensure that security forms part of the entire lifespan of IoT product development.
The Guidelines for Securing the IoT – Secure Supply Chain for IoT report from the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity (ENISA) sets out recommendations throughout the entire IoT supply chain to help keep organisations protected from vulnerabilities that can arise when building connected things.
https://www.zdnet.com/article/iot-security-is-a-mess-these-guidelines-could-help-fix-that/
Vulnerabilities
Windows 10 update created a major password problem
A temporary fix for a frustrating Windows 10 bug that prevents software from storing account credentials, meaning the user must re-enter their username and password each time they log-in.
The flaw is also said to delete cookies held in web browsers, preventing websites from memorising credentials and serving bespoke content to the user.
First reported in April, the issue is present in specific builds of Windows 10 version 2004 and affects applications such as Outlook, Chrome, Edge, OneDrive and more.
https://www.techradar.com/news/windows-10-update-made-a-right-mess-of-this-basic-password-feature
Colossal Intel Update Anchored by Critical Privilege-Escalation Bugs
A massive Intel security update this month addresses flaws across a myriad of products – most notably, critical bugs that can be exploited by unauthenticated cyber criminals in order to gain escalated privileges.
These critical flaws exist in products related to Wireless Bluetooth – including various Intel Wi-Fi modules and wireless network adapters – as well as in its remote out-of-band management tool, Active Management Technology (AMT).
Overall, Intel released 40 security advisories on Tuesday, each addressing critical-, high- and medium-severity vulnerabilities across various products. That by far trumps October’s Intel security update, which resolved one high-severity flaw.
https://threatpost.com/intel-update-critical-privilege-escalation-bugs/161087/
Hackers are exploiting unpatched VoIP flaws to compromise business accounts
A hacking campaign has compromised VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) phone systems at over 1,000 companies around the world over the past year in a campaign designed to make profit from selling compromised accounts.
While the main purpose appears to be dialling premium rate numbers owned by attackers or selling phone numbers and call plans that others can use for free, access to VoIP systems could provide cyber criminals with the ability to conduct other attacks, including listening to private calls, cryptomining, or even using compromised systems as a steppingstone towards much more intrusive campaigns.
One hacking group has compromised the VoIP networks of almost 1,200 organisations in over 20 countries by exploiting the vulnerability, with over half the victims in the UK. Industries including government, military, insurance, finance and manufacturing are believed to have fallen victim to the campaign
Google patches two more Chrome zero-days
Google has released today Chrome version 86.0.4240.198 to patch two zero-day vulnerabilities that were exploited in the wild.
These two bugs mark the fourth and fifth zero-days that Google has patched in Chrome over the past three weeks.
The difference this time is that while the first three zero-days were discovered internally by Google security researchers, these two new zero-days came to Google's attention after tips from anonymous sources.
https://www.zdnet.com/article/google-patches-two-more-chrome-zero-days/
Data Breaches
Ticketmaster fined £1.25m over payment data breach
Ticketmaster UK has been fined £1.25m for failing to keep its customers' personal data secure.
The fine was issued by the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) following a cyber-attack on the Ticketmaster website in 2018.
The ICO said personal information and payment details had potentially been stolen from more than nine million customers in Europe.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-54931873
Millions of Hotel Guests Worldwide Caught Up in Mass Data Leak
A cloud misconfiguration affecting users of a popular reservation platform threatens travellers with identity theft, scams, credit-card fraud and vacation-stealing.
A widely used hotel reservation platform has exposed 10 million files related to guests at various hotels around the world, thanks to a misconfigured Amazon Web Services S3 bucket. The records include sensitive data, including credit-card details.
Prestige Software’s “Cloud Hospitality” is used by hotels to integrate their reservation systems with online booking websites like Expedia and Booking.com.
https://threatpost.com/millions-hotel-guests-worldwide-data-leak/161044/
DWP exposed 6,000 people’s data online for two years
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has removed the personal details of thousands of people after they were exposed online for two years.
The files, published in March and June 2018, listed routine payments to the outsourcing giant Capita and included the National Insurance (NI) numbers of approximately 6,000 people, according to the Mirror. These individuals were believed to be applying for the disability benefit, PIP. No other personal data was exposed in the incident.
https://www.itpro.co.uk/security/data-breaches/357724/dwp-data-breach-exposed-6000-ni-numbers
Data breach at Mashable leaks users’ personal information online
Technology and culture news website Mashable have announced that the personal data of users has been discovered in a leaked database posted on the internet.
In a statement issued this week, Mashable confirmed that a database containing information from readers who made use of the platform’s social media sign-in feature had been found online.
The media company said that “a hacker known for targeting websites and apps” was responsible for the breach. The suspect has not been named.
Leaked data is said to include the full names, locations, email addresses, genders, IP addresses, and links to social media profiles of users.
Other News
Try to avoid thinking of the internet as a flashy new battlefield, warns former NCSC chief
https://www.theregister.com/2020/11/11/ciaran_martin_speech_cyber_policy/
Microsoft says three APTs have targeted seven COVID-19 vaccine makers
https://www.zdnet.com/article/microsoft-says-three-apts-have-targeted-seven-covid-19-vaccine-makers/
New stealthy hacker-for-hire group mimics state-backed attackers
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 weekly ‘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 06 November 2020
Cyber Threat Briefing 06 November 2020
Welcome to this week’s Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing – a weekly digest of open source intelligence (OSINT), 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 Headlines of the Week
2020 could be 'the worst year in cyber security history'
Businesses around the world are severely unprepared to face the sheer scale of cyber threats facing us today, new research has claimed.
The latest 2020 Business Threat Landscape report from security firm Bitdefender has said that this could be the worst year in cyber security history, as despite multiple warnings, many firms still aren't ready to protect themselves.
Bitdefender's report found that the "new normal" of remote working had led many businesses to face difficulties in ensuring their online protection, with 50% of organisations "completely unprepared" to face a scenario in which they had to migrate their entire workforce in a working from home environment.
https://www.techradar.com/news/2020-could-be-the-worst-year-in-cybersecurity-history
Two-Thirds of Financial Services Firms Suffered Cyber-Attack in the Past Year
Almost two-thirds (65%) of large financial services companies have suffered a cyber attack in the past year, while 45% have experienced a rise in attack attempts since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
This is according to new research from HelpSystems, which surveyed 250 CISOs and CIOs in global financial services firms about the impact of the pandemic on their cybersecurity.
It highlighted that these organisations are taking cybersecurity increasingly seriously, with 92% stating that they have increased investment in this area over the past 12 months, with 26% doing so by a significant amount. The main targets of this investment have included secure file transfer (64%), protecting the remote workforce (63%) and cloud/office365 (56%).
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/two-thirds-financial-services/
Proofpoint survey: IT security leaders worry about and are ill-prepared to defeat cyber-attacks
IT security leaders say they are ill-prepared for a cyber attack and believe that human error and a lack of security awareness are major risk factors for their organisations, according to a series of reports and surveys from cyber security vendor Proofpoint. But there are some marked variations in both the rates and the types of cyber attack between the regions surveyed.
It’s a dynamic attack landscape: in the DACH countries of Germany, Austria and Switzerland 67 per cent of IT security leaders say they have suffered at least one attack in the last 12 months, while in Benelux 72 per cent of respondents say their business has suffered at least one cyber attack in the same time period. In Sweden 59 per cent of businesses have been attacked at least once, while in the UAE the figure is much higher at 82 per cent - with 51 per cent of IT security leaders in the UAE saying their business has been targeted multiple times.
https://www.theregister.com/2020/11/05/proofpoint_survey_it_security_leaders/
Akamai sees doubling in malicious internet traffic as remote world’s bad actors boom, too
Akamai Technologies’ CEO said he is impressed by the amazing traffic levels on the internet during the coronavirus pandemic, and the world technology infrastructure’s ability to handle it. But during the stay-at-home boom, the web and cyber security expert also has been closely watching a boom in bad actors.
With so many people working from home, hackers are taking advantage, and massively increasing the number of attacks as daily routine changes caused by the pandemic are prolonged, and become potentially permanent.
“I think the threat actors are trying to take advantage of the pandemic, and of course, the prize is greater now that so much business has moved online”
Quarter-over-quarter — Akamai reported its Q3 results this week — the cyber security and cloud computing company has tracked a doubling of malicious traffic as telecommuting makes for easier targets.
Attacks Against Microsoft’s Remote Desktop Protocol Soar Under Work From Home Measures
The number of Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) attacks soared by 140% in Q3 compared with the previous quarter, as cyber criminals looked to take advantage of companies relying on remote access while working from home.
RDP makes it possible for one computer to connect to another over a network and control it as though the individual was sat at the keyboard themselves. While the Microsoft tool is useful for businesses and popular among IT administrators, it has increasingly been targeted by hackers who try to gain administrator access to company servers. Once inside they are able to disable security software, steal files, delete data and install malicious software.
Slovak internet security firm ESET detected the surge between July and September, with the number of separate companies reporting brute-force attacks against their RDP connection increasing by 37% quarter-over-quarter.
Threats
Ransomware
Ransomware gangs that steal your data don't always delete it
Ransomware gangs that steal a company's data and then get paid a ransom fee to delete it don't always follow through on their promise.
The number of cases where something like this has happened has increased, according to a report published by Coveware this week and according to several incidents shared by security researchers with ZDNet researchers over the past few months.
https://www.zdnet.com/article/ransomware-gangs-that-steal-your-data-dont-always-delete-it/
Spike in Emotet activity could mean big payday for ransomware gangs
There's been a massive increase in Emotet attacks and cyber criminals are taking advantage of machines compromised by the malware to launch more malware infections as well as ransomware campaigns.
The October 2020 HP-Bromium Threat Insights Report reports a 1,200% increase in Emotet detections from July to September compared to the previous three months in which deployment of the malware appeared to decline.
https://www.zdnet.com/article/spike-in-emotet-activity-could-mean-big-payday-for-ransomware-gangs/
Italian beverage vendor Campari knocked offline after ransomware attack
Campari Group, the famed Italian beverage vendor behind brands like Campari, Cinzano, and Appleton, has been hit by a ransomware attack and has taken down a large part of its IT network.
The attack took place last Sunday, on November 1, and has been linked to the RagnarLocker ransomware gang, according to a copy of the ransom note shared with ZDNet by a malware researcher who goes online by the name of Pancak3.
Hackney Council still working to restore services as IT boss describes horror at cyber attack
Hackney’s director of information communication technology (ICT) Rob Miller was playing football with his family on a Sunday morning early in October when he got a message letting him know there was a systems outage being investigated at the Town Hall.
By the end of Sunday, the council had moved swiftly to shut down its systems, declared an emergency and notified national agencies after Miller’s team found “clear markers” that the local authority had been hit by a serious cyber attack.
Leading toy maker Mattel hit by ransomware
Toy industry giant Mattel disclosed that they suffered a ransomware attack in July that impacted some of its business functions but did not lead to data theft.
Mattel is the second-largest toymaker in the world with 24,000 employees and $5.7 billion in revenue for 2019. Mattel is known for its popular brands, including Barbie, Hot Wheels, Fisher-Price, American Girl, and Thomas & Friends.
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/leading-toy-maker-mattel-hit-by-ransomware/
Business Email Compromise (BEC)
BEC attacks increase in most industries, invoice and payment fraud rise by 155%
BEC attacks increased 15% quarter-over-quarter, driven by an explosion in invoice and payment fraud, Abnormal Security research reveals.
“As the industry’s only measure of BEC attack volume by industry, our quarterly BEC research is important for CISOs to prepare and stay ahead of attackers,” said Evan Reiser, CEO of Abnormal Security.
“Not only are BEC campaigns continuing to increase overall, they are rising in 75% of industries that we track. Since these attacks are targeted and sophisticated, these increases could indicate an ability for threat actors to scale that may overwhelm some businesses.”
For this research, BEC campaigns across eight major industries were tracked, including retail/consumer goods and manufacturing, technology, energy/infrastructure, services, medical, media/tv, finance and hospitality.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2020/11/03/bec-attacks-increase-quarter-over-quarter/
Phishing
Sneaky Office 365 phishing inverts images to evade detection
A creative Office 365 phishing campaign has been inverting images used as backgrounds for landing pages to avoid getting flagged as malicious by crawlers designed to spot phishing sites.
These inverted backgrounds are commonly used as part of phishing kits that attempt to clone legitimate login pages as closely as possible to harvest a target's credentials by tricking them into entering them into a fake login form.
The BBC Experiences Over 250,000 Malicious Email Attacks Per Day
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), the UK’s public service broadcaster, faces in excess of a quarter of a million malicious email attacks every day, according to data obtained following a Freedom of Information (FoI) request.
The corporation blocked an average of 283,597 malicious emails per day during the first eight months of 2020.
According to the data, every month the BBC receives an average of 6,704,188 emails that are classified as scam or spam as well as 18,662 malware attacks such as viruses, ransomware and spyware. In total, 51,898,393 infected emails were blocked in the period from January to August 2020.
The month which contained the highest amount of recorded incidents was July, when the BBC received 6,787,635 spam and 13,592 malware attempts. The next highest was March, when the COVID-19 first struck the UK, with 6,768,632 spam emails and 14,089 malware attacks.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/bbc-experiences-malicious-email/
Malware
US Cyber Command exposes new Russian malware
US Cyber Command has exposed eight new malware samples that were developed and deployed by Russian hackers in recent attacks
Six of the eight samples are for the ComRAT malware (used by the Turla hacking group), while the other two are samples for the Zebrocy malware (used by the APT28 hacking group).
Both ComRAT and Zebrocy are malware families that have been used by Russia hacking groups for years, with ComRAT being deployed in attacks for more than a decade, having evolved from the old Agent.BTZ malware.
https://www.zdnet.com/article/us-cyber-command-exposes-new-russian-malware/
IoT
New data shows just how badly home users overestimate IoT security
A new survey from the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) shows adult workers vastly overestimate the security of the internet devices in their homes.
The survey polled 1,000 adults – 500 aged 18-34 and 500 aged 50-75 – and found that the overwhelming majority of both believed the internet of things devices they owned were secure.
IoT devices, particularly those that are cheap, outdated and hard to upgrade, are widely considered to be an easy target for hackers. Yet 87 percent of the younger group and 77 percent of the older group said they were either “somewhat” or “very confident” in the security of their connected things
Vulnerabilities
Windows 10 zero-day could allow hackers to seize control of your computer
A security bug has been discovered that affects every version of the Windows operating system, from Windows 7 to Windows 10. The vulnerability can be found within the Windows Kernel Cryptography Driver and enables attackers to gain admin-level control of a victim’s computer.
The flaw was discovered by Google’s Project Zero security team, which subsequently notified Microsoft. The Redmond-based firm was given seven days to patch the bug before Google published further details – a task that proved beyond the company.
Adobe warns Windows, MacOS users of critical acrobat and reader flaws
Adobe has fixed critical-severity flaws tied to four CVEs in the Windows and macOS versions of its Acrobat and Reader family of application software services. The vulnerabilities could be exploited to execute arbitrary code on affected products.
These critical flaws include a heap-based buffer overflow, out-of-bounds write glitch and two use-after free flaws. The bugs are part of Adobe’s regularly scheduled patches, which overall patched critical-, important- and moderate-severity vulnerabilities tied to 14 CVEs.
https://threatpost.com/adobe-windows-macos-critical-acrobat-reader-flaws/160903/
Zero-day in Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client yet to be fixed
Cisco has disclosed a zero-day vulnerability, in the Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client software with the public availability of a proof-of-concept exploit code.
The flaw resided in the inter-process communication (IPC) channel of Cisco AnyConnect Client, it can be exploited by authenticated and local attackers to execute malicious scripts via a targeted user.
Critical bug actively used to deploy Cobalt Strike on Oracle servers
Threat actors are actively exploiting Oracle WebLogic servers unpatched against CVE-2020-14882 to deploy Cobalt Strike beacons which allow for persistent remote access to compromised devices.
Cobalt Strike is a legitimate penetration testing tool also used by threat actors in post-exploitation tasks and to deploy so-called beacons that enable them to gain persistent remote access.
This later allows them to access the compromised servers to harvest data and to deploy second stage malware payloads.
Oracle Solaris Zero-Day Attack Revealed
A previously known threat group, called UNC1945, has been compromising telecommunications companies and targeting financial and professional consulting industries, by exploiting a security flaw in Oracle’s Solaris operating system.
Researchers said that the group was exploiting the bug when it was a zero-day, long before a patch arrived.
The bug, was recently addressed in Oracle’s October 2020 Critical Patch Update. The vulnerability exists in the Oracle Solaris Pluggable Authentication Module (PAM) and allows an unauthenticated attacker with network access via multiple protocols to exploit and compromise the operating system. Threat actors utilized a remote exploitation tool, which researchers call “EVILSUN,” to exploit the flaw.
https://threatpost.com/oracle-solaris-zero-day-attack/160929/
Data Breaches
Marriott Hotels fined £18.4m for data breach that hit millions
The UK's data privacy watchdog has fined the Marriott Hotels chain £18.4m for a major data breach that may have affected up to 339 million guests.
The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) said names, contact information, and passport details may all have been compromised in a cyber-attack.
The breach included seven million guest records for people in the UK.
The ICO said the company failed to put appropriate safeguards in place but acknowledged it had improved.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-54748843
23,600 hacked databases have leaked from a defunct 'data breach index' site
More than 23,000 hacked databases have been made available for download on several hacking forums and Telegram channels in what threat intel analysts are calling the biggest leak of its kind.
The database collection is said to have originated from Cit0Day.in, a private service advertised on hacking forums to other cybercriminals.
Cit0day operated by collecting hacked databases and then providing access to usernames, emails, addresses, and even cleartext passwords to other hackers for a daily or monthly fee.
Cybercriminals would then use the site to identify possible passwords for targeted users and then attempt to breach their accounts at other, more high-profile sites.
Other News
Deloitte's 'Test your Hacker IQ' site fails itself after exposing database user name, password in config file
Suspended sentence for bank IT worker who hacked his boss's webcam because he didn't get a payrise
APT Groups Finding Success with Mix of Old and New Tools
Quantum computing may make current encryption obsolete, a quantum internet could be the solution
Reports Published in the Last Week
NCSC defends UK from more than 700 cyber attacks while supporting national pandemic response
The NCSC's fourth Annual Review reveals its ongoing work against cyber attacks, support for the UK during the coronavirus pandemic.
https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/news/ncsc-defends-uk-700-cyber-attack-national-pandemic
Ransomware Demands continue to rise as Data Exfiltration becomes common, and Maze subdues
The Coveware Quarterly Ransomware Report describes ransomware incident response trends during Q3 of 2020. Ransomware groups continue to leverage data exfiltration as a tactic, though trust that stolen data will be deleted is eroding as defaults become more frequent when exfiltrated data is made public despite the victim paying. In Q3, Coveware saw the Maze group sunset their operations as the active affiliates migrated to Egregor (a fork of Maze). We also saw the return of the original Ryuk group, which has been dormant since the end of Q1.
https://www.coveware.com/blog/q3-2020-ransomware-marketplace-report
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 weekly ‘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.