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Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 27 October 2023
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Intelligence Briefing 27 October 2023:
-More Companies Adopt Board-Level Cyber Security Committees
-Ransomware Attacks Rise by More Than 95% Over 2022, to All Time High
-Security Still Not a Priority for a Third of SMBs Despite 73% Suffering Cyber Attack Last Year
-More Than 46 Million Potential Cyber Attacks Logged Every Day
-Fighting Cyber Attacks Requires Top-Down Approach
-Email Security Threats are More Dangerous This Year as Over 200 Million Malicious Emails Detected in Q3 2023
-98% of Security Leaders Worry About Risks of Generative AI as Fears Drive Spending
-48% of Organisations Predict Cyber Attack Recovery Could Take Weeks
-Cyber Security Awareness Doesn't Cut It; It's Time to Focus on Behaviour
-How Cyber Security Has Evolved in The Past 20 Years
-Rising Global Tensions Could Portend Destructive Hacks
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
More Companies Adopt Board-Level Cyber Security Committees
In a recent CISO Report by Splunk, 78% of CISOs and other security leaders reported a dedicated board-level cyber security committee at their organisations. These committees may be made up of qualified individuals or potentially even third parties - not necessarily company employees - that give guidance to the board around matters like risk assessment and cyber security strategy. These board-level cyber security committees can potentially bridge communication barriers between IT, security teams and boards. Black Arrow supports business leaders in organisations of all sizes to demonstrate governance of their cyber risks, by participating in board meetings to upskill and guide the board in requesting and challenging the appropriate information from their internal and external sources.
Source: [Decipher]
Ransomware Attacks Rise by More Than 95% Over 2022, to All Time High
A recent report by Corvus has found that ransomware attacks continued at a record-breaking pace, with Q3 frequency up 11% over Q2 and 95% year-over-year. Even if there were no more ransomware attacks this year, the victim account has already surpassed what was observed for 2021 and 2022. In a separate report, analysis conducted by Sophos has found that dwell times, which is the length of time an attacker is in a victim’s system before they are discovered, has fallen, leaving less time for organisations to detect attacks.
Sources: [Dark Reading] [SC Magazine] [Reinsurance News]
Security Still Not a Priority for a Third of SMBs Despite 73% Suffering Cyber Attack Last Year
Multiple reports highlighting different aspects of small and medium businesses (SMBs) all have one thing in common: the lack of priority that is given to cyber security. One example is a survey conducted by Amazon Web Services (AWS) which found that cyber security is not even a strategic priority for 35% of SMBs when considering moving to the cloud. This comes as a report by Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC) found that 73% of US SMBs reported a cyber attack last year, with employee and customer data being the target in data breaches. Despite the rise in SMB attacks, relatively few organisations are following cyber security best practices to help prevent a breach in the first place. Every business, regardless of size, should do everything it reasonably can to protect its data and ensure connectivity, and smaller organisations may be more likely to be a victim of a cyber attack. Security is an enabler for the wider IT and business strategy to help users build the organisation in greater security. It should be hard-baked from the outset; seeking expert advice can help ensure the right proportionate security decisions are being made.
Sources: [Insider Media] [Infosecurity Magazine] [IT Reseller Magazine] [Infosecurity Magazine]
More Than 46 Million Potential Cyber Attacks Logged Every Day
New data released by the UK’s BT Group has found that more than 500 potential cyber attacks are logged every second. The BT data showed that over the last 12 months the most targeted sectors by cyber criminals were IT, defence, banking and insurance sectors; this was followed by the retail, hospitality and education industries. According to the figures 785,000 charities fell victim to cyber attacks. The data found that hackers are relentlessly scanning devices for vulnerabilities by using automation, and artificial intelligence is now being included by attackers to identify weaknesses in an organisation’s cyber defences.
Sources: [Evening Standard] [Proactive] [The Independent]
Fighting Cyber Attacks Requires Top-Down Approach
Organisations must move away from the posture that their IT division owns responsibility for safeguarding against cyber attacks. Instead, what we really need is for cyber security to come down from the top of the organisation, into the departments so that we have an enterprise-wide culture of security. It is the board’s responsibility to work with the executive team to ensure it is not just an IT-centric issue. By aligning cyber risk management with business needs, creating a cyber security strategy as a business enabler, and incorporating cyber security expertise into board and governance, the organisation will create a solid foundation for this top-down approach.
Source: [Chief Investment Officer]
Email Security Threats are More Dangerous This Year as Over 200 million Malicious Emails Detected in Q3 2023
The use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools such as ChatGPT has made spam and phishing emails infinitely more dangerous, with over 200 million sent in Q3 2023. A recent report found that link-based malware delivery made up 58% of all malicious emails for the quarter, while attachments made up the remaining 42%. Worryingly, 33% of these were delivered through legitimate but compromised websites.
Phishing does not come through emails alone however, there is also phishing via SMS, QR codes, calls and genuine, but compromised accounts. Black Arrow supports organisations of all sizes in designing and delivering proportionate user education and awareness programmes, including in-person and online training as well as simulated phishing campaigns. Our programmes help secure employee engagement and build a cyber security culture to protect the organisation.
Sources: [Security Magazine] [MSSP Alert] [TechRadar]
98% of Security Leaders Worry About Risks of Generative AI as Fears Drive Spending
Generative AI is playing a significant role in reshaping the phishing email threat landscape, according to a recent report from Abnormal Security. The report found that 98% of security leaders are highly concerned about generative AI's potential to create more sophisticated email attacks, with four-fifths (80.3%) of respondents confirming that their organisation had already received AI-generated email attacks or strongly suspecting that this was the case. A separate report by IBM found that attackers only needed five simple prompts to get the AI to develop a highly convincing phishing email. In a separate report, Gartner stated that AI has created a new scare, which contributed to 80% of CIO’s reporting that they plan to increase spending on cyber security, including AI.
Sources: [Infosecurity Magazine] [CSO Online] [Business Wire] [Help Net Security]
48% of Organisations Predict Cyber Attack Recovery Could Take Weeks
A recent report has found that 48% of respondents predicted that it would take days or weeks for their company to recover from cyber attacks, representing a potentially devastating risk to their business. Attacks are a matter of when, not if. Organisations should have plans and procedures in place to be able to recover from an attack; this includes having an incident response plan and regularly testing the organisation’s ability to backup and recover.
Black Arrow works with organisations of all sizes and sectors to design and prepare for managing a cyber security incident; this can include an incident response plan and an educational tabletop exercise for the leadership team that highlights the proportionate controls to help the organisation prevent and mitigate an incident.
Sources: [Security Magazine]
Cyber Security Awareness Doesn't Cut It; It's Time to Focus on Behaviour
The human element remains a significant vulnerability in cyber security, as reinforced by recent analysis. Repeated studies show that knowledge alone does not change behaviour, and that simply giving people more training is unlikely to change outcomes. The study underscores that even with heightened cyber security awareness, there has not been a notable decline in successful cyber attacks that exploit human errors.
We need to draw parallels to real-world skills. The report suggests that cyber security education should be as continuous and context-driven as learning to drive: no one learnt to drive by having a single lesson once a year. For instance, rather than educating employees on using multifactor authentication (MFA) in isolation, it's more impactful to provide an explanation of the additional security that that control provides and the reasons why it is being used to protect the organisation. This contextual approach, accentuated with insights on the advantages of these controls, is poised to foster the right behaviours and bolster security outcomes. However, the challenges persist, with many employees still bypassing recommended security protocols, underscoring the need for a more hands-on, real-time approach to cyber security education.
Source: [Dark Reading]
How Cyber Security Has Evolved in The Past 20 Years
Twenty years ago, the cloud as we know it didn’t exist. There were no Internet of Things (IoT) sensors, not even Gmail was around. Cyber threats have evolved significantly since then, but so too have the solutions. We’ve transitioned from manual, on-site vulnerability scanning and lengthy breach investigations, to automated tools and remote work capabilities that have reduced investigation times from months to weeks. Alongside technological advancements, laws and regulations surrounding cyber security have also tightened, imposing stricter rules on organisations to protect customer data and penalties for attackers.
The bigger picture is staying a step ahead of threat actors in the automation race. Whether that’s accomplished with AI or some other yet-to-be-discovered technology remains to be seen. In the meantime, as is always the case in this industry, regardless of the latest innovation, everyone needs to stay vigilant for threat actors’ attacks and remember that what was adequate to protect technology 20 years ago will not be sufficient to defend against the threat landscape today, and certainly not against the threats of tomorrow.
Source: [Forbes]
Rising Global Tensions Could Portend Destructive Hacks
Governments in the West are warning public and private sector organisations to "remain on heightened alert" for disruptive cyber attacks targeting critical infrastructure and key sectors amid a series of escalating global conflicts.
Source: [Info Risk Today]
Governance, Risk and Compliance
Cyber security Awareness Doesn't Cut It; It's Time to Focus on Behaviour (darkreading.com)
How Cyber Security Training Lowers Risk Among Employees (forbes.com)
How to establish a great security awareness culture (att.com)
More Companies Adopt Board-Level Cyber Security Committees | Decipher (duo.com)
Fighting Cyber Attacks Requires Top-Down Approach | Chief Investment Officer (ai-cio.com)
SMBs Need to Balance Cyber Security Needs and Resources (darkreading.com)
48% of organisations predict cyber attack recovery to take weeks | Security Magazine
Cyber Security Litigation: Five Trends Unpacked | Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP - JDSupra
Cyber attacks now biggest cause of downtime and data loss – report - CIR Magazine
The Need for a Cyber Security-Centric Business Culture (darkreading.com)
From Snooze to Enthuse: Making Security Awareness Training 'Sticky' (darkreading.com)
Awaken From Cyber Slumber: 3 Steps To Stronger Cyber security (forbes.com)
AI-related security fears drive 2024 IT spending - Help Net Security
Cyber Resilience And Risk Management: Forces Against Cyber Threats (forbes.com)
The Cyber Security Resilience Quotient: Measuring Security Effectiveness - Security Week
Threats
Ransomware, Extortion and Destructive Attacks
SonicWall Data Confirms That Ransomware Is Still the Enterprise's Biggest Fear (darkreading.com)
Ransomware is threatening more businesses than ever before | TechRadar
Ransomware isn’t going away – the problem is only getting worse (bleepingcomputer.com)
Known Ransomware Attack Volume Breaks Monthly Record, Again (govinfosecurity.com)
Microsoft Warns as Scattered Spider Expands from SIM Swaps to Ransomware (thehackernews.com)
Concerns grow as LockBit knockoffs increasingly target popular vulnerabilities (therecord.media)
The Rise of S3 Ransomware: How to Identify and Combat It (thehackernews.com)
Meet Rhysida, a New Ransomware Strain That Deletes Itself (darkreading.com)
Kaspersky crimeware report: GoPIX, Lumar, and Rhysida. | Securelist
Five things organisations don’t consider before a ransomware attack | TechRadar
Ransomware incidents are on the rise as latest data reveals alarming trend | TechSpot
MGM Resorts hackers 'one of the most dangerous financial criminal groups’ (therecord.media)
Ransomware attacks against hospitals put patients' lives at risk, researchers say : NPR
Ragnar Locker Ransomware Boss Arrested in Paris (darkreading.com)
BlackCat Climbs the Summit With a New Tactic (paloaltonetworks.com)
Ransomware Soars as Myriad Efforts to Stop It Fall Short - Bloomberg
Hackers Using Remote Admin Tools AvosLocker Ransomware (gbhackers.com)
Resilience notes uptick in data exfiltration as cyber criminals change tactics - Reinsurance News
Healthcare Ransomware Attacks Cost US $78bn - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Bracing for AI-enabled ransomware and cyber extortion attacks - Help Net Security
Security Patch Management Strengthens Ransomware Defence (trendmicro.com)
Ransomware Victims
MGM Resorts hackers 'one of the most dangerous financial criminal groups’ (therecord.media)
Ambulances diverted as 3 New York hospitals grapple with cyber attacks | Fox News
Operations of Healthcare Solutions Giant Henry Schein Disrupted by Cyber attack - Security Week
US energy firm shares how Akira ransomware hacked its systems (bleepingcomputer.com)
Seiko says ransomware attack exposed sensitive customer data (bleepingcomputer.com)
American Family Insurance confirms cyber attack is behind IT outages (bleepingcomputer.com)
Cyber Attack Causing Service Interruptions At Ontario Hospitals (databreaches.net)
Cyber crims leak patient pics in low blow bid to win ransom • The Register
Phishing & Email Based Attacks
Over 200 million malicious emails were detected in Q3 2023 | Security Magazine
Watch out - that QR code could just be a phishing scam | TechRadar
Booking.com customers targeted by scam ‘confirmation’ emails | Scams | The Guardian
New Hotel Phishing Scam — Be Careful If You're Offered a Discounted Rate | GOBankingRates
Email security threats are more dangerous than ever - here's what you need to know | TechRadar
What is Phishing? 5 Types of Phishing Attacks You Need to Know | MSSP Alert
The US released popular phishing techniques | Inquirer Technology
Akamai research finds more sophisticated phishing threats in hospitality industry - SiliconANGLE
Don’t Get Spooked Into Falling For These Phishing Scams - IT Security Guru
Other Social Engineering; Smishing, Vishing, etc
Artificial Intelligence
AI-related security fears drive 2024 IT spending - Help Net Security
Boardrooms losing control in generative AI takeover, says Kaspersky | Computer Weekly
Governments, firms should spend more on AI safety, top researchers say | Reuters
Cyber-defence systems seek to outduel criminals in AI race (techxplore.com)
Report warns AI could worsen cyber threat, but government will not ‘rush to regulate’ - CIR Magazine
Businesses fear generative AI will cause ‘catastrophic’ cyber attacks (siliconrepublic.com)
Don't use AI-based apps, Philippine defence ordered its personnel (securityaffairs.com)
Businesses ignorant to gen AI security threats suggests research (ship-technology.com)
Deepfakes: Navigating Data Privacy and Cyber Security Risks | DRI - JDSupra
Artificial Intelligence Bad News For Cyber Threats, Report Warns - TechRound
Bracing for AI-enabled ransomware and cyber extortion attacks - Help Net Security
Oops! When tech innovations create new security threats | CSO Online
2FA/MFA
Malware
Hackers are using an incredibly sneaky trick to hide malware | Digital Trends
Vietnamese Hackers Target UK, US, and India with DarkGate Malware (thehackernews.com)
Quasar RAT Leverages DLL Side-Loading to Fly Under the Radar (thehackernews.com)
Dangerous new malware can crack encrypted USB drives | TechRadar
'Grandoreiro' Trojan Targets Global Banking Customers (darkreading.com)
Powerful Malware Disguised as Crypto Miner Infects 1M+ Windows, Linux PCs (pcmag.com)
The Changing Threat Landscape: Infostealers and the MacOS goldmine - F-Secure Blog
Mobile
Android trojan spotted in the wild can record audio and phone calls | ZDNET
Samsung Galaxy S23 hacked twice in one day at Pwn2Own contest (androidauthority.com)
iLeakage attack exploits Safari to steal data from Apple devices (securityaffairs.com)
Intellexa: Irish-linked spyware used in 'brazen attacks' - report - BBC News
Longer Support Periods Raise the Bar for Mobile Security (darkreading.com)
Android adware apps on Google Play amass two million installs (bleepingcomputer.com)
Denial of Service/DoS/DDOS
This DDoS attack is the biggest in internet history. | World Economic Forum (weforum.org)
Disinformation and its often overlooked potential for denial-of-services. (thecyberwire.com)
Record-Breaking 100 Million RPS DDoS Attack Exploits HTTP/2 Rapid Reset Flaw (thehackernews.com)
Internet of Things – IoT
Data Breaches/Leaks
Okta says hackers breached its support system and viewed customer files | Ars Technica
Okta support system breach highlights need for strong MFA policies | CSO Online
1Password suffers cyber security incident after latest Okta breach - Tech Monitor
Okta stock falls after company says client files accessed by hackers via support system (cnbc.com)
Hacker accused of breaching Finnish psychotherapy centre facing 30,000 counts (therecord.media)
City of Philadelphia discloses data breach after five months (bleepingcomputer.com)
500k Irish National Police records exposed by third party • The Register
The 23andMe data breach reveals the vulnerabilities of our interconnected data (theconversation.com)
iLeakage attack exploits Safari to steal data from Apple devices (securityaffairs.com)
DC Board of Elections: Hackers may have breached entire voter roll (bleepingcomputer.com)
Organised Crime & Criminal Actors
More than 500 potential cyber attacks logged every second, BT says | The Independent
Spain arrests 34 cyber criminals who stole data of 4 million people (bleepingcomputer.com)
Nigerian Police dismantle cyber crime recruitment, mentoring hub (bleepingcomputer.com)
Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs/Blockchain
Cryptojacking campaign Qubitstrike targets exposed Jupyter Notebook instances | CSO Online
Powerful Malware Disguised as Crypto Miner Infects 1M+ Windows, Linux PCs (pcmag.com)
70% of Crypto Companies Report Deepfake Fraud Rise (darkreading.com)
Insider Risk and Insider Threats
Forget the outside hacker, the bigger threat is inside • The Register
Human-centric Security Design Reduces Threats by Changing User Behavior (prweb.com)
How to establish a great security awareness culture (att.com)
How Cyber Security Training Lowers Risk Among Employees (forbes.com)
The Need for a Cyber Security-Centric Business Culture (darkreading.com)
Fraud, Scams & Financial Crime
New Hotel Phishing Scam — Be Careful If You're Offered a Discounted Rate | GOBankingRates
Booking.com customers targeted by scam ‘confirmation’ emails | Scams | The Guardian
Purchase Scams Surge as Fraud Losses Hit £580m - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Online scammers target desperate loan seekers using online fraud | TechRadar
Christmas scams to watch out for this festive season (nationalworld.com)
Cyber criminals exploit the Israeli-Hamas conflict through scam emails and websites (iol.co.za)
70% of Crypto Companies Report Deepfake Fraud Rise (darkreading.com)
Deepfakes
Deepfakes: Navigating Data Privacy and Cyber Security Risks | DRI - JDSupra
70% of Crypto Companies Report Deepfake Fraud Rise (darkreading.com)
Insurance
Telling Small Businesses to Buy Cyber Insurance Isn't Enough (darkreading.com)
Stemming Losses That Go Uncovered by Cyber Insurance | Esquire Deposition Solutions, LLC - JDSupra
Aviva: SMEs ‘woefully underserved’ for cyber cover - Insurance Post (postonline.co.uk)
Dark Web
Supply Chain and Third Parties
Software Supply Chain
Cloud/SaaS
Passwords, Credential Stuffing & Brute Force Attacks
Okta Reveals Breach Via Stolen Credential - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
'Log in With...' Feature Allows Full Online Account Takeover for Millions (darkreading.com)
Social Media
Malvertising
Training, Education and Awareness
Cyber Security Awareness Doesn't Cut It; It's Time to Focus on Behaviour (darkreading.com)
This Cyber Security Awareness Month, Don't Lose Sight of Human Risk (darkreading.com)
How to establish a great security awareness culture (att.com)
How Cyber Security Training Lowers Risk Among Employees (forbes.com)
The Need for a Cyber Security-Centric Business Culture (darkreading.com)
Cyber Security Awareness Month: What's Still Needed After Twenty Years (forbes.com)
From Snooze to Enthuse: Making Security Awareness Training 'Sticky' (darkreading.com)
Regulations, Fines and Legislation
Managed security services [EU Legislation in Progress] | Epthinktank | European Parliament
Report warns AI could worsen cyber threat, but government will not ‘rush to regulate’ - CIR Magazine
UK government finalises IoT cyber security requirements - Lexology
Models, Frameworks and Standards
Backup and Recovery
Law Enforcement Action and Take Downs
Hacker accused of breaching Finnish psychotherapy center facing 30,000 counts (therecord.media)
Alleged developer of the Ragnar Locker ransomware was arrested (securityaffairs.com)
Spain arrests 34 cyber criminals who stole data of 4 million people (bleepingcomputer.com)
Nigerian Police dismantle cyber crime recruitment, mentoring hub (bleepingcomputer.com)
Privacy, Surveillance and Mass Monitoring
‘I’m looking for fewer ways to be traceable, not more’ | Financial Times
Google Chrome's new "IP Protection" will hide users' IP addresses (bleepingcomputer.com)
ShadowDragon: Australian spies monitor PornHub, Tinder, Fortnite (crikey.com.au)
Misinformation, Disinformation and Propaganda
Nation State Actors, Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs), Cyber Warfare, Cyber Espionage and Geopolitical Threats/Activity
Misc Nation State/Cyber Warfare/Cyber Espionage
ICC: September Breach Was Espionage Raid - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
International Criminal Court attack was targeted and sophisticated (securityaffairs.com)
Governments and hackers agree: the laws of war must apply in cyber space (theconversation.com)
It's Time to Establish the NATO of Cyber Security (darkreading.com)
War Crimes Court Flags Cyber Attack That Targeted Its Work - Law360
International Criminal Court systems breached for cyber espionage (bleepingcomputer.com)
Cyber attack a ‘serious attempt to undermine’ International Criminal Court - Lawyers Weekly
Rising Global Tensions Could Portend Destructive Hacks (inforisktoday.com)
Geopolitical Threats/Activity
Cyber criminals exploit the Israeli-Hamas conflict through scam emails and websites (iol.co.za)
Cyber operations linked to Israel-Hamas fighting gain momentum | CyberScoop
Rising Global Tensions Could Portend Destructive Hacks (inforisktoday.com)
China
MI5 chief warns of Chinese cyber espionage reached an unprecedented scale (securityaffairs.com)
Glasgow universities on red alert over Chinese spies as they join security scheme - Glasgow Live
Navy ends tradition of Chinese laundrymen on warships over spying fears (telegraph.co.uk)
Russia
Russia Cyber attacks Becoming More Sophisticated, Ukraine Official Says - Bloomberg
European govt email servers hacked using Roundcube zero-day (bleepingcomputer.com)
Ministry, police and Crimea summit websites victims of cyber attack | Radio Prague International
Major Russian bank reportedly hacked by Ukraine | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
Hackers backdoor Russian state, industrial orgs for data theft (bleepingcomputer.com)
Who is sabotaging underwater infrastructure in the Baltic Sea? (economist.com)
Pro-Russia hackers target inboxes with 0-day in webmail app used by millions | Ars Technica
Russia-Ukraine War: Cyber Attack and Kinetic Warfare Timeline - | MSSP Alert
France says Russian state hackers breached numerous critical networks (bleepingcomputer.com)
Cyber attack a ‘serious attempt to undermine’ International Criminal Court - Lawyers Weekly
Ex-NSA techie admits to selling state secrets to Russia • The Register
Iran
North Korea
Vulnerability Management
Concerns grow as LockBit knockoffs increasingly target popular vulnerabilities (therecord.media)
Why Do We Need Real-World Context to Prioritise CVEs? (darkreading.com)
Security Patch Management Strengthens Ransomware Defence (trendmicro.com)
Vulnerabilities
Citrix Bleed exploit lets hackers hijack NetScaler accounts (bleepingcomputer.com)
Exploitation of Citrix NetScaler vulns reaching dangerous levels | Computer Weekly
Critical SolarWinds RCE Bugs Enable Unauthorised Network Takeover (darkreading.com)
CISA adds second Cisco IOS XE flaw to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog - Security Affairs
Cisco hackers likely taking steps to avoid identification | Computer Weekly
F5 Issues Warning: BIG-IP Vulnerability Allows Remote Code Execution (thehackernews.com)
European govt email servers hacked using Roundcube zero-day (bleepingcomputer.com)
VMware vCenter Flaw So Critical, Patches Released for End-of-Life Products - Security Week
Critical OAuth Flaws Uncovered in Grammarly, Vidio, and Bukalapak Platforms (thehackernews.com)
Firefox, Chrome Updates Patch High-Severity Vulnerabilities - Security Week
The Forbidden Fruit Of Cyber Security: Hackers Take A Bite Out Of Apple (forbes.com)
Pro-Russia hackers target inboxes with 0-day in webmail app used by millions | Ars Technica
Apple Ships Major iOS, macOS Security Updates - Security Week
Hackers can force iOS and macOS browsers to divulge passwords and much more | Ars Technica
ServiceNow quietly fixes 8-year-old data exposure flaw • The Register
Tools and Controls
48% of organisations predict cyber attack recovery to take weeks | Security Magazine
Cyber attack response plans need to be in place to avoid chaos - FreightWaves
NIST provides solid guidance on software supply chain security in DevSecOps | CSO Online
What is Network Segmentation? Virtual & Physical Segmentation | UpGuard
AI-related security fears drive 2024 IT spending - Help Net Security
Businesses fear generative AI will cause ‘catastrophic’ cyber attacks (siliconrepublic.com)
Is it wise to put all your security solutions in one cyber basket? (securitybrief.co.nz)
Cyber attacks are inevitable, so a focus on resilience is vital - James McGachie (scotsman.com)
Cyber Resilience And Risk Management: Forces Against Cyber Threats (forbes.com)
Are Backup Files the Missing Link in Your Cyber Security? (finextra.com)
Unveiling the power of emerging technologies to empower cyber resilience (techuk.org)
Cyber security concerns grow among physical security professionals | Security Magazine
The Cyber Security Resilience Quotient: Measuring Security Effectiveness - Security Week
Other News
MPs to examine cyber resilience of UK’s critical national infrastructure | CSO Online
Strategies to overcome cyber security misconceptions - Help Net Security
UK NCSC, NPSA launch Secure Innovation campaign to protect tech startups | CSO Online
5 important cyber security takeaways for law firms - Lawyers Weekly
How Cyber Security Has Evolved In The Past 20 Years (forbes.com)
Oops! When tech innovations create new security threats | CSO Online
Spooky Cyber Statistics And Trends You Need To Know (forbes.com)
The Changing Threat Landscape: Infostealers and the MacOS goldmine - F-Secure Blog
Proactively preventing your company from becoming the next cyber attack headline (betanews.com)
Demystifying Cyber Security: Shakespeare To The Rescue | HackerNoon
Cyber Threat: Aviation’s Clear and Present Danger? | Aerospace Tech Review
OT cyber attacks proliferating despite growing cyber security spend - Help Net Security
Cost of a Data Breach: Retail Costs, Risks and Prevention Strategies (securityintelligence.com)
What Would a US Government Shutdown Mean for Cyber Security? (darkreading.com)
Weapons Systems Provide Valuable Lessons for ICS/OT Security - Security Week
Cyber attacks now biggest cause of downtime and data loss – report - CIR Magazine
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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Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 20 October 2023
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Intelligence Briefing 20 October 2023:
-Cyber Insecurity: Many Businesses Scared They May be Hit by a Cyber Attack at Any Moment
-Cyber Security Investments Show Mature Business Mindset
-SMBs Struggle to Keep Pace as Cyber Threats Reach All Time High
-Phishing Attacks Reach Record Highs as Banks, Financial Services Remain Top Targets with HR Remaining the Most Effective Phishing Lure
-Cyber Attacks are a Matter of When not if, The Best Time to Deal With Them is Before They Happen
-Lloyd's Of London Warns Of Worst-Case-Scenario Cyber Attack
-20,000 Britons Approached By Chinese Agents On LinkedIn, Says MI5 Head
-Ransomware - All it Takes is One Employee Mistake, Criminals are Aiming at Third-Party Vendors
-39% of Individuals Use the Same Password for Multiple Accounts
-Why Fourth-Party Risk Management Is a Must-Have
-AI Adoption Surges But Security Awareness Lags Behind
-UK watchdog fines Equifax £11 million for role in cyber breach
-Why Boards Must Understand and Govern Cyber Security Risk
Welcome to this week’s Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing – a weekly digest, collated and curated by our cyber experts to provide senior and middle management with an easy to digest round up of the most notable threats, vulnerabilities, and cyber related news from the last week.
Top Cyber Stories of the Last Week
Cyber Insecurity: Many Businesses Scared They May be Hit by a Cyber Attack at Any Moment
A report from the Commvault and the International Data Corporation (IDC) found that 61% of respondents believe that a data loss within the next 12 months is "likely" or "highly likely" to occur due to increasingly sophisticated attacks. Unfortunately, most businesses do not have an unlimited budget; cyber security related spending must therefore be effective, taking an informed risk based approach to prioritise the biggest threats to businesses. To understand these threats, businesses must know the current threat landscape and how that relates to their business specifically. In order to be able to apply any threat intelligence, organisations must first ascertain what they need to protect through a documented asset register; after all you cannot protect something you do not know exists.
Sources: [PR Newswire] [TechRadar]
Cyber Security Investments Show Mature Business Mindset
Companies need to start embracing cyber security as a business enabler, rather than being viewed as a pure cost or as a regulatory burden. Good cyber security is a strong indicator of a mature business mindset, giving customers, employees, and suppliers confidence that you are running a mature, responsible operation that takes the value of its data and IP very seriously. With the perception of customers changing to be more security-based, having a high level of cyber security can establish trust and therefore distinguish a business in the marketplace.
Source: [Insider Media] [Compare the Cloud]
SMBs Struggle to Keep Pace as Cyber Threats Reach All Time High
Research conducted by Sage has found UK small and medium sized businesses (SMBs) are particularly struggling with cyber security preparedness, with 57% asking for more support with education and training and 45% not understanding what security is needed for their business. The report found that globally, 70% of SMBs highlighted cyber threats as a major concern, with 51% struggling to keep on top of new threats and 48% experiencing a cyber incident in the past year.
SMBs globally, found that their struggle related to making sure employees know what is expected of them in protecting the organisation (45%), providing education and awareness training (44%) and cost (43%).
Source: (IT Security Guru)
Phishing Attacks Hit Record Highs in Q2 2023, with Emails from HR still the Most Effective Lure
Research has found in the third quarter of this year, phishing attacks soared by 173% compared with the previous three months, and malware was up 110% over the same period, with 233.9 million malicious emails detected. Banks and financial services organisations remained a top target, with a 121% rise in phishing attacks.
In a separate report, human resource topics were found to account for more than half of the top-clicked phishing email subjects. This included emails that related to a change in dress code and updates on annual leave. It’s important for organisations to take this into account when training employees.
Sources: [SiliconANGLE1] [Beta News] [SiliconANGLE2] [TechRadar] [Security Brief]
Cyber Attacks Are a Matter of When, Not If; The Best Time to Deal with Them Is Before They Happen
Another week brings more companies added to the list of victims of cyber attacks. Just this week, UK based social care provider CareTech’s childcare subsidiary Cambian was criticised for keeping a cyber attack quiet, with individuals who had data stolen having to chase Cambian for details.
Cyber attacks happen, and companies need to admit when they have happened and inform relevant people. Honesty and clarity are key. After an attack, there are a number of things going on at once such as finding out what has happened, identifying stolen or encrypted data, fulfilling legal and regulatory requirements and communicating both internally and externally. Unfortunately, many companies do not expect to be attacked and therefore do not have anything in place to respond to an attack. In addition to having the necessary defences in place, organisations must be prepared for the event of an attack. This can be outlined in an incident response plan (IRP).
Black Arrow works with organisations of all sizes and sectors to design and prepare for managing a cyber security incident; this can include an Incident Response Plan and an educational tabletop exercise for the leadership team that highlights the proportionate controls to help the organisation prevent and mitigate an incident.
Sources: [Euronews] [The Times] [AI-CIO]
Lloyd's Of London Warns of Worst-Case-Scenario Cyber Attack
In recent modelling by a Lloyds of London researcher, a worst-case-scenario was found to have the potential to cause $3.5 trillion of economic damage within 5 years. While this may seem implausible, with the increased number of cyber attacks, especially to the financial sector, this figure is not as incredulous as it may seem.
The FBI has also stated that the average annual cost of cyber crime worldwide is expected to soar from $8.4 trillion in 2022 to more than $23 trillion in 2027.
Sources: [Reinsurance News] [ABS-CBN News] [The Motley Fool] [City AM]
20,000 Britons Approached by Chinese Agents on LinkedIn, Says MI5 Head
An estimated 20,000 Britons have been approached by Chinese state actors on LinkedIn in the hope of stealing industrial or technological secrets, the head of MI5 stated ahead of the Five Eyes agencies summit. This summit is a meeting of the heads of security from the Five Eyes nations – UK, US, Australia, Canada and New Zealand. The summit discussed how industrial espionage was happening at “real scale”, with 10,000 UK businesses being at risk, particularly in artificial intelligence, quantum computing or synthetic biology where China was trying to gain a march.
A 'secure innovation' guideline has been released to assist small to medium-sized enterprises, especially tech start-ups, in bolstering their defences against threats from foreign states, criminals, and competitors. This guideline offers basic security advice on areas like investments, supply chains, IT networks, and cloud computing to safeguard emerging technologies.
Sources: [Computer Weekly] [Tech Monitor] [Guardian]
Ransomware - All it Takes is One Employee Mistake, As Criminals are Aiming Third-Party Vendors
According to a report, human error is the root cause of more than 80% of all cyber breaches. The solution in this case, is for organisations to provide effective training to employees to reduce the risk of such an error happening. However, this does not have any impact on third parties that the organisations use. A separate report found that nearly a third of ransomware claims involved a third-party vendor as a point of failure.
Whilst organisations often focus on improving their own cyber security, third parties can become an easily overlooked area. You don’t want to invest a significant amount into your organisation’s cyber security, only for it to fail due to a third party. This is why it is important for organisations to have an effective way of measuring supply chain risk, to ensure that they know what data their third parties have access to and what is being done by the third parties to protect it.
Black Arrow have helped many clients carry out third party risk assessments on a large number of suppliers and this can be done as a standalone offering or as part of a fractional CISO engagement.
Sources: [Security Affairs] [Claims Journal]
39% of Individuals Use the Same Password for Multiple Accounts
According to a recent survey by Yubico, 80% of respondents are concerned about the security of their online accounts. Additionally, 39% admitted to using the same passwords for multiple accounts. The report found that Boomer-generation users are the least likely to reuse passwords at 20%. In comparison, Millennials are twice as likely to reuse passwords for multiple accounts at 47%. This survey highlights that whilst younger generations may be more tech savvy, having grown up with this technology, it also brings with it a more relaxed and complacent attitude when it comes to cyber security hygiene.
Source: [Security Magazine]
Why Fourth-Party Risk Management Is a Must-Have
Most organisations today are acutely aware of the risks that third-party relationships pose, and many employ some form of third-party risk management to understand and monitor these alliances. Another danger also needs to be borne in mind: the threats organisations face from their third parties’ third parties. These ‘fourth parties’, the vendors of an organisation's vendor, are becoming an increasing concern among regulators, particularly those in the banking and financial services sector. Attackers exploit fourth parties just the same as they do third parties to indirectly target an organisation. As a result, these fourth parties greatly increase an IT environment's attack surface.
Fourth parties pose reputational, operational and regulatory risks, and with new regulations such as the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) in Europe coming into place, organisations need to implement a comprehensive third-party risk management program that extends to cover fourth-party risk management. This is the only way to ensure fourth parties are vetted appropriately.
Source: [Tech Target]
AI Adoption Surges but Security Awareness Lags Behind
A new survey found that security is reportedly not the primary concern for organisations when using tools such as ChatGPT and Google Bard. Respondents are more worried about inaccurate responses than the exposure of customer and employee personally identifiable information (PII), disclosure of trade secrets (33%) and financial loss (25%). Basic security practices are lacking, however, with 82% of respondents confident in their security stacks but less than half investing in technology to monitor generative AI use, exposing them to data loss risks. Only 46% have established security policies for data sharing.
Organisations need to rigorously assess and control how large language models (LLMs) handle data, ensuring alignment with regulations such as GDPR, HIPAA, and CCPA. This involves employing strong encryption, consent mechanisms and data anonymisation techniques, and ensuring control over how the organisation’s data is used, alongside regular audits and updates to ensure data handling practices remain compliant.
Source: [Infosecurity Magazine]
UK Watchdog Fines Equifax £11 Million For Role in Cyber Breach
Britain's financial watchdog has fined the consumer credit rating body Equifax £11 million ($13.4 million) for its role in "one of the largest" cyber security breaches in history. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) stated that "The cyber attack and unauthorised access to data was entirely preventable", identifying that the UK arm of Equifax did not find out data had been accessed until six weeks after their parent company discover the hack.
Source: [Reuters]
Why Boards Must Understand and Govern Cyber Security Risk
The boardroom is a critical control in every company’s system of cyber security risk management. An ineffective approach to cyber security governance creates an overall system of cyber security that is weaker than it needs to be. Boards have typically viewed cyber security as something that it left to IT and have not been able to challenge or interpret the reports that they receive, if any, from their IT departments or IT providers. Governing bodies such as the US Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) have identified this and have started bringing in regulations that force the board of directors to fully understand digital cyber security risk and have a more vital role as part of the system.
Black Arrow supports business leaders in organisations of all sizes to demonstrate governance of their cyber security, by owning their cyber security strategy and leveraging their existing internal and external resources to build resilience against a cyber security incident.
Source: [Forbes]
Governance, Risk and Compliance
Many cyber bosses just aren't confident in their company's defences | TechRadar
SMBs seek help as cyber threats reach an all-time high - Help Net Security
SMBs seek cyber training, support as attack risk surges | CIO Dive
The real impact of the cyber security poverty line on small organisations - Help Net Security
Cyber security investments show mature business mindset, says IT expert | Insider Media
Is Cyber security Finally Becoming a Business Enabler? - Compare the Cloud
The best time to deal with cyber attacks is before they happen (thetimes.co.uk)
Preparations Are Key to Weathering Cyber security Incidents | Chief Investment Officer (ai-cio.com)
Over 70% of firms hit by cyber attack in last 12 months (rte.ie)
The future of cyber security regulation: what to look out for with NIS2 | TechRadar
Getting ready for NIS2 with strong identity controls | ITPro
10 Ways Boards Are Setting Their Companies Up For Cyber security Failure (forbes.com)
NIST Cyber security Framework for Small Businesses: Key Benefits (smallbiztrends.com)
AI and the Imperative to Take Cyber security Precautions (inforisktoday.com)
Cyber attacks to cost $23 trillion in 2027: US official | ABS-CBN News
How Cyber security Provides the Green Light for Business Innovation (govinfosecurity.com)
Essential cyber hygiene: Making cyber defence cost effective - Help Net Security
The Need for a Cyber security-Centric Business Culture (darkreading.com)
The double-edged sword of heightened regulation for financial services - Help Net Security
Report: Cyber attacks No. 1 cause of downtime and data loss | Security Magazine
Will CISOs Become Personally Liable for Breach Response? (inforisktoday.com)
Keeping control in complex regulatory environments - Help Net Security
Generative AI an Emerging Risk as CISOs Shift Cyber Resilience Strategies (informationweek.com)
7 risk mitigation strategies to protect business operations | TechTarget
How to go from collecting risk data to actually reducing risk? - Help Net Security
SEC’s New Cyber Disclosure Rule: Challenges, Consequences, And Compliance | K2 Integrity - JDSupra
Regulations are still necessary to compel adoption of cyber security measures | ZDNET
CISOs and board members are finding a common language - Help Net Security
IT Disaster Recovery Best Practices: Preparing For The Worst (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
When And How To Hire A vCISO For Your Company's Cyber security Program (forbes.com)
18 Factors And Metrics To Show The Value Of Cyber security Initiatives (forbes.com)
Improve your cyber threat understanding with geopolitical context | CSO Online
Threats
Ransomware, Extortion and Destructive Attacks
Ransomware Attacks Double: Are Companies Prepared for 2024's Cyber Threats? (thehackernews.com)
Ransomware realities in 2023: one employee mistake can cost a company millions (securityaffairs.com)
Ransomware Criminals Aiming at Third-Party Vendors in Hunt for ‘Big Game’ (claimsjournal.com)
Feds: Beware AvosLocker Ransomware Attacks on Critical Infrastructure (darkreading.com)
Giant health insurer struck by ransomware didn't have antivirus protection (malwarebytes.com)
CISA shares vulnerabilities, misconfigs used by ransomware gangs (bleepingcomputer.com)
What Are the Legal Implications of Paying Ransomware Demands? | HackerNoon
63% of organisations restore data after a ransomware attack | Security Magazine
Black Basta ransomware is out and about, again. (thecyberwire.com)
Ukrainian activists hack Trigona ransomware gang, wipe servers (bleepingcomputer.com)
Elastic Global Threat Report 2023 Reveals Dominance of Ransomware | Business Wire
Scammers are targeting plastic surgery clinics with extortion scams | TechRadar
BlackCat ransomware uses new ‘Munchkin’ Linux VM in stealthy attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
Law enforcement operation seized Ragnar Locker group's infrastructure (securityaffairs.com)
Ransomware Victims
Lockbit ransomware gang demanded an 80 million ransom to CDW (securityaffairs.com)
Alphv gang stole 5TB of data from Morrison Community Hospital (securityaffairs.com)
Kansas Supreme Court Probes Potential Ransomware Attack (govinfosecurity.com)
KwikTrip all but says IT outage was caused by a cyber attack (bleepingcomputer.com)
Phishing & Email Based Attacks
More than 95 per cent of phishing attacks target the banking and finance sectors (bizhub.vn)
Phishing attacks hit record high in third quarter, with malware not far behind - SiliconANGLE
VIPRE finds 233.9 million malicious emails detected in Q3 2023 (securitybrief.co.nz)
Make sure that email from HR is legit - it could be another phishing scam | TechRadar
Human resources emails remain top phishing targets - SiliconANGLE
D-Link Confirms Data Breach: Employee Falls Victim to Phishing Attack (thehackernews.com)
Artificial Intelligence
AI and the Imperative to Take Cyber security Precautions (inforisktoday.com)
Generative AI an Emerging Risk as CISOs Shift Cyber Resilience Strategies (informationweek.com)
Exploring the Realm of Malicious Generative AI: A New Digital Security Challenge (thehackernews.com)
AI-generated cyber attacks pose new risk to key UK infrastructure, experts warn | The Independent
North Korea has got its hands on AI - and is testing its ability to commit cyberwarfare | TechRadar
Generative AI is scaring CISOs – but adoption isn’t slowing down | CSO Online
Cyber criminals register .AI domains of trusted brands for malicious activity | CSO Online
2FA/MFA
Malware
Phishing attacks hit record high in third quarter, with malware not far behind - SiliconANGLE
DarkGate malware spreads through compromised Skype accounts (bleepingcomputer.com)
BLOODALCHEMY provides backdoor to ASEAN secrets • The Register
Discord still a hotbed of malware activity — Now APTs join the fun (bleepingcomputer.com)
Researchers warn of increased malware delivery via fake browser updates - Help Net Security
Malicious Notepad++ Google ads evade detection for months (bleepingcomputer.com)
Google-hosted malvertising leads to fake Keepass site that looks genuine | Ars Technica
Russian Hackers Bypass EDR to Deliver Weaponized TeamViewer (gbhackers.com)
Beware - that Google Chrome update alert might actually just be malware | TechRadar
Mobile
SpyNote: Beware of This Android Trojan that Records Audio and Phone Calls (thehackernews.com)
The top 9 mobile security threats and how you can avoid them | ZDNET
Hackers exploit security flaw to target iOS 17 iPhones with 'notification attack' | Macworld
Google Play Protect adds real-time scanning to fight Android malware (bleepingcomputer.com)
Fake 'RedAlert' rocket alert app for Israel installs Android spyware (bleepingcomputer.com)
Denial of Service/DoS/DDOS
Internet of Things – IoT
Inadequate IoT protection can be a costly mistake - Help Net Security
Israelis told to secure their home security cameras against hackers • Graham Cluley
Logistics Matters - Alert: How hackers use printers to gain access
Data Breaches/Leaks
UK watchdog fines Equifax $13.4 million for role in cyber breach | Reuters
Casio discloses data breach impacting customers in 149 countries (bleepingcomputer.com)
530K people's info stolen from cloud PC gaming's Shadow • The Register
D-Link Confirms Data Breach: Employee Falls Victim to Phishing Attack (thehackernews.com)
Hackers stole a million people's DNA. But what will they do with it? | Tech News | Metro News
23AndMe Hacker Leaks New Tranche of Stolen Data (darkreading.com)
Healthcare breach costs soar requiring new thinking for safeguarding data (securityintelligence.com)
Lost and Stolen Devices: A Gateway to Data Breaches and Leaks - SecurityWeek
Twitter glitch allows CIA informant channel to be hijacked - BBC News
Care provider under fire over response to cyber attack (thetimes.co.uk)
Organised Crime & Criminal Actors
Cyber attacks -- where they come from and the tactics they use (betanews.com)
Cyber criminals register .AI domains of trusted brands for malicious activity | CSO Online
Highest percentage of cyber crime activity originates in Russia (securitybrief.co.nz)
Single Sign On and the Cyber crime Ecosystem (bleepingcomputer.com)
Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs/Blockchain
Insider Risk and Insider Threats
Employees leaving businesses open to cyber attack – QBE research - CIR Magazine
Why disaffected employees are your greatest cyber security risk | Federal News Network
Ex-Navy IT head gets 5 years for selling people’s data on darkweb (bleepingcomputer.com)
Insurance
How MOVEit Is Likely to Shift Cyber Insurance Calculus (darkreading.com)
How Data Changes the Cyber Insurance Market Outlook (darkreading.com)
What to Look for in Cyber Insurance Coverage | Proofpoint US
Supply Chain and Third Parties
Identity and Access Management
Encryption
Linux and Open Source
Open To Attack: The Risks Of Open-Source Software Attacks (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Can open source be saved from the EU's Cyber Resilience Act? • The Register
Report Finds Few Open Source Projects are Actively Maintained - Slashdot
Passwords, Credential Stuffing & Brute Force Attacks
IT Admins Are Just as Guilty For Weak Password Use- IT Security Guru
Over 40,000 admin portal accounts use 'admin' as a password (bleepingcomputer.com)
39% of individuals use the same password for multiple accounts | Security Magazine
Fighting off cyber attacks? Make sure user credentials aren’t compromised (bleepingcomputer.com)
Passkeys Are Cool, But They Aren't Enterprise-Ready (darkreading.com)
A worrying amount of corporate IDs still aren't properly protected | TechRadar
Social Media
Hamas Hijacked Victims’ Social Media Accounts to Spread Terror - The New York Times (nytimes.com)
Twitter glitch allows CIA informant channel to be hijacked - BBC News
Malvertising
Malicious Notepad++ Google ads evade detection for months (bleepingcomputer.com)
Google-hosted malvertising leads to fake Keepass site that looks genuine | Ars Technica
Clever malvertising attack uses Punycode to look like KeePass's official website (malwarebytes.com)
Training, Education and Awareness
Regulations, Fines and Legislation
UK watchdog fines Equifax $13.4 million for role in cyber breach | Reuters
One year left for companies to implement NIS2 cyber security directive (wbj.pl)
The future of cyber security regulation: what to look out for with NIS2 | TechRadar
NIS2: Why organisations need a unified cyber security standard | Microscope (computerweekly.com)
Can open source be saved from the EU's Cyber Resilience Act? • The Register
Security Pros Warn That EU's Vulnerability Disclosure Rule Is Risky (darkreading.com)
The double-edged sword of heightened regulation for financial services - Help Net Security
Top US Cyber Agency Pushing Toward First Hack Reporting Rule (bloomberglaw.com)
Keeping control in complex regulatory environments - Help Net Security
UN cyber crime treaty: A menace in the making – EURACTIV.com
SEC’s New Cyber Disclosure Rule: Challenges, Consequences, And Compliance | K2 Integrity - JDSupra
Models, Frameworks and Standards
One year left for companies to implement NIS2 cyber security directive (wbj.pl)
The future of cyber security regulation: what to look out for with NIS2 | TechRadar
NIST Cyber security Framework for Small Businesses: Key Benefits (smallbiztrends.com)
NIS2: Why organisations need a unified cyber security standard | Microscope (computerweekly.com)
Backup and Recovery
Principles for ransomware-resistant cloud backups - NCSC.GOV.UK
63% of organisations restore data after a ransomware attack | Security Magazine
Data Protection
Careers, Working in Cyber and Information Security
Over half of cyber security pros say they want to switch jobs (betanews.com)
Compelling Reasons Why You Should Study Cyber Security - Minutehack
Your guide to landing a job in cyber security (fastcompany.com)
Law Enforcement Action and Take Downs
Misinformation, Disinformation and Propaganda
Nation State Actors, Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs), Cyber Warfare, Cyber Espionage and Geopolitical Threats
Misc Nation State/Cyber Warfare
‘Only a matter of time’ before cyber attacks are viewed as acts of war: Ex-NSA chief
Five Eyes issues five tips on thwarting nation state threats | Computer Weekly
Discord: A Playground for Nation-State Hackers Targeting Critical Infrastructure (thehackernews.com)
TetrisPhantom: Cyber Espionage via Secure USBs Targets APAC Governments (thehackernews.com)
Pro-Russian Hackers Exploiting Recent WinRAR Vulnerability in New Campaign (thehackernews.com)
The evolution of deception tactics from traditional to cyber warfare - Help Net Security
Exclusive: Ukraine says joint mission with US derailed Moscow’s cyber attacks (therecord.media)
Government officials debate effectiveness of multilateral relations in cyber security | ZDNET
Defence leaders recognise need to adapt to win in ‘information battlespace’ | BAE Systems
Geopolitical Threats/Activity
How Cyber attacks Could Affect the Israel-Hamas War (govinfosecurity.com)
Israelis told to secure their home security cameras against hackers • Graham Cluley
Gaza Conflict Paves Way for Pro-Hamas Information Operations (darkreading.com)
Pro-Israeli Hacktivist Group Predatory Sparrow Reappears (darkreading.com)
AI-Powered Israeli 'Cyber Dome' Defence Operation Comes to Life (darkreading.com)
Fake 'RedAlert' rocket alert app for Israel installs Android spyware (bleepingcomputer.com)
Hamas Hijacked Victims’ Social Media Accounts to Spread Terror - The New York Times (nytimes.com)
Pro-Iranian Hacktivists Set Sights on Israeli Industrial Control Systems (darkreading.com)
China
Mandia: China replaces Russia as top cyber threat | CyberScoop
FBI boss slams ‘unprecedented’ Chinese cyberespionage and IP theft | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
Five Eyes warn of growing threat of IP 'theft' by China's hackers (techmonitor.ai)
20,000 Britons approached by Chinese agents on LinkedIn, says MI5 head | MI5 | The Guardian
Researchers Unveil ToddyCat's New Set of Tools for Data Exfiltration (thehackernews.com)
BLOODALCHEMY provides backdoor to ASEAN secrets • The Register
TetrisPhantom: Cyber Espionage via Secure USBs Targets APAC Governments (thehackernews.com)
Huawei wants to know why EU labelled it high security risk • The Register
Google TAG Detects State-Backed Threat Actors Exploiting WinRAR Flaw (thehackernews.com)
Russia
Mandia: China replaces Russia as top cyber threat | CyberScoop
Russia-based Wizard Spider is Top Threat Group: Netskope Report | MSSP Alert
Pro-Russian Hackers Exploiting Recent WinRAR Vulnerability in New Campaign (thehackernews.com)
Russian Sandworm hackers breached 11 Ukrainian telcos since May (bleepingcomputer.com)
Exclusive: Ukraine says joint mission with US derailed Moscow’s cyber attacks (therecord.media)
Russian Hackers Bypass EDR to Deliver Weaponized TeamViewer (gbhackers.com)
Highest percentage of cyber crime activity originates in Russia (securitybrief.co.nz)
Iran
Iranian hackers lurked in Middle Eastern govt network for 8 months (bleepingcomputer.com)
Hamas-linked app offers window into cyber infrastructure, possible links to Iran | CyberScoop
North Korea
Vulnerability Management
Vulnerability Scanning: How Often Should I Scan? (thehackernews.com)
Microsoft Needs to Get Serious About Its Windows 10 Upgrade Problem (pcmag.com)
Vulnerabilities
Number of Cisco Devices Hacked via Unpatched Vulnerability Increases to 40,000 - SecurityWeek
Cisco working on fix for critical IOS XE zero-day | TechTarget
Oracle Patches 185 Vulnerabilities With October 2023 CPU - SecurityWeek
Critical Citrix NetScaler Flaw Exploited to Target from Government, Tech Firms (thehackernews.com)
Juniper Networks Patches Over 30 Vulnerabilities in Junos OS - SecurityWeek
Hackers exploit critical flaw in WordPress Royal Elementor plugin (bleepingcomputer.com)
Critical Vulnerabilities Uncovered in Open Source CasaOS Cloud Software (thehackernews.com)
Zoom, Investors Reach $150 Million Deal Over Security Flaws Suit (bloomberglaw.com)
Pro-Russian Hackers Exploiting Recent WinRAR Vulnerability in New Campaign (thehackernews.com)
Tools and Controls
Well-informed employees act as 1st line of defence against cyber threats
SMBs seek cyber training, support as attack risk surges | CIO Dive
Vulnerability Scanning: How Often Should I Scan? (thehackernews.com)
Essential cyber hygiene: Making cyber defence cost effective - Help Net Security
Preparations Are Key to Weathering Cyber security Incidents | Chief Investment Officer (ai-cio.com)
Improve your cyber threat understanding with geopolitical context | CSO Online
Why Zero Trust Is the Cloud Security Imperative (darkreading.com)
3 Essential Steps to Strengthen SaaS Security (darkreading.com)
Google Authenticator synchronization raises MFA concerns | TechTarget
Email Security Best Practices for Phishing Prevention (trendmicro.com)
What to Look for in Cyber Insurance Coverage | Proofpoint US
How to go from collecting risk data to actually reducing risk? - Help Net Security
Generative AI an Emerging Risk as CISOs Shift Cyber Resilience Strategies (informationweek.com)
OSINT isn't immediate ground truth--it's the result of analysis. (thecyberwire.com)
How Data Changes the Cyber Insurance Market Outlook (darkreading.com)
What is Structured Threat Information eXpression (STIX)? (techtarget.com)
Other News
SMBs Struggle to Keep Pace with Cyber Security Threats - IT Security Guru
Many SMBs really don't know exactly what security tools they need | TechRadar
Hackers Hit The IT Industry: 12 Companies Targeted In 2023 | CRN
What the Hollywood Writers Strike Resolution Means for Cyber security (darkreading.com)
Progress gets SEC subpoena over MOVEit breach – and more! • The Register
Cyber attacks on healthcare organisations affect patient care - Help Net Security
Zoom, Investors Reach $150 Million Deal Over Security Flaws Suit (bloomberglaw.com)
Thinking about the phrase 'cyber security' | Microscope (computerweekly.com)
Space industry group turns up volume on satellite vulnerabilities - SpaceNews
5 Tips for Improving Security in Public Sector (govinfosecurity.com)
Marketers Must Make Cyber security A Priority Every Day (forbes.com)
UK at risk of massive security breach from national HMRC IT meltdown | The Independent
UK warns nuclear power plant operator of cyber security failings (therecord.media)
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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