Threat Intelligence Blog
Contact us to discuss any insights from our Blog, and how we can support you in a tailored threat intelligence report.
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 28th July 2023
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 28 July 2023:
-Half of UK businesses Struggle to Fill Cyber Security Skills Gap as Companies Encounter Months-long Delays in Filling Critical Security Positions
-Deloitte Joins fellow Big Four MOVEit victims PWC, EY as MOVEit Victims Exceeds 500
-Why Cyber Security Should Be Part of Your ESG Strategy
-Lawyers Take Frontline Role in Business Response to Cyber Attacks
-Organisations Face Record $4.5M Per Data Breach Incident
-Cryptojacking Soars as Cyber Attacks Diversify
-Ransomware Attacks Skyrocket in 2023
-Blocking Access to ChatGPT is a Short-Term Solution to Mitigate AI Risk
-Protect Your Data Like Your Reputation Depends on It (Because it Does)
-Why CISOs Should Get Involved with Cyber Insurance Negotiation
-Companies Must Have Corporate Cyber Security Experts, SEC Says
-Over 400,000 Corporate Credentials Stolen by Info-stealing Malware
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
Half of UK Businesses Struggle to Fill Cyber Security Skills Gap
Half of UK businesses have a cyber security skills gap that they are struggling to fill amid a challenging labour market, according to data published by the UK Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), which found that there were more than 160,000 cyber security job postings in the last year – a 30% increase on the previous period. In all, the UK requires an additional 11,200 people with suitable cyber skills to meet the demands of the market, the report estimates.
In a separate report, it was found that a lack of executive understanding and an ever-widening talent gap is placing an unsustainable burden on security teams to prevent business-ending breaches. When asked how long it takes to fill a cyber security role, 82% of organisations report it takes three months or longer, with 34% reporting it takes seven months or more. These challenges have led one-third (33%) of organisations to believe they will never have a fully-staffed security team with the proper skills.
With such a gap, some organisations have turned to outsourcing cyber security roles, such as chief information security officers (CISOs), leading to a rise in virtual CISOs (vCISO). With outsourcing, organisations can ensure that they are easily able to pick up and use cyber security experts, greatly reducing the delay were they to hire. Black Arrow supports clients as their vCISO with specialist experience in cyber security risk management in a business context.
https://www.uktech.news/cybersecurity/uk-cybersecurity-skills-gap-20230725
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/07/26/security-teams-executive-burden/
Deloitte Joins Fellow Big Four MOVEit victims PWC, EY as Victims Exceed 500
The global auditing and accounting firm Deloitte appeared alongside a further 55 MOVEit victims that were recently named by the Cl0p ransomware gang, making them the third Big Four accounting firm to be affected and amongst over 500 organisations in total with that number expected to continue to increase.
Research by Kroll has also uncovered a new exfiltration method used by Cl0p in their the MOVEit attacks, highlighting constant efforts by the ransomware gang. Worryingly, it has been reported that Cl0p have made between $75-100 million from ransom payments and it is expected this, along with the victim count, will rise.
https://cybernews.com/security/deloitte-big-four-moveit-pwc-ey-clop/
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/clop-could-make-100m-moveit/
Why Cyber Security Should Be Part of Your ESG Strategy
Organisations need to consider cyber security risks in their overall environmental, social and governance (ESG) strategy amid growing cyber threats and regulatory scrutiny. The ESG programme is, in many ways, a form of risk management to mitigate the risks to businesses, societies and the environment, all of which can be impacted by cyber security. The investment community has been singling out cyber security as one of the major risks that ESG programmes will need to address due to the potential financial losses, reputational damage and business continuity risks posed by a growing number of cyber attacks and data breaches.
Various ESG reporting frameworks have emerged in recent years to provide organisations with guidelines on how they can operate ethically and sustainably, along with metrics that they can use to measure their progress. There are also specific IT security standards and frameworks, including ISO 27001 and government guidelines. Some regulators have gone as far as mandating the adoption of baseline security standards by critical infrastructure operators and firms in industries like financial services, but that does not mean organisations outside of regulated sectors are less pressured to shore up their cyber security posture.
https://www.computerweekly.com/news/366545432/Why-cyber-security-should-be-part-of-your-ESG-strategy
Lawyers Take Frontline Role in Business Response to Cyber Attacks
Cyber security risk has shot to the top of general counsels’ agendas as the sophistication and frequency of attacks has grown. According to security company Sophos’s State of Ransomware 2023 report, 44% of UK businesses surveyed said they had been hit with ransomware in the past year. Of those affected, 33% said their data was encrypted and stolen and a further 6% said that their data was not encrypted but they experienced extortion.
In-house lawyers have a key role around the boardroom table when dealing with a breach including war-gaming and discussing cases in which a company will pay a ransom. The advent of General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) legislation in Europe, and equivalents elsewhere, demands that businesses hit by a data breach notify a regulator, and the individuals whose data was stolen, or both, depending on certain factors. This has led to far greater exposure of cyber incidents which companies previously could have tried to deal with privately.
https://www.ft.com/content/2af44ae8-78fc-4393-88c3-0d784a850331
Organisations Face Record $4.5M Per Data Breach Incident
In a recent report conducted by IBM, the average cost per data breach for US business in 2023 jumped to $4.45 million, a 15% increase over three years. In the UK, the average cost was found to be £3.4 million, rising to £5.3 million for financial services. It is likely that the cost per breach will maintain a continual rise, with organisations struggling to crack down on cyber crime, something threat groups like Cl0p are taking advantage of.
https://www.darkreading.com/attacks-breaches/orgs-record-4.5m-data-breach-incident
Cryptojacking Soars as Cyber Attacks Diversify
According to a recent report, a variety of attacks have increased globally, including cryptojacking (399%), IoT malware (37%) and encrypted threats (22%). This reflects the increase in actors who are changing their methods of attacks. The report found that we can expect more state-sponsored activity targeting a broader set of victims in 2023, including SMBs, government entities and enterprises.
Cryptojacking, sometimes referred to as malicious cryptomining, is where an attacker will use a victim’s device to mine cryptocurrency, giving the attacker free money at the expense of your device, network health and electricity.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/07/27/cryptojacking-attacks-rise/
Ransomware Attacks Skyrocket in 2023
Ransomware attacks surged by 74% in Q2 2023 compared to the first three months of the year, a new report has found. The significant increase in ransomware over April, May and June 2023 suggests that attackers are regrouping. In July 2023, the blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis found that in the first half of 2023, ransomware attackers extorted $176m more than the same period in 2022, reversing a brief downward trend in 2022.
The report also observed an uptick in “pure extortion attacks,” with cyber criminals increasingly relying on the threat of data leaks rather than encrypting data to extort victims. Such schemes may not trigger any ransomware detection capability but could potentially be picked up by a robust Data Loss Prevention (DLP) solution.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/ransomware-attacks-skyrocket-q2/
Blocking Access to ChatGPT is a Short-Term Solution to Mitigate AI Risk
Despite the mass adoption of generative AI, most companies don’t know how to assess its security, exposing them to risks and disadvantages if they don’t change their approach. A report found that for every 10,000 enterprise users, an enterprise organisation is experiencing approximately 183 incidents of sensitive data being posted to ChatGPT per month. Worryingly, despite the security issues, only 45% have an enterprise-wide strategy to ensure a secure, aligned deployment of AI across the entire organisation.
Blocking access to AI related content and AI applications is a short term solution to mitigate risk, but comes at the expense of the potential benefits that AI apps offer to supplement corporate innovation and employee productivity. The data shows that in financial services and healthcare nearly 1 in 5 organisations have implemented a blanket ban on employee use of ChatGPT, while in the technology sector, only 1 in 20 organisations have done likewise.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/07/28/chatgpt-exposure/
https://www.techradar.com/pro/lots-of-sensitive-data-is-still-being-posted-to-chatgpt
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/07/25/generative-ai-strategy/
Protect Your Data Like Your Reputation Depends on It (Because it Does)
Data breaches can be incredibly costly. Be it lawsuits, regulatory fines, or a fall in stock price, the financial consequences of a breach can bring even the largest organisation to its knees. However, in the face of economic damage, it’s too easy to overlook the vast reputational impacts that often do more harm to a business. After all, it’s relatively easy to recoup monetary losses, less so to regain customer trust.
It’s important to remember that reputational damage isn’t limited to consumer perceptions. Stakeholder, shareholder, and potential buyer perception is also something that needs to be considered. By having effective defence in depth controls including robust data loss prevention (DLP) solutions in place, organisations can reduce the risk of a breach from happening.
Why CISOs Should Get Involved with Cyber Insurance Negotiation
Generally negotiating cyber insurance policies falls to the general counsel, chief financial officer, or chief operations officer. Having the chief information security officer (CISO) at the table when negotiating with insurance brokers or carriers is a best practice for ensuring the insurers understand not only which security controls are in place, but why the controls are configured the way they are and the organisation's strategy. That said, often best practices are ignored for reasons of expediency and lack of acceptance by other C-suite executives.
Sometimes being the CISO can be a no-win position. According to a recent survey more than half of all CISOs report to a technical corporate officer rather than the business side of the organisation. This lack of recognition by the board can diminish the CISO's ability to deliver business-imperative insights and recommendations, leaving operations to have a more commanding influence on the board than cyber security. Too often the CISO gets the responsibility to protect the company without the authority and budget to accomplish their task.
Companies Must Have Corporate Cyber Security Experts, SEC Says
A recent report has found that only five Fortune 100 companies currently list a security professional in the executive leadership pages of their websites. This is largely unchanged from five of the Fortune 100 in 2018. One likely reason why a great many companies still don’t include their security leaders within their highest echelons is that these employees do not report directly to the company’s CEO, board of directors, or chief risk officer.
The chief security officer (CSO) or chief information security officer (CISO) position traditionally has reported to an executive in a technical role, such as the chief technology officer (CTO) or chief information officer (CIO). But workforce experts say placing the CISO/CSO on unequal footing with the organisation’s top leaders makes it more likely that cyber security and risk concerns will take a backseat to initiatives designed to increase productivity and generally grow the business.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has recently implemented new regulations necessitating publicly traded companies to report cyber attacks within four business days, once they're deemed material incidents. While the SEC is not presently advocating for the need to validate a board cyber security expert's credentials, it continues to insist that cyber security expertise within management be duly reported to them. The increased disclosure should help companies compare practices and may spur improvements in cyber defences, but meeting the new disclosure standards could be a bigger challenge for smaller companies with limited resources.
Over 400,000 Corporate Credentials Stolen by Info-stealing Malware
Information stealers are malware that steal data stored in applications such as web browsers, email clients, instant messengers, cryptocurrency wallets, file transfer protocol (FTP) clients, and gaming services. The stolen information is packaged into archives called 'logs,' which are then uploaded back to the threat actor for use in attacks or sold on cyber crime marketplaces. Worryingly, employees use personal devices for work or access personal stuff from work computers, and this may result in many info-stealer infections stealing business credentials and authentication cookies. A report has found there are over 400,000 corporate credentials stolen, from applications such as Salesforce, Google Cloud and AWS. Additionally, there was a significant increase in the number containing OpenAI credentials; this is alarming as where AI is used without governance, the credentials may leak things such as internal business strategies and source code.
With such an array of valuable information for an attacker, it is no wonder incidents involving info stealers doubled in Q1 2023. Organisations can best protect themselves by utilising password managers, enforcing multi-factor authentication and having strict usage controls. Additionally, user awareness training can help avoid common infection channels such as malicious websites and adverts.
https://www.scmagazine.com/news/infostealer-incidents-more-than-doubled-in-q1-2023
Governance, Risk and Compliance
Data Breaches Cost Businesses $4.5M on Average (darkreading.com)
Why CISOs Should Get Involved With Cyber Insurance Negotiation (darkreading.com)
SEC now requires companies to disclose cyber attacks in 4 days (bleepingcomputer.com)
Companies Must Have Corporate Cyber security Experts, SEC Says (darkreading.com)
Companies encounter months-long delays in filling critical security positions - Help Net Security
Enterprises should layer-up security to avoid legal repercussions - Help Net Security
Explaining risk maturity models and how they work | TechTarget
Why cyber security should be part of your ESG strategy | Computer Weekly
The old “trust but verify” adage should be the motto for every CISO | CSO Online
Companies are rushing into generative AI without a cohesive, secure strategy - Help Net Security
Few Fortune 100 Firms List Security Pros in Their Executive Ranks – Krebs on Security
The critical cyber security backup plan too many companies are ignoring (cnbc.com)
Protect Your Data Like Your Reputation Depends On It (Because It Does) (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Why Computer Security Advice Is More Confusing Than It Should Be (darkreading.com)
Why whistleblowers in cyber security are important and need support | CSO Online
Threats
Ransomware, Extortion and Destructive Attacks
Clop now leaks data stolen in MOVEit attacks on clearweb sites (bleepingcomputer.com)
MOVEit Vulnerability Investigations Uncover Additional Exfiltration Method (kroll.com)
Clop Could Make $100m from MOVEit Campaign - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
The tail of the MOVEit hack may be longer than we realize | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
Millions of people's healthcare files accessed by Clop gang • The Register
Ransomware Attacks Skyrocket in Q2 2023 - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Local Governments Targeted for Ransomware – How to Prevent Falling Victim (thehackernews.com)
New Nitrogen malware pushed via Google Ads for ransomware attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
Dozens of Organisations Targeted by Akira Ransomware - SecurityWeek
The FBI's Cynthia Kaiser on how the bureau fights ransomware | CyberScoop
Risk & Repeat: Are data extortion attacks ransomware? | TechTarget
ALPHV ransomware adds data leak API in new extortion strategy (bleepingcomputer.com)
Ransomware: Sophos says most universities pay | Times Higher Education (THE)
Ransomware Victims
PwC has data leaked on the clear web - Cyber Security Connect
Deloitte joins fellow Big Four MOVEit victims PWC, EY | Cybernews
DHL investigating MOVEit breach as number of victims surpasses 20 million (therecord.media)
Up to 11 Million People Hit by MOVEit Hack at Government Services Firm Maximus - SecurityWeek
Millions of people's healthcare files accessed by Clop gang • The Register
Tampa General Hospital Says Patient Information Stolen in Ransomware Attack - SecurityWeek
Yamaha confirms cyber attack after multiple ransomware gangs claim attacks (therecord.media)
Phishing & Email Based Attacks
Chinese Hackers Breached Ambassador’s Email - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
China’s Breach of Microsoft Cloud Email May Expose Deeper Problems | WIRED
Stolen Microsoft key may have opened up more than inboxes • The Register
The Email Threat Landscape, Q1 2023: Key Takeaways (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
How to avoid LinkedIn phishing attacks in the enterprise | TechTarget
BEC – Business Email Compromise
Artificial Intelligence
Blocking access to ChatGPT is a short term solution to mitigate risk - Help Net Security
UN Security Council to hold first talks on AI risks | Reuters
Companies are rushing into generative AI without a cohesive, secure strategy - Help Net Security
ChatGPT, Other Generative AI Apps Prone to Compromise, Manipulation (darkreading.com)
Lots of sensitive data is still being posted to ChatGPT | TechRadar
Dark Web Markets Offer New FraudGPT AI Tool - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Top FBI officials warn of 'unparalleled' threat from China and AI | CyberScoop
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of Generative AI - SecurityWeek
OpenAI, Meta and other tech firms sign onto White House AI commitments | FedScoop
Intel's deepfake detector tested on real and fake videos - BBC News
How is the Dark Web Reacting to the AI Revolution? (bleepingcomputer.com)
Malware
Over 400,000 corporate credentials stolen by info-stealing malware (bleepingcomputer.com)
Infostealer incidents more than doubled in Q1 2023 | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
The Alarming Rise of Infostealers: How to Detect this Silent Threat (thehackernews.com)
Decoy Dog: New Breed of Malware Posing Serious Threats to Enterprise Networks (thehackernews.com)
Rust-based malware used to hack both Windows and Linux servers - Neowin
Lazarus hackers hijack Microsoft IIS servers to spread malware (bleepingcomputer.com)
FIN8 is rewriting its backdoor malware to avoid detection | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
New Nitrogen malware pushed via Google Ads for ransomware attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
New P2PInfect worm malware targets Linux and Windows Redis servers (bleepingcomputer.com)
HotRat: New Variant of AsyncRAT Malware Spreading Through Pirated Software (thehackernews.com)
Who and What is Behind the Malware Proxy Service SocksEscort? – Krebs on Security
Mobile
Chinese-backed Hacking Group Launches Two Bugs Targeting Android Devices - MSSP Alert
Spyhide stalkerware is spying on tens of thousands of phones | TechCrunch
Botnets
Hackers Target Apache Tomcat Servers for Mirai Botnet and Crypto Mining (thehackernews.com)
Multiple DDoS Botnets Exploiting Recent Zyxel Vulnerability - SecurityWeek
Denial of Service/DoS/DDOS
Critical UK Infrastructures in the crosshairs of DDoS attacks (link11.com)
Zyxel users still getting hacked by DDoS botnet emerge as public nuisance No. 1 | Ars Technica
Anonymous Sudan DDoS strikes dominate attacks by KillNet collective | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
BYOD
Internet of Things – IoT
Peloton Bugs Expose Enterprise Networks to IoT Attacks (darkreading.com)
Microsoft previews Defender for IoT firmware analysis service (bleepingcomputer.com)
Axis Door Controller Vulnerability Exposes Facilities to Physical, Cyber Threats - SecurityWeek
Data Breaches/Leaks
Capita breach class action nears 1,000 sign-ups • The Register
VirusTotal: We're sorry for mistake that exposed 5,000 users • The Register
Deloitte joins fellow Big Four MOVEit victims PWC, EY | Cybernews
NATO investigating apparent breach of unclassified information sharing platform | CyberScoop
BreachForums database and private chats for sale in hacker data breach (bleepingcomputer.com)
Nice Suzuki, sport: shame dealer left your data up for grabs - Security Affairs
Johns Hopkins hit with class action lawsuit connected to data breach - CBS Baltimore (cbsnews.com)
Organised Crime & Criminal Actors
The New Summer Vacation Necessity: Cyber Hygiene (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
BreachForums database and private chats for sale in hacker data breach (bleepingcomputer.com)
Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs/Blockchain
Cryptojacking soars as cyber attacks increase, diversify - Help Net Security
Hackers Target Apache Tomcat Servers for Mirai Botnet and Crypto Mining (thehackernews.com)
Lazarus hackers linked to $60 million Alphapo cryptocurrency heist (bleepingcomputer.com)
New Realst macOS malware steals your cryptocurrency wallets (bleepingcomputer.com)
Fraud, Scams & Financial Crime
Dark Web Markets Offer New FraudGPT AI Tool - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Consumers demand more from businesses when it comes to security - Help Net Security
CISOs gear up to combat the rising threat of B2B fraud - Help Net Security
MPs launch inquiry into prosecution of Norton Motorcycles pension fraud | Crime | The Guardian
Insurance
Why CISOs Should Get Involved With Cyber Insurance Negotiation (darkreading.com)
Brave New World of Cyber Insurance Meets Old-World Contract Principles | New Jersey Law Journal
Dark Web
BreachForums database and private chats for sale in hacker data breach (bleepingcomputer.com)
How is the Dark Web Reacting to the AI Revolution? (bleepingcomputer.com)
Supply Chain and Third Parties
Capita breach class action nears 1,000 sign-ups • The Register
DHL investigating MOVEit breach as number of victims surpasses 20 million (therecord.media)
The tail of the MOVEit hack may be longer than we realize | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
Up to 11 Million People Hit by MOVEit Hack at Government Services Firm Maximus - SecurityWeek
Banking Sector Targeted in Open-Source Software Supply Chain Attacks (thehackernews.com)
Strengthening the weakest links in the digital supply chain - Help Net Security
JumpCloud hack linked to North Korea after OPSEC mistake (bleepingcomputer.com)
Supply Chain Attack Hits NHS Ambulance Trusts - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Software Supply Chain
Cloud/SaaS
China’s Breach of Microsoft Cloud Email May Expose Deeper Problems | WIRED
Microsoft 365 Breach Risk Widens to Millions of Azure AD Apps (darkreading.com)
JumpCloud hack linked to North Korea after OPSEC mistake (bleepingcomputer.com)
Wiz Says 62% of AWS Environments Exposed to Zenbleed Exploitation - SecurityWeek
The 4 Keys to Building Cloud Security Programs That Can Actually Shift Left (thehackernews.com)
Ubuntu Linux Cloud Workloads Face Rampant Root Take Takeovers (darkreading.com)
Shadow IT
Encryption
Hacking police radios: 30-year-old crypto flaws in the spotlight – Naked Security (sophos.com)
Researchers Find ‘Backdoor’ in Encrypted Police and Military Radios (vice.com)
API
Open Source
New OpenSSH Vulnerability Exposes Linux Systems to Remote Command Injection (thehackernews.com)
Rust-based malware used to hack both Windows and Linux servers - Neowin
Banking Sector Targeted in Open-Source Software Supply Chain Attacks (thehackernews.com)
New P2PInfect worm malware targets Linux and Windows Redis servers (bleepingcomputer.com)
Ubuntu Linux Cloud Workloads Face Rampant Root Take Takeovers (darkreading.com)
Passwords, Credential Stuffing & Brute Force Attacks
Social Media
How to avoid LinkedIn phishing attacks in the enterprise | TechTarget
Stanford researchers find Mastodon has a massive child abuse material problem - The Verge
Training, Education and Awareness
Travel
Parental Controls and Child Safety
Amazon agrees to $25 million fine for Alexa children privacy violations (bleepingcomputer.com)
Stanford researchers find Mastodon has a massive child abuse material problem - The Verge
Regulations, Fines and Legislation
SEC now requires companies to disclose cyber attacks in 4 days (bleepingcomputer.com)
Companies Must Have Corporate Cyber security Experts, SEC Says (darkreading.com)
Amazon agrees to $25 million fine for Alexa children privacy violations (bleepingcomputer.com)
OpenAI, Meta and other tech firms sign onto White House AI commitments | FedScoop
Data Protection
More US States are ramping up data privacy laws in 2023 (bleepingcomputer.com)
Protect Your Data Like Your Reputation Depends On It (Because It Does) (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Careers, Working in Cyber and Information Security
Companies encounter months-long delays in filling critical security positions - Help Net Security
Bridging the cyber security skills gap through cyber range training - Help Net Security
Overcoming the cyber security talent shortage with upskilling initiatives - Help Net Security
Law Enforcement Action and Take Downs
Privacy, Surveillance and Mass Monitoring
More US States are ramping up data privacy laws in 2023 (bleepingcomputer.com)
Amazon agrees to $25 million fine for Alexa children privacy violations (bleepingcomputer.com)
Companies Need to Prove They Can Be Trusted with Technology (hbr.org)
Ryanair Hit With Lawsuit Over Use of Facial Recognition Technology (darkreading.com)
Misinformation, Disinformation and Propaganda
Nation State Actors, Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs), Cyber Warfare and Cyber Espionage
Russia
Anonymous Sudan DDoS strikes dominate attacks by KillNet collective | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
Russian court jails cyber security executive for 14 years in treason case | Reuters
Russia ‘using disinformation’ to imply Sweden supported Qur’an burnings | Sweden | The Guardian
69% of Russian gamers are pirating after Ukraine invasion pushback | Ars Technica
China
Top FBI officials warn of 'unparalleled' threat from China and AI | CyberScoop
China’s Breach of Microsoft Cloud Email May Expose Deeper Problems | WIRED
Stolen Microsoft key may have opened up more than inboxes • The Register
Chinese Hackers Breached Ambassador’s Email - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
The Chinese groups accused of hacking the US and others | Reuters
Industrial Organisations in Eastern Europe Targeted by Chinese Cyber spies - SecurityWeek
Chinese-backed Hacking Group Launches Two Bugs Targeting Android Devices - MSSP Alert
China Propaganda Spreads via US News Sites, Freelancers, Times Square (darkreading.com)
China-backed hackers suspected in NetScaler RCE attacks | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
US Senator Wyden Accuses Microsoft of ‘Cyber security Negligence’ - SecurityWeek
North Korea
North Korean Cyber spies Target GitHub Developers (darkreading.com)
JumpCloud hack linked to North Korea after OPSEC mistake (bleepingcomputer.com)
GitHub warns of Lazarus hackers targeting devs with malicious projects (bleepingcomputer.com)
Lazarus hackers hijack Microsoft IIS servers to spread malware (bleepingcomputer.com)
Lazarus hackers linked to $60 million Alphapo cryptocurrency heist (bleepingcomputer.com)
Misc/Other/Unknown
Vulnerability Management
Google: 41 zero-day vulnerabilities exploited in 2022 | TechTarget
CVSS 4.0 Is Here, But Prioritizing Patches Still a Hard Problem (darkreading.com)
Want to live dangerously? Try running Windows XP in 2023 • The Register
A step-by-step guide for patching software vulnerabilities - Help Net Security
Vulnerabilities
Over 20,000 Citrix Appliances Vulnerable to New Exploit - SecurityWeek
A flaw in OpenSSH forwarded ssh-agent allows remote code execution-Security Affairs
Apple fixes new zero-day used in attacks against iPhones, Macs (bleepingcomputer.com)
Ivanti patches MobileIron zero-day bug exploited in attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
Zyxel users still getting hacked by DDoS botnet emerge as public nuisance No. 1 | Ars Technica
Apache OpenMeetings Wide Open to Account Takeover, Code Execution (darkreading.com)
Super Admin elevation bug puts 900,000 MikroTik devices at risk (bleepingcomputer.com)
Norwegian government IT systems hacked using zero-day flaw (bleepingcomputer.com)
VMware fixes bug exposing CF API admin credentials in audit logs (bleepingcomputer.com)
Major Security Flaw Discovered in Metabase BI Software – Urgent Update Required (thehackernews.com)
Cyber security Agencies Warn Against IDOR Bugs Exploited for Data Breaches (thehackernews.com)
Atlassian RCE Bugs Plague Confluence, Bamboo (darkreading.com)
Zenbleed attack leaks sensitive data from AMD Zen2 processors (bleepingcomputer.com)
Microsoft shares fix for some Outlook hyperlinks not opening (bleepingcomputer.com)
China-backed hackers suspected in NetScaler RCE attacks | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
Study reveals silent Python package security fixes • The Register
Windows 10 KB5028244 update released with 19 fixes, improved security (bleepingcomputer.com)
Wiz Says 62% of AWS Environments Exposed to Zenbleed Exploitation - SecurityWeek
Multiple DDoS Botnets Exploiting Recent Zyxel Vulnerability - SecurityWeek
Zimbra patches zero-day vulnerability exploited in XSS attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
WordPress Ninja Forms plugin flaw lets hackers steal submitted data (bleepingcomputer.com)
Two flaws in Linux Ubuntu affect 40% of Ubuntu users - Security Affairs
Tools and Controls
Why cyber security should be part of your ESG strategy | Computer Weekly
Lawyers take frontline role in business response to cyber attacks | Financial Times (ft.com)
Explaining risk maturity models and how they work | TechTarget
Microsoft enhances Windows 11 Phishing Protection with new features (bleepingcomputer.com)
Shadow Coding Is An Intoxicating Shortcut—And A Security Landmine (forbes.com)
Zero trust rated as highly effective by businesses worldwide - Help Net Security
50% of Zero Trust Programs Risk Failure According to PlainID Survey (darkreading.com)
Google Chrome to offer 'Link Previews' when hovering over links (bleepingcomputer.com)
Why are computer security guidelines so confusing? - Help Net Security
Threat Intelligence Is Growing — Here's How SOCs Can Keep Up (darkreading.com)
Designing a Security Strategy for Defending Multicloud Architectures (darkreading.com)
Converging networking and security with SASE - Help Net Security
Artificial Intelligence Continues To Revolutionize Cyber security (forbes.com)
Key factors for effective security automation - Help Net Security
Microsoft previews Defender for IoT firmware analysis service (bleepingcomputer.com)
The 4 Keys to Building Cloud Security Programs That Can Actually Shift Left (thehackernews.com)
CISOs consider zero trust a hot security ticket - Help Net Security
How a Cyber Security Platform Addresses the 3 “S” (trendmicro.com)
Reports Published in the Last Week
Other News
Maritime Cyber attack Database Launched by Dutch University - SecurityWeek
Google’s new security pilot program will ban employee Internet access | Ars Technica
macOS Under Attack: Examining the Growing Threat and User Perspectives (thehackernews.com)
Why whistleblowers in cyber security are important and need support | CSO Online
World's most internetty firm tries life off the net • The Register
Exam board cyber attack investigation: Teenager arrested (schoolsweek.co.uk)
Companies Need to Prove They Can Be Trusted with Technology (hbr.org)
Heart monitor manufacturer hit by cyber attack, takes systems offline (bitdefender.com)
Cyber security Agencies Warn Against IDOR Bugs Exploited for Data Breaches (thehackernews.com)
Sector Specific
Industry specific threat intelligence reports are available.
Contact us to receive tailored reports specific to the industry/sector and geographies you operate in.
· Automotive
· Construction
· Critical National Infrastructure (CNI)
· Defence & Space
· Education & Academia
· Energy & Utilities
· Estate Agencies
· Financial Services
· FinTech
· Food & Agriculture
· Gaming & Gambling
· Government & Public Sector (including Law Enforcement)
· Health/Medical/Pharma
· Hotels & Hospitality
· Insurance
· Legal
· Manufacturing
· Maritime
· Oil, Gas & Mining
· OT, ICS, IIoT, SCADA & Cyber-Physical Systems
· Retail & eCommerce
· Small and Medium Sized Businesses (SMBs)
· Startups
· Telecoms
· Third Sector & Charities
· Transport & Aviation
· Web3
As usual, contact us to help assess where your risks lie and to ensure you are doing all you can do to keep you and your business secure.
Look out for our ‘Cyber Tip Tuesday’ video blog and on our YouTube channel.
You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
Links to articles are for interest and awareness and linking to or reposting external content does not endorse any service or product, likewise we are not responsible for the security of external links.
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 26 May 2023
Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 26 May 2023:
-50% of UK CEOs See Cyber as a Bigger Business Risk than the Economy
-Report Finds 78% of Organisations Felt Prepared for Ransomware Attacks, Yet Half Still Fell Victim
-SMBs and Regional MSPs are Increasingly Targeted by State-Sponsored APT Groups
-IT Employee Piggybacked on Cyber Attack for Personal Gain
-Ransomware Threats Are Growing, and Targeting Microsoft Devices More and More
-Microsoft Reports Jump in Business Email Compromise (BEC) Activity
-Forrester Predicts 2023’s Top Cyber security Threats: From Generative AI to Geopolitical Tensions
-Advanced Phishing Attacks Surge 356% in 2022
-Today’s Cyber Defence Challenges: Complexity and a False Sense of Security
-Almost All Ransomware Attacks Target Backups, Says Veeam
-NCSC Warns Against Chinese Cyber Attacks on Critical Infrastructure
-Half of all Companies were Impacted by Spearphishing in 2022
-Google's .zip, .mov Domains Give Social Engineers a Shiny New Tool
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
50% of UK CEOs see Cyber as a Bigger Business Risk than the Economy
Half of UK CEOs consider cyber security as a bigger risk to their organisation than economic uncertainty, a new study by Palo Alto Networks has found. The findings came from a survey of 2500 CEOs from the UK, Germany, France, Brazil and the UAE at large organisations (500+ employees).
Despite the recognition of the business threats posed by cyber attacks, UK CEOs have a lower level of understanding of cyber security risks than their international counterparts, with just 16% saying they have a complete understanding. This compares to 21% in Brazil, 21% in the UAE, 22% in France and 39% in Germany. Additionally, many UK CEOs feel detached from responsibility for cyber security at their organisations, instead leaving it to the responsibility of IT, although IT is only part of the solution.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/uk-ceo-cyber-risk-economy/
Report Finds 78% of Organisations Felt Prepared for Ransomware Attacks, Yet Half Still Fell Victim
Fortinet has unveiled its 2023 Global Ransomware Report based on a recent global survey and explores cyber security leaders’ perspectives on ransomware, particularly how it impacted their organisations in the last year and their strategies to mitigate an attack. The report found that the global threat of ransomware remains at peak levels, with half of organisations across all sizes, regions and industries falling victim in the last year.
The top challenges to stopping a ransomware attack were people and process related, with many organisations lacking clarity on how to secure against the threat. Specifically, four out of the five top challenges to stopping ransomware were people or process related. The second largest challenge was a lack of clarity on how to secure against the threat as a result of a lack of user awareness and training and no clear chain-of-command strategy to deal with attacks.
Despite the global macroeconomic environment, security budgets will have to increase in the next year with a focus on AI/ML technologies to speed detection, centralised monitoring tools to speed response and better preparation of people and processes.
https://www.itweb.co.za/content/mYZRX79g8gRqOgA8
SMBs and Regional MSPs are Increasingly Targeted by State-Sponsored APT Groups
Advanced persistent threat (APT) attacks were once mainly a concern for large corporations in industries that presented cyber espionage interest. That's no longer the case and over the past year in particular, the number of such state-sponsored attacks against small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) has increased significantly.
Cyber security firm Proofpoint analysed its telemetry data more than 200,000 SMB customers over the past year and saw a rise in phishing campaigns originating from APT groups, particularly those serving Russian, Iranian, and North Korean interests.
SMBs are also targeted by APT groups indirectly, through the managed services providers (MSPs) that maintain their infrastructure. Proofpoint has seen an increase in attacks against regional MSPs because their cyber security defences could be weaker than larger MSPs yet they still serve hundreds of SMBs in local geographies.
IT Employee Piggybacked on Cyber Attack for Personal Gain
A 28-year-old former IT employee of an Oxford-based company has been convicted of blackmailing his employer and unauthorised access to a computer with intent to commit other offences.
The convicted employee was the one who began to investigate the incident and, along with colleagues and the police, tried to mitigate it and its fallout. But he also realized that he could take advantage of the breach to line his own pockets.
“He accessed a board member’s private emails over 300 times as well as altering the original blackmail email and changing the payment address provided by the original attacker. This was in the hope that if payment was made, it would be made to him rather than the original attacker,” the South East Regional Organised Crime Unit (SEROCU) revealed. He went as far as creating an almost identical email address to that of the original attacker, using it to pressure his employer into making the payment.
While some insider threats may stem from negligence or ignorance, this case highlights a more sinister scenario involving a malicious, opportunistic individual. Malicious insiders exploit their authorized access and privileges to engage in harmful, unethical, or illegal activities.
https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/05/24/it-employee-blackmailing-company/
Ransomware Threats Are Growing, and Targeting Microsoft Devices More and More
Ransomware attacks have never been this popular, a new report from cyber security researchers Securin, Ivanti, and Cyware has stated. New ransomware groups are emerging constantly, and new vulnerabilities being exploited are being discovered almost daily, but out of all the different hardware and software, Microsoft’s products are being targeted the most.
Attackers are now targeting more than 7,000 products built by 121 vendors, all used by businesses in their day-to-day operations. Most products belong to Microsoft, which has 135 vulnerabilities associated with ransomware. In just March 2023, there had been more breaches reported, than in all three previous years combined. Even though most cyber security incidents never get reported, too. In the first quarter of the year, the researchers discovered 12 new vulnerabilities used in ransomware attacks, three-quarters of which (73%) were trending in the dark web.
Microsoft Reports Jump in Business Email Compromise (BEC) Activity
Thirty-five million business email compromise (BEC) attempts were detected in the last year, according to the latest Microsoft Cyber Signals report. Activity around BEC spiked between April 2022 and April 2023, with over 150,000 daily attempts, on average, detected by Microsoft’s Digital Crimes Unit.
Rather than targeting unpatched devices for vulnerabilities, BEC operators focus on leveraging the vast volume of daily email and other message traffic to trick victims into sharing financial information or unknowingly transferring funds to money mule accounts. Their goal is to exploit the constant flow of communication to carry out fraudulent money transfers.
Using secure email applications, securing identities to block lateral movement, adopting a secure payment platform and training employees are a few effective methods, according to the report.
Forrester Predicts 2023’s Top Cyber security Threats: From Generative AI to Geopolitical Tensions
The nature of cyber attacks is changing fast. Generative AI, cloud complexity and geopolitical tensions are among the latest weapons and facilitators in attackers’ arsenals. Three-quarters (74%) of security decision-makers say their organisations’ sensitive data was “potentially compromised or breached in the past 12 months” alone. Forrester’s Top Cyber security Threats in 2023 report provides a stark warning about the top cyber security threats this year, along with prescriptive advice to CISOs and their teams on countering them. By weaponising generative AI and using ChatGPT, attackers are fine-tuning their ransomware and social engineering techniques.
Perimeter-based legacy systems not designed with an AI-based upgrade path are the most vulnerable. With a new wave of cyber attacks coming that seek to capitalise on any given business’ weakest links, including complex cloud configurations, the gap between reported and actual breaches will grow.
Forrester cites Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and its relentless cyber attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure as examples of geopolitical cyber attacks with immediate global implications. Forrester advises that nation-state actors continue to use cyber attacks on private companies for geopolitical purposes like espionage, negotiation leverage, resource control and intellectual property theft to gain technological superiority.
Advanced Phishing Attacks Surge 356% in 2022
A new report published this week observed a 356% growth in the number of advanced phishing attacks attempted by threat actors in 2022, with the total number of attacks having increased by 87%. Among the reasons behind this growth is the fact that malicious actors continue to gain widespread access to new tools, including artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML)-powered tools. These have automated the process of generating sophisticated attacks, including those characterized by social engineering as well as evasion techniques.
The global threat landscape continues to evolve with a meteoric rise in the number of attacks, combined with increasingly sophisticated attack techniques designed to breach and damage organisations.
Additionally, the report highlighted that the changing threat landscape has resulted from the swift adoption of new cloud collaboration apps, cloud storage and productivity services for external collaboration.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/advanced-phishing-attacks-surge/
Today’s Cyber Defence Challenges: Complexity and a False Sense of Security
Organisations can mistakenly believe that deploying more security solutions will result in greater protection against threats. However, the truth of the matter can be very different. Gartner estimates that global spending on IT security and risk management solutions will exceed $189.7 billion annually in 2023, yet the breaches keep on coming. Blindly purchasing more security tools can add to complexity in enterprise environments and creates a false sense of security that contributes to today’s cyber security challenges.
To add to the dilemma, the new work-from-anywhere model is putting a strain on IT and security teams. Employees shifting between corporate and off-corporate networks are creating visibility and control challenges, which are impacting those teams’ ability to diagnose and remediate end user issues and minimize cyber security risks. In addition, they have to deal with a broad mix of networks, hardware, business and security applications, operating system (OS) versions, and patches.
Almost All Ransomware Attacks Target Backups
Data stored in backups is the most common target for ransomware attackers. Almost all intrusions (93%) target backups and in 75% of cases succeed in taking out victims’ ability to recover. In addition, 85% of global organisations suffered at least one cyber attack in the past year according to the Veeam 2023 Ransomware trends report. Only 16% of organisations avoided paying ransom because they were able to recover from backups, down from 19% in last year’s survey.
According to the survey, criminals attempt to attack backup repositories in almost all (93%) cyber events in EMEA, with 75% losing at least some of their backups and more than one-third (39%) of backup repositories being completely lost.
Other key findings included that 21% said ransomware is now specifically excluded from insurance policies; and of those with cyber insurance, 74% saw increased premiums since their last policy renewal.
With most ransomware actors moving to double and triple extortion the days of a backup being all you need to keep you safe are far behind and firms should do more to prevent being the victim of ransomware in the first place.
NCSC Warns Against Chinese Cyber Attacks on Critical Infrastructure
The UK National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) and several other international security agencies have issued a new advisory warning the public against Chinese cyber activity targeting critical national infrastructure networks. According to the document, the People’s Republic of China (PRC)’s associated threat actors employed sophisticated tactics to evade detection while conducting malicious activities against targets in the US and Guam. These tactics are expected to be used on critical infrastructure targets outside the US, including the UK.
The document further added that the threat actors mainly focused on credential access theft via brute force and password spraying techniques. The NCSC advisory provides network defenders with technical indicators and examples of techniques used by the attacker to help identify any malicious activity.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/ncsc-warns-chinese-cyber-attacks/
Half of All Companies were Impacted by Spearphishing in 2022
Spearphishing is a sliver of all email exploits but the extent to which it succeeds is revealed in a new study from cyber security firm Barracuda Networks, which analysed 50 billion emails across 3.5 million mailboxes in 2022, unearthing around 30 million spearphishing emails and affecting 50% of all companies.
The report identified the top prevalent spearphishing emails were Scamming (47%) used to trick victims into disclosing sensitive information and the other being brand impersonation (42%) attacks mimicking a brand familiar with the victim to harvest credentials.
The report found that remote work is increasing risks. Users at companies with more than a 50% remote workforce report higher levels of suspicious emails — 12 per day on average, compared to 9 per day for those with less than a 50% remote workforce.
https://www.techrepublic.com/article/barracuda-networks-spearphishing-study/
Google's .zip, .mov Domains Give Social Engineers a Shiny New Tool
Two new top-level domain names (.zip and .mov) have caused concern among security researchers, who say they allow for the construction of malicious URLs that even tech-savvy users are likely to miss. While a top-level domain (TLD) that mimics a file extension is only one component in the lookalike attack, the overall combination is much more effective with the .zip or .mov extension.
There's no question that phishing links that involve these TLDs can be used to lure unsuspecting users into accidentally downloading malware. Unlike other kinds of phishing URLs that are intended to lure the user to enter credentials into a phony login page, the lures with the .zip or .mov domains are more suited to drive-by download types of attacks.
https://www.darkreading.com/endpoint/google-zip-mov-domains-social-engineers-shiny-new-tool
Governance, Risk and Compliance
Security Pros: Before You Do Anything, Understand Your Threat Landscape - SecurityWeek
The Rising Threat of Secrets Sprawl and the Need for Action (thehackernews.com)
Mass resignations, layoffs seen as major threat to corporate cyber security - The Korea Times
Improving Cyber security Requires Building Better Public-Private Cooperation (darkreading.com)
5 Cyber security Woes That Threaten Digital Growth (analyticsinsight.net)
Cyber Warfare Lessons From the Russia-Ukraine Conflict (darkreading.com)
What Security Professionals Need to Know About Aggregate Cyber Risk (darkreading.com)
Where to Focus Your Company’s Limited Cyber security Budget (hbr.org)
Former Uber CSO Joe Sullivan and lessons learned from the infamous 2016 Uber breach | CSO Online
CISO Criminalization, Vague Cyber Disclosure Rules Create Angst for Security Teams (darkreading.com)
Today’s Cyber Defence Challenges: Complexity and a False Sense of Security - SecurityWeek
The biggest threats are always those we fail to predict - Big Think
How continuous security monitoring is changing the compliance game - Help Net Security
Defining CISOs, CTOs, and CIOs' Roles in Cyber security (analyticsinsight.net)
Threats
Ransomware, Extortion and Destructive Attacks
3 Common Initial Attack Vectors Account for Most Ransomware Campaigns (darkreading.com)
12 vulnerabilities newly associated with ransomware - Help Net Security
IT employee impersonates ransomware gang to extort employer (bleepingcomputer.com)
Ransomware threats are growing, and targeting Microsoft devices more and more | TechRadar
Microsoft: Notorious FIN7 hackers return in Clop ransomware attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
FIN7 gang returned and was spotted delivering Clop ransomware - Security Affairs
Bridgestone CISO: Lessons From Ransomware Attack Include Acting, Not Thinking (darkreading.com)
Cyble — New Ransomware Wave Engulfs over 200 Corporate Victims
Updated 'StopRansomware Guide' warns of shifting tactics | TechTarget
The Week in Ransomware - May 19th 2023 - A Shifting Landscape (bleepingcomputer.com)
US saw 45% fewer ransomware victims posted on the dark web | Security Magazine
Judge Throws Out Ransomware Class-Action Suit Against Rackspace - MSSP Alert
Ransomware tales: The MitM attack that really had a Man in the Middle – Naked Security (sophos.com)
Here's another great reason to make sure your enterprises is safeguarded from ransomware | TechRadar
Inside Qilin Ransomware: Affiliates Take Home 85% of Ransom Payouts (thehackernews.com)
Buhti Ransomware Gang Switches Tactics, Utilizes Leaked LockBit and Babuk Code (thehackernews.com)
Ransomware Victims
Food Distributor Sysco Says Cyber Attack Exposed 126,000 Individuals - SecurityWeek
Suzuki motorcycle plant shut down by cyber attack (bitdefender.com)
Iowa hospital discloses breach following Royal ransomware leak | TechTarget
Arms maker Rheinmetall confirms BlackBasta ransomware attack (bleepingcomputer.com)
Dish Network says February ransomware attack impacted +300K - Security Affairs
Philly Inquirer disputes Cuba ransomware gang's leak claims • The Register
Dorchester school IT system held to ransom in cyber attack - BBC News
BlackByte lists city of Augusta after cyber 'incident' • The Register
Phishing & Email Based Attacks
Advanced Phishing Attacks Surge 356% in 2022 - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
50% of companies had spearphishing puncture wounds in 2022 (techrepublic.com)
Microsoft 365 phishing attacks use encrypted RPMSG messages (bleepingcomputer.com)
Threat actors exploit new channels for advanced phishing attacks - Help Net Security
Malicious links and misaddressed emails slip past security controls - Help Net Security
CopperStealer Malware Crew Resurfaces with New Rootkit and Phishing Kit Modules (thehackernews.com)
Crypto phishing service Inferno Drainer defrauds thousands of victims (bleepingcomputer.com)
BEC – Business Email Compromise
Cyber Signals: Shifting tactics show surge in business email compromise | Microsoft Security Blog
Microsoft reports jump in business email compromise activity | CSO Online
Other Social Engineering; Smishing, Vishing, etc
Artificial Intelligence
Employees are banned from using ChatGPT at these companies | Fortune
BatLoader campaign impersonates ChatGPT and Midjourney to deliver Redline Stealer - Security Affairs
6 ChatGPT risks for legal and compliance leaders - Help Net Security
5 Ways Hackers Will Use ChatGPT For Cyber attacks (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Simple OSINT techniques to spot AI-fueled disinformation, fake reviews - Help Net Security
Microsoft urges lawmakers to adopt new guidelines for responsible AI | CyberScoop
AI Used to Create Malware, WithSecure Observes - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
The Security Hole at the Heart of ChatGPT and Bing | WIRED UK
2FA/MFA
Malware
New PowerExchange malware backdoors Microsoft Exchange servers (bleepingcomputer.com)
Hackers Use Weaponised DOCX File to Deploy Stealthy Malware (gbhackers.com)
Meet 'Jack' from Romania! Mastermind Behind Golden Chickens Malware (thehackernews.com)
Developer Alert: NPM Packages for Node.js Hiding Dangerous TurkoRat Malware (thehackernews.com)
CopperStealer Malware Crew Resurfaces with New Rootkit and Phishing Kit Modules (thehackernews.com)
Threat actors leverage kernel drivers in new attacks | TechTarget
BatLoader campaign impersonates ChatGPT and Midjourney to deliver Redline Stealer - Security Affairs
Malicious links and misaddressed emails slip past security controls - Help Net Security
Potentially millions of Android TVs and phones come with malware preinstalled | Ars Technica
New AhRat Android malware hidden in app with 50,000 installs (bleepingcomputer.com)
Malware turns home routers into proxies for Chinese state-sponsored hackers | Ars Technica
PyPI open-source code repository deals with manic malware maelstrom – Naked Security (sophos.com)
Legion Malware Upgraded to Target SSH Servers and AWS Credentials (thehackernews.com)
AI Used to Create Malware, WithSecure Observes - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)
Mobile
Warning: Samsung Devices Under Attack! New Security Flaw Exposed (thehackernews.com)
Android phones are vulnerable to fingerprint brute-force attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)
New AhRat Android malware hidden in app with 50,000 installs (bleepingcomputer.com)
Predator: Looking under the hood of Intellexa’s Android spyware (bleepingcomputer.com)
Botnets
How smart bots are infecting and exploiting the internet - Help Net Security
The Dark Frost Enigma: An Unexpectedly Prevalent Botnet Author Profile | Akamai
Denial of Service/DoS/DDOS
Internet of Things – IoT
Potentially millions of Android TVs and phones come with malware preinstalled | Ars Technica
Malware turns home routers into proxies for Chinese state-sponsored hackers | Ars Technica
Data Breaches/Leaks
Capita under fire after ‘confidential’ files published online (thetimes.co.uk)
Luxottica confirms 2021 data breach after info of 70M leaks online (bleepingcomputer.com)
Hackers steal the SSN of nearly 6 million people (pandasecurity.com)
Food Distributor Sysco Says Cyber attack Exposed 126,000 Individuals - SecurityWeek
Organised Crime & Criminal Actors
IT employee piggybacked on cyber attack for personal gain - Help Net Security
Child hackers: How are kids becoming sophisticated cyber criminals? | Euronews
UK Fraudster Behind iSpoof Scam Receives 13-Year Jail Term for Cyber Crimes (thehackernews.com)
The Strange Story of the Teens Behind the Mirai Botnet - IEEE Spectrum
FBI: Human Trafficking Rings Force Job Seekers Into Cryptojacking Schemes (darkreading.com)
'Operation Magalenha' Attacks Gives Window Into Brazil's Cyber crime Ecosystem (darkreading.com)
Cyber criminals masquerading as MFA vendors - Help Net Security
The Dark Frost Enigma: An Unexpectedly Prevalent Botnet Author Profile | Akamai
Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs/Blockchain
Crypto phishing service Inferno Drainer defrauds thousands of victims (bleepingcomputer.com)
Forex boss Anthony Constantinou guilty of £70m ‘Ponzi’ fraud (thetimes.co.uk)
FBI: Human Trafficking Rings Force Job Seekers Into Cryptojacking Schemes (darkreading.com)
Insider Risk and Insider Threats
How to prevent against the 5 main types of insider threats - IT Security Guru
IT employee impersonates ransomware gang to extort employer (bleepingcomputer.com)
Fraud, Scams & Financial Crime
Get-rich-quick schemes, pyramids and ponzis: five signs you're being scammed (theconversation.com)
Scammers Using ChatGPT "Fleeceware" Apps to Cash In on AI Hype, Sophos Report - MSSP Alert
Online scams target bargain-hunting holiday travelers - Help Net Security
Ads for lucrative jobs in Asia may be tech slavery scams • The Register
Crypto phishing service Inferno Drainer defrauds thousands of victims (bleepingcomputer.com)
79-year-old woman tricks German scammers into getting arrested (iamexpat.de)
Forex boss Anthony Constantinou guilty of £70m ‘Ponzi’ fraud (thetimes.co.uk)
IT employee impersonates ransomware gang to extort employer (bleepingcomputer.com)
Supply Chain and Third Parties
Capita under fire after ‘confidential’ files published online (thetimes.co.uk)
UK councils caught in Capita unsecured AWS bucket data leak • The Register
New Cyber Security Training Packages Launched to Manage Supply Chain Risk - NCSC
Software Supply Chain
GUAC 0.1 Beta: Google's Breakthrough Framework for Secure Software Supply Chains (thehackernews.com)
Cloud/SaaS
UK councils caught in Capita unsecured AWS bucket data leak • The Register
CISO-level tips for securing corporate data in the cloud - Help Net Security
Google Cloud Bug Allows Server Takeover From CloudSQL Service (darkreading.com)
Attack Surface Management
Identity and Access Management
7 access management challenges during M&A - Help Net Security
Think security first when switching from traditional Active Directory to Azure AD | CSO Online
Encryption
API
API bug in OAuth dev tool opened websites, apps to account hijacking | SC Media (scmagazine.com)
The fragmented nature of API security ownership - Help Net Security
Open Source
Passwords, Credential Stuffing & Brute Force Attacks
Inactive accounts pose significant account takeover security risks | CSO Online
What’s a Double-Blind Password Strategy and When Should It Be Used (bleepingcomputer.com)
Netflix's Password-Sharing Ban Offers Security Upsides (darkreading.com)
Biometrics
Social Media
Meta Hit With $1.3B Record-Breaking Fine for GDPR Violations (darkreading.com)
Pentagon explosion hoax goes viral after verified Twitter accounts push (bleepingcomputer.com)
Training, Education and Awareness
Travel
Online scams target bargain-hunting holiday travelers - Help Net Security
Four ways your devices can be hacked in hotels and how to stay safe | This is Money
Tips to Protect Against Holiday and Airline Scams - IT Security Guru
Parental Controls and Child Safety
Regulations, Fines and Legislation
Meta Hit With $1.3B Record-Breaking Fine for GDPR Violations (darkreading.com)
Microsoft urges lawmakers to adopt new guidelines for responsible AI | CyberScoop
Models, Frameworks and Standards
NIST Launches Cyber security Initiative for Small Businesses (securityintelligence.com)
New security model launched to eliminate 95% of cyber breaches - IT Security Guru
Backup and Recovery
Almost all ransomware attacks target backups, says Veeam | Computer Weekly
'Operation Magalenha' Attacks Gives Window Into Brazil's Cyber crime Ecosystem (darkreading.com)
Here's another great reason to make sure your enterprises is safeguarded from ransomware | TechRadar
Data Protection
Careers, Working in Cyber and Information Security
Law Enforcement Action and Take Downs
UK Fraudster Behind iSpoof Scam Receives 13-Year Jail Term for Cyber Crimes (thehackernews.com)
79-year-old woman tricks German scammers into getting arrested (iamexpat.de)
Privacy, Surveillance and Mass Monitoring
UK police to 'embed' facial recog but oversight is at risk • The Register
Abuse of government spying powers: What's to worry about? • The Register
Reflections on Ten Years Past The Snowden Revelations (ietf.org)
Misinformation, Disinformation and Propaganda
Spyware, Cyber Espionage & Cyber Warfare, including Russian Invasion of Ukraine
Cyber Warfare Lessons From the Russia-Ukraine Conflict (darkreading.com)
Russia's War in Ukraine Shows Cyber attacks Can Be War Crimes (darkreading.com)
The Underground History of Turla, Russia's Most Ingenious Hacker Group | WIRED
Bad Magic's Extended Reign in Cyber Espionage Goes Back Over a Decade (thehackernews.com)
North Korean Kimsuky Hackers Strike Again with Advanced Reconnaissance Malware (thehackernews.com)
Cyber Attacks Strike Ukraine's State Bodies in Espionage Operation (thehackernews.com)
Mysterious malware designed to cripple industrial systems linked to Russia | CyberScoop
New Russian-linked CosmicEnergy malware targets industrial systems (bleepingcomputer.com)
United Nations official and others in Armenia hacked by NSO Group spyware | Hacking | The Guardian
Predator: Looking under the hood of Intellexa’s Android spyware (bleepingcomputer.com)
Nation State Actors
APT attacks: Exploring Advanced Persistent Threats and their evasive techniques (malwarebytes.com)
SMBs and regional MSPs are increasingly targeted by state-sponsored APT groups | CSO Online
The Underground History of Turla, Russia's Most Ingenious Hacker Group | WIRED
Malware turns home routers into proxies for Chinese state-sponsored hackers | Ars Technica
North Korean Kimsuky Hackers Strike Again with Advanced Reconnaissance Malware (thehackernews.com)
Five Eyes and Microsoft accuse China US infrastructure raids • The Register
Iranian hackers use new Moneybird ransomware to attack Israeli orgs (bleepingcomputer.com)
Mysterious malware designed to cripple industrial systems linked to Russia | CyberScoop
GCHQ warns of fresh threat from Chinese state-sponsored hackers | Hacking | The Guardian
New Russian-linked CosmicEnergy malware targets industrial systems (bleepingcomputer.com)
Five Eyes agencies detail how Chinese hackers breached US infrastructure - Help Net Security
Lazarus Group Striking Vulnerable Windows IIS Web Servers (darkreading.com)
'Volt Typhoon' Breaks Fresh Ground for China-Backed Cyber Campaigns (darkreading.com)
Vulnerability Management
12 vulnerabilities newly associated with ransomware - Help Net Security
Fresh perspectives needed to manage growing vulnerabilities - Help Net Security
Judge Throws Out Ransomware Class-Action Suit Against Rackspace - MSSP Alert
How to check for new exploits in real time? VulnCheck has an answer | CSO Online
Vulnerabilities
12 vulnerabilities newly associated with ransomware - Help Net Security
Hackers target 1.5M WordPress sites with cookie consent plugin exploit (bleepingcomputer.com)
Barracuda Alerts Of Breaches In Email Gateways From Zero-Day Flaws (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Threat Actors Compromise Barracuda Email Security Appliances (darkreading.com)
Microsoft: Windows issue causes file copying, saving failures (bleepingcomputer.com)
GitLab 'strongly recommends' patching max severity flaw ASAP (bleepingcomputer.com)
83C0000B: The error code that means a software update bricked your HP printer (bitdefender.com)
CISA adds iPhone bugs to Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog - Security Affairs
Vulnerability in Zyxel firewalls may soon be widely exploited (CVE-2023-28771) - Help Net Security
Zyxel warns of critical vulnerabilities in firewall and VPN devices (bleepingcomputer.com)
Warning: Samsung Devices Under Attack! New Security Flaw Exposed (thehackernews.com)
Tools and Controls
Security Pros: Before You Do Anything, Understand Your Threat Landscape - SecurityWeek
Malicious links and misaddressed emails slip past security controls - Help Net Security
Making The Most Of A Penetration Test: The Organisational Perspective (forbes.com)
Against the Clock: Cyber Incident Response Plan (trendmicro.com)
Investigating Risks Through Threat Hunting Capability Guide (informationsecuritybuzz.com)
Almost all ransomware attacks target backups, says Veeam | Computer Weekly
How continuous security monitoring is changing the compliance game - Help Net Security
Blacklist untrustworthy apps that peek behind your firewall - Help Net Security
How generative AI is reshaping the identity verification landscape - Help Net Security
The fragmented nature of API security ownership - Help Net Security
Enterprises Must Prepare Now for Shorter TLS Certificate Lifespans (darkreading.com)
Cutting Through the Noise: What is Zero Trust Security? - SecurityWeek
CISO-level tips for securing corporate data in the cloud - Help Net Security
6 ways generative AI chatbots and LLMs can enhance cyber security | CSO Online
'Operation Magalenha' Attacks Gives Window Into Brazil's Cyber crime Ecosystem (darkreading.com)
Here's another great reason to make sure your enterprises is safeguarded from ransomware | TechRadar
Attributes of a mature cyber-threat intelligence program | CSO Online
Sector Specific
Industry specific threat intelligence reports are available.
Contact us to receive tailored reports specific to the industry/sector and geographies you operate in.
· Automotive
· Construction
· Critical National Infrastructure (CNI)
· Defence & Space
· Education & Academia
· Energy & Utilities
· Estate Agencies
· Financial Services
· FinTech
· Food & Agriculture
· Gaming & Gambling
· Government & Public Sector (including Law Enforcement)
· Health/Medical/Pharma
· Hotels & Hospitality
· Insurance
· Legal
· Manufacturing
· Maritime
· Oil, Gas & Mining
· OT, ICS, IIoT, SCADA & Cyber-Physical Systems
· Retail & eCommerce
· Small and Medium Sized Businesses (SMBs)
· Startups
· Telecoms
· Third Sector & Charities
· Transport & Aviation
· Web3
As usual, contact us to help assess where your risks lie and to ensure you are doing all you can do to keep you and your business secure.
Look out for our ‘Cyber Tip Tuesday’ video blog and on our YouTube channel.
You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
Links to articles are for interest and awareness and linking to or reposting external content does not endorse any service or product, likewise we are not responsible for the security of external links.