Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 26 April 2024

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

Coalition Finds More Than Half of Cyber Insurance Claims Originate in the Email Inbox

The 2024 Cyber Claims Report by insurer Coalition reveals critical vulnerabilities and trends affecting cyber insurance policyholders. Notably, over half of the claims in 2023 stemmed from funds transfer fraud (FTF) and business email compromise (BEC), underlining the critical role of email security in cyber risk management. The report also indicated heightened risks associated with boundary devices like firewalls and VPNs, particularly if they are exposed online and have known vulnerabilities. Additionally, the overall claims frequency and severity rose by 13% and 10% respectively, pushing the average loss to $100,000. These insights emphasise the necessity of proactive cyber security measures and the valuable role of cyber insurance in mitigating financial losses from cyber incidents.

Sources: [IT Security Guru] [Emerging Risks]

Unmasking the True Cost of Cyber Attacks: Beyond Ransom and Recovery

The global cost of cyber crime is expected to soar to $10.5 trillion annually by 2025, a steep rise from $3 trillion in 2015, underscoring a significant improvement in the methods of cyber criminals, according to Cybersecurity Ventures. Beyond direct financial losses like ransomware payments, the hidden costs of cyber attacks for businesses include severe operational disruptions, lost revenue, damaged reputations, strained customer relationships, and regulatory fines. These incidents, further exacerbated by increased insurance premiums, collectively contribute to substantial long-term financial burdens. The report indicates that 88% of data breaches are attributable to human error, underscoring the importance of comprehensive employee training alongside technological defences. To combat these evolving cyber threats effectively, organisations must adopt a multi-pronged strategy that includes advanced security technologies, regular system updates, employee education, and comprehensive security audits.

According to another report from SiliconAngle, cyber insurance claims increased 13% year-over-year in 2023, with the 10% rise in overall claims severity attributed to mounting ransomware attack claims.

Sources: [The Hacker News] [Huntress] [SC Media]

Why Cyber Security Should Be Driving Your Enterprise Risk Management Strategy

Cyber security has transformed from a secondary concern into the cornerstone of corporate risk management. The historical view of cyber security as merely a component of broader risk strategies is outdated; it now demands a central role in safeguarding against operational, financial, and reputational threats. Many businesses, recognising the vital role of technology in all operations, have begun elevating the position of Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) to integrate cyber security into their overall enterprise risk frameworks. This shift not only enhances visibility and strategic alignment at the highest organisational levels but also fosters more robust defences against cyber threats. As such, adopting a cyber security-centric approach is crucial for compliance and long-term resilience in the face of growing digital threats.

Source: [Forbes]

Ransomware Double-Dip: Re-Victimisation in Cyber Extortion

A recent cyber security study reveals a troubling trend of re-victimisation among organisations hit by cyber extortion or ransomware attacks. Analysis of over 11,000 affected organisations shows recurring victimisation due to repeated attacks, data reuse among criminal affiliates, or cross-affiliate data sharing. Notably, cyber extortion incidents have surged by 51% year-on-year. Additionally, a separate study reports payments exceeding $1 billion and a 20% increase in ransomware attack victims since early 2023. These findings underscore the increasing sophistication and persistence of cyber criminals. Despite law enforcement efforts, adaptable cyber crime groups swiftly resume operations, complicating effective threat mitigation. Organisations must enhance their cyber security measures to avoid becoming repeated targets.

Sources: [Security Magazine] [The Hacker News] [SC Media]

AI is a Major Threat and Many Financial Organisations Are Not Doing Enough

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a major concern for organisations, especially for the financial services sector due to the information they hold. Recent reports have found that AI has driven phishing up by 60% and AI tools have been linked to data exposure in 1 in 5 UK organisations. But it is not just attackers utilising AI: a separate report found that 20% of employees have exposed data via AI.

Currently, many financial organisations are not doing enough to secure themselves to fight AI. In a recent survey, 69% of fraud-management decision makers, AML professionals, and risk and compliance leaders reported that criminals are more advanced at using AI for financial crime than firms are in defending against it.

Sources: [Verdict] [Beta News] [Infosecurity Magazine] [TechRadar] [Security Brief]

[Biometric Update]

6 out of 10 Businesses Struggle to Manage Cyber Risk

A report has found that 6 in 10 businesses are struggling to manage their cyber risk and just 43% have confidence in their ability to address cyber risk. Further, 35% of total respondents worry that senior management does not see cyber attacks as a significant risk; the same percentage also reported a struggle in hiring skilled professionals. When it came to implementing their security policy, half of respondents found difficulty, and when it came to securing the supply chain, a third reported worries.

Given the inevitability of a cyber attack, organisations need to prepare themselves. Those that struggle to manage their cyber risk and/or hire skilled professions will benefit from outsourcing to skilled, reputable cyber security organisations who can guide them through the process.

Sources: [PR Newswire] [Beta News]

'Junk Gun' Ransomware: New Low-Cost Cyber Threat Targets SMBs

Sophos’ research reveals a concerning trend: ‘junk gun’ ransomware variants are now traded on the dark web. Rather than going the traditional route of selling or buying ransomware to or as an affiliate, attackers have now begun creating and selling unsophisticated ransomware variants for a one-time cost. Priced at a median of $375, they attract lower-skilled attackers, especially those targeting small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). As major ransomware players fade, these variants pose significant threats, accounting for over 75% of cyber incidents affecting SMBs in 2023.

Source: [Security Brief] [Tripwire]

Penetration Testing Infrequency Leaves Security Gaps

Many organisations are struggling to maintain the balance between penetration testing and IT changes within the organisation, leaving security gaps according to a recent report. The report found that 73% of organisations reported changes to their IT environments at least quarterly, however only 40% performed penetration testing at the same frequency.

The issue arises where there is a significant duration during which changes have been implemented without undergoing assessment, leaving organisations open to risk for extended periods of time. Consider the situation in which an organisation moves their infrastructure from on-premise to the cloud: they now have a different IT environment, and with that, new risks.

Black Arrow always recommends that a robust penetration test should be conducted whenever changes to internet facing infrastructure have been made, and at least annually.

Source: [MSSP Alert]

Bank Prohibited from Opening New Accounts After Regulators Lose Patience with Poor Cyber Security Governance

A bank in India has been banned from signing up new customers, and instructed to focus on improving its cyber security after “serious deficiencies and non-compliances” were found within their IT environment. The compliances provided by the bank were described as “inadequate, incorrect or not sustained”. The bank is now subject to an external audit, which if passed, will consider the lifting of the restrictions placed upon them.

Source: [The Register]

The Psychological Impact of Phishing Attacks on Your Employees

Phishing remains one of the most prevalent attack vectors for bad actors, and its psychological impact on employees can be severe, with many employees facing a loss in confidence and job satisfaction as well as an increase in anxiety. In a study by Egress, it was found that 74% of employees were disciplined, dismissed or left voluntarily after suffering a phishing incident, which can cause hesitation when it comes to reporting phishing.

Phishing incidents and simulations where employees have clicked should be seen as an opportunity to learn, not to blame, and to understand why a phish was successful and what can be done in future to prevent it. Organisations should perform security education and awareness training to help employees lessen their chance of falling victim, as well as knowing the reporting procedures.

Source: [Beta News]

Where Hackers Find Your Weak Spots

A recent analysis highlights social engineering as a primary vector for cyber attacks, emphasising its reliance on meticulously gathered intelligence to exploit organisational vulnerabilities. Attackers leverage various intelligence sources; Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) for public data, Social Media Intelligence (SOCMINT) for social media insights, Advertising Intelligence (ADINT) from advertising data, Dark Web Intelligence (DARKINT) from the DarkWeb, and the emerging AI Intelligence (AI-INT) using artificial intelligence. These methods equip cyber criminals with detailed knowledge about potential victims, enabling targeted and effective attacks. The report underscores the critical importance of robust information management and employee training to mitigate such threats, specifically advocating for regular training, AI-use policies, and proactive intelligence gathering by organisations to protect against the substantial risks posed by social engineering.

Source: [Dark Reading]

The Role of Threat Intelligence in Financial Data Protection

The financial industry’s reliance on digital processes has made it vulnerable to cyber attacks. Criminals target sensitive customer data, leading to financial losses, regulatory fines, and reputational damage. To combat these threats such as phishing, malware, ransomware, and social engineering, financial institutions must prioritise robust cyber security measures. One effective approach is threat intelligence, which involves ingesting reliable threat data, customised to your sector and the technology you have in place, and dark web monitoring.

Source: [Security Boulevard]

Government Cannot Protect Business and Services from Cyber Attack, Decision Makers Say

According to a recent report, 66% of surveyed IT leaders expressed a lack of confidence in their government’s ability to defend people and enterprises from cyber attacks, especially those from nation state actors. This scepticism arises from the growing complexity of threats and the rapid evolution of cyber warfare. While governments play a critical role in national security, their agility in adapting to the ever-changing digital landscape leaves organisations finding themselves increasingly responsible for their own protection.

Source: [TechRadar] [Security Magazine]

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Governance, Risk and Compliance

• Ransomware triggers cyber insurance claims increase | SC Media (scmagazine.com)

• Coalition Finds More Than Half of Cyber Insurance Claims Originate in the Email Inbox - IT Security Guru

• Pen Testing Infrequency Leaves Security Gaps | MSSP Alert

• Six out of 10 businesses struggle to manage cyber risk (betanews.com)

• Email inbox cyber crime leaps as claims soar (emergingrisks.co.uk)

• It Costs How Much?!? The Financial Pitfalls of Cyber Attacks on SMBs | Huntress

• Why Cyber Security Should Be Driving Your Enterprise Risk Management Strategy (forbes.com)

• Cyber attacks are on the rise, and that includes small businesses. Here's what to know | AP News

• Cyber staff priority as threats continue – report (emergingrisks.co.uk)

• UK government cannot protect businesses and services from cyber attacks, IT pros say | TechRadar

• Why cyber attacks shouldn’t be viewed as isolated incidents - Raconteur

• Bank banned from opening new accounts over IT risks • The Register

• Battening down the hatches: Navigating third-party cyber threats  | SC Media (scmagazine.com)

• Cyber Attacks Keep Rising. Here's What Small Businesses Need to Know | Inc.com

• 73% of SME security pros missed or ignored critical alerts - Help Net Security

• Unmasking the True Cost of Cyber Attacks: Beyond Ransom and Recovery (thehackernews.com)

• 4 steps CISOs can take to raise trust in their business | TechTarget

• NCSC Says Newer Threats Need Network Defence Strategy | Trend Micro (US)

• Uncertainty is the most common driver of noncompliance - Help Net Security

• More and more businesses now have CISOs - but they're increasingly taking the blame for attacks | TechRadar

• Cyber metrics journey | Professional Security

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Threats

Ransomware, Extortion and Destructive Attacks

• Ransomware triggers cyber insurance claims increase | SC Media (scmagazine.com)

• Coalition Finds More Than Half of Cyber Insurance Claims Originate in the Email Inbox - IT Security Guru

• Report finds a near 20% increase in ransomware victims year-over-year | Security Magazine

• Risks to ransomware attack payment | Professional Security

• Ransomware Double-Dip: Re-Victimization in Cyber Extortion (thehackernews.com)

• 'Junk gun' ransomware: New low-cost cyber threat targets SMBs (securitybrief.co.nz)

• Mandiant: Attacker dwell time down, ransomware up in 2023 | TechTarget

• Behavioural patterns of ransomware groups are changing - Help Net Security

• Record ransomware attacks in March 2024, report finds (securitybrief.co.nz)

• Ransomware payments drop to record low of 28% in Q1 2024 (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Hackers use developing countries as testing ground for new ransomware attacks (ft.com)

• Ransomware Still On Rise Despite Better Defences, Firm Says - Law360

• Hackers are using developing countries for ransomware practice | Ars Technica

• Dark web inundated by cheap ransomware tools | SC Media (scmagazine.com)

• Unmasking the True Cost of Cyber Attacks: Beyond Ransom and Recovery (thehackernews.com)

• Action needed amid escalating ransomware attacks, record-high payments | SC Media (scmagazine.com)

• HelloKitty ransomware rebrands, releases CD Projekt and Cisco data (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Rising Ransomware Issue: English-Speaking Western Affiliates (govinfosecurity.com)

• Ransomware in Q1 2024: Frequency, size of payments trending downwards, SMBs beware! - Help Net Security

• CL0P ransomware gang is on the rise | Hogan Lovells - JDSupra

• Proportion paying ransoms declines in Q1 2024, even as takings break a new record (computing.co.uk)

• Megazord Ransomware Attacking Healthcare & Govt Entities (cybersecuritynews.com)

• CISA ransomware warning program set to fully launch by end of 2024 | CyberScoop

• DragonForce Ransomware Group Uses LockBit’s Leaked Builder - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Cyber Hygiene Helps Organisations Mitigate Ransomware-Related Vulnerabilities  | CISA

• Ransomware attacks rise in global food & agriculture sector (securitybrief.co.nz)

• Preventing Ransomware Attacks at Scale (hbr.org)

Ransomware Victims

• Hackers Were in Change Healthcare 9 Days Before Attack (pymnts.com)

• UnitedHealth BlackCat Attack Cost is $872M in Q1 | MSSP Alert

• UnitedHealth admits breach could affect large chunk of US • The Register

• Back from the Brink: UnitedHealth Offers Sobering Post-Attack Update (darkreading.com)

• UnitedHealth Paid Ransom to Protect Patient Data | MSSP Alert

• Will the Change Healthcare case finally make providers do a business impact analysis? | SC Media (scmagazine.com)

• UNDP, City of Copenhagen Targeted in Data-Extortion Cyber Attack (darkreading.com)

• Cannes Hospital Cancels Medical Procedures Following Cyber Attack - Security Week

• Small medical practices will close because of Change cyber attack, says AMA | Healthcare IT News

• HelloKitty ransomware rebrands, releases CD Projekt and Cisco data (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Sweden's liquor shelves to run empty this week due to ransomware attack (therecord.media)

• Authentication failure blamed for Change Healthcare ransomware attack | CSO Online

• Ransomware feared as Octapharma Plasma closes 150+ centers • The Register

• Red Ransomware takes credit for Targus attack | SC Media (scmagazine.com)

• Ransomware Gang Leaks Data Allegedly Stolen From Government Contractor - Security Week

• Carpetright unable to trade after cyber attack - Retail Gazette

• Street lights in Leicester City cannot be turned off due to a cyber attack (securityaffairs.com)

Phishing & Email Based Attacks

• Phishing attacks up 60 percent driven by AI (betanews.com)

• Coalition Finds More Than Half of Cyber Insurance Claims Originate in the Email Inbox - IT Security Guru

• The psychological impact of phishing attacks on your employees (betanews.com)

• Hackers Create Legit Phishing Links With Ghost GitHub, GitLab Comments (darkreading.com)

• Authorities investigate LabHost users after phishing service shut down | SC Media (scmagazine.com)

• Researchers Detail Multistage Attack Hijacking Systems with SSLoad, Cobalt Strike (thehackernews.com)

• LA County Health Services: Patients' data exposed in phishing attack (bleepingcomputer.com)

BEC

• Coalition Finds More Than Half of Cyber Insurance Claims Originate in the Email Inbox - IT Security Guru

• Email inbox cyber crime leaps as claims soar (emergingrisks.co.uk)

Other Social Engineering

• LastPass Users Lose Master Passwords to Ultra-Convincing Scam (darkreading.com)

• Open Source Groups Warn of Social Engineering Backdoors | MSSP Alert

Artificial Intelligence

• AI is a major threat and financial organisations are not doing enough to fight it | Biometric Update

• Phishing attacks up 60 percent driven by AI (betanews.com)

• Fifth of CISOs Admit Staff Leaked Data Via GenAI - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Five Eyes agencies publish report on AI security | Hogan Lovells - JDSupra

• AI tools linked to data exposure in 1 in 5 UK organisations (securitybrief.co.nz)

• Security Leaders Braced for Daily AI-Driven Attacks by Year-End - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• CSOs say AI is 'biggest cyber threat' to organisations | TechRadar

• Man arrested for 'framing colleague' with AI-generated voice • The Register

• Microsoft Warns: North Korean Hackers Turn to AI-Fueled Cyber Espionage (thehackernews.com)

• People doubt their own ability to spot AI-generated deepfakes - Help Net Security

• A National Security Insider Does the Math on the Dangers of AI | WIRED

• 40% of organisations have AI policies for critical infrastructure | Security Magazine

• GPT-4 can exploit real vulnerabilities by reading advisories • The Register

• 25 cyber security AI stats you should know - Help Net Security

• Cyber Threats in the Age of AI: Protecting Your Digital DNA - Security Boulevard

• The Dark Side of Deepfakes: How Malicious Actors Use Synthetic Media to Manipulate and Deceive | Metaverse Post (mpost.io)

• 6 security items that should be in every AI acceptable use policy | CSO Online

• 'Poisoned' data could wreck AIs in wartime, warns Army software acquisition chief - Breaking Defence

• The use of AI in war games could change military strategy (theconversation.com)

2FA/MFA

• Strengths & Weaknesses of MFA Methods Against Cyber Attacks | Duo Security

• What is multi-factor authentication (MFA), and why is it important? - Help Net Security

Malware

• ToddyCat APT Is Stealing Data on 'Industrial Scale' (darkreading.com)

• Report says over 10 million devices were infected by data-stealing malware in 2023 - PhoneArena

• New Brokewell malware takes over Android devices, steals data (bleepingcomputer.com)

• GitLab affected by GitHub-style CDN flaw allowing malware hosting (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Microsoft unmasks Russia-linked ‘GooseEgg’ malware (therecord.media)

• Hackers hijack antivirus updates to drop GuptiMiner malware (bleepingcomputer.com)

• eScan Antivirus Update Mechanism Exploited to Spread Backdoors and Miners (thehackernews.com)

• Beware! Notorious Samurai Stealer Used in Targeted Attacks (cybersecuritynews.com)

• Threat Actor Uses Multiple Infostealers in Global Campaign - Security Week

• Seedworm Hackers Exploit RMM Tools to Deliver Malware (cybersecuritynews.com)

• Antivirus updates hijacked to drop dangerous malware | TechRadar

• Hackers infect users of antivirus service that delivered updates over HTTP | Ars Technica

• Researchers sinkhole PlugX malware server with 2.5 million unique IPs (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Millions of IPs remain infected by USB worm years after its creators left it for dead | Ars Technica

• North Korea's Lazarus Group Deploys New Kaolin RAT via Fake Job Lures (thehackernews.com)

Mobile

• Report says over 10 million devices were infected by data-stealing malware in 2023 - PhoneArena

• Ukrainian soldiers’ apps increasingly targeted for spying, cyber agency warns (therecord.media)

• iPhone password reset attacks are real – how to protect yourself | Mashable

• New Brokewell malware takes over Android devices, steals data (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Godfather Banking Trojan Spawns 1.2K Samples Across 57 Countries (darkreading.com)

• Major Security Flaws Expose Keystrokes of Over 1 Billion Chinese Keyboard App Users (thehackernews.com)

• Give Your iPhone a Security Boost With This iOS 17.4 Feature - CNET

• A Briefing on SIM Hijacking | Intel471

Data Breaches/Leaks

• 5.3M World-Check records may be leaked; how to check your records | SC Media (scmagazine.com)

• Hackers stole 7,000,000 people's DNA. But what can they do with it? | Tech News | Metro News

• AT&T Offers All Customers Free Security Bundle After Data Breach (tech.co)

• AT&T faces class action lawsuit over massive data breach exposing 70 million customers’ personal information (click2houston.com)

• App bug exposes 1M neighbourhood watchers to data harvesters • The Register

• Fifth of CISOs Admit Staff Leaked Data Via GenAI - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

Organised Crime & Criminal Actors

• Rising Ransomware Issue: English-Speaking Western Affiliates (govinfosecurity.com)

• Russian FSB Counterintelligence Chief Gets 9 Years in Cyber Crime Bribery Scheme – Krebs on Security

• Authorities investigate LabHost users after phishing service shut down | SC Media (scmagazine.com)

• To Catch a Cyber Criminal -- and the Fallout That Follows (informationweek.com)

Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs/Blockchain

• eScan Antivirus Update Mechanism Exploited to Spread Backdoors and Miners (thehackernews.com)

• Lazarus On the Hunt: How North Korean Hackers are Targeting Crypto via LinkedIn (bitcoinist.com)

Insider Risk and Insider Threats

• Most people still rely on memory or pen and paper for password management - Help Net Security

• The rise of the outsmarted insider (betanews.com)

• CesiumAstro claims former exec spilled trade secrets to upstart competitor AnySignal | TechCrunch

Insurance

• Ransomware triggers cyber insurance claims increase | SC Media (scmagazine.com)

• Coalition Finds More Than Half of Cyber Insurance Claims Originate in the Email Inbox - IT Security Guru

• Email inbox cyber crime leaps as claims soar (emergingrisks.co.uk)

• Coalition: Insurance claims for Cisco ASA users spiked in 2023 | TechTarget

• Munich Re on the impact of cyber rate changes | Insurance Business America (insurancebusinessmag.com)

Supply Chain and Third Parties

• Battening down the hatches: Navigating third-party cyber threats  | SC Media (scmagazine.com)

• Ransomware Gang Leaks Data Allegedly Stolen From Government Contractor - Security Week

• Tech Investments Help SMBs Fortify Supply Chains Amid Economic, Workforce, and Security Concerns | Business Wire

Cloud/SaaS

• How Attackers Can Own a Business Without Touching the Endpoint (thehackernews.com)

• 5 Hard Truths About the State of Cloud Security 2024 (darkreading.com)

Identity and Access Management

• How Attackers Can Own a Business Without Touching the Endpoint (thehackernews.com)

• Identity-based security threats are growing rapidly: report | CSO Online

Encryption

• Europol asks tech firms, governments to get rid of E2EE • The Register

• How tech firms are tackling the risks of quantum computing | World Economic Forum (weforum.org)

• Australian authorities call for Big Tech help with decryption • The Register

Linux and Open Source

• Open Source Groups Warn of Social Engineering Backdoors | MSSP Alert

Passwords, Credential Stuffing & Brute Force Attacks

• Most people still rely on memory or pen and paper for password management - Help Net Security

• Apple @ Work: Over 52% of workers try to memorize and reuse the same password across multiple apps at work - 9to5Mac

• New Password Cracking Analysis Targets Bcrypt - Security Week

• Brute Force Password Cracking Takes Longer - Don't Celebrate Yet (technewsworld.com)

Social Media

• Dutch govt body: Don't use Facebook if unsure about privacy • The Register

• North Korea's Lazarus Group Deploys New Kaolin RAT via Fake Job Lures (thehackernews.com)

Malvertising

• Windows 11 now comes with its own adware (engadget.com)

Training, Education and Awareness

• 10 colleges and universities shaping the future of cyber security education - Help Net Security

Regulations, Fines and Legislation

• What is the EU Cyber Solidarity Act? | UpGuard

• International Lawyers Network Announces the Launch of Comprehensive Data Protection Guide (prleap.com)

• Preparing for NIS2: A Compliance Guide For Covered Entities | UpGuard

• NIS2: Preparing for EU’s New Cyber Security Rules | Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati – JDSupra

• Compliance in 2024: Cutting through the noise (federalnewsnetwork.com)

• Google Postpones Third-Party Cookie Deprecation Amid UK Regulatory Scrutiny (thehackernews.com)

• A view from Brussels: To be sovereign, or not to be (iapp.org)

• Cyber Security | UK Regulatory Outlook April 2024 - Lexology

• Net neutrality has been restored in the US - Help Net Security

Models, Frameworks and Standards

• Fortifying your business with ISO 27001 - DCD (datacenterdynamics.com)

• Preparing for NIS2: A Compliance Guide For Covered Entities | UpGuard

• Taking Time to Understand NIS2 Reporting Requirements - Security Boulevard

Data Protection

• International Lawyers Network Announces the Launch of Comprehensive Data Protection Guide (prleap.com)

• Boost your data protection with insights from Dell's report - SiliconANGLE

• A view from Brussels: To be sovereign, or not to be (iapp.org)

Careers, Working in Cyber and Information Security

• Cyber staff priority as threats continue – report (emergingrisks.co.uk)

• Pluralsight Study Finds the Biggest Technical Skills Gaps are in Cyber Security, Cloud, and Software Development (prnewswire.com)

• Three Ways Organisations Can Overcome the Cyber Security Skills Gap - Security Boulevard

• Addressing the cyber skills shortage: 5 key steps to take | CSO Online

• Five Essential Steps To Land Your First Cyber Security Job (forbes.com)

• Expert Insight: Outdated Recruitment Methods Are Impeding The Global Cyber Army - IT Security Guru

Law Enforcement Action and Take Downs

• Exploring Law Enforcement Hacking as a Tool Against Transnational Cyber Crime - Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

• Authorities investigate LabHost users after phishing service shut down | SC Media (scmagazine.com)

• Trend Micro Collaborated with Interpol in Cracking Down Grandoreiro Banking Trojan | Trend Micro (US)

• To Catch a Cyber Criminal -- and the Fallout That Follows (informationweek.com)

• Man arrested for 'framing colleague' with AI-generated voice • The Register

Misinformation, Disinformation and Propaganda

• Campaigns and political parties are in the crosshairs of election meddlers | CyberScoop

• Mandiant: Russia, Iran pose biggest threat to 2024 elections • The Register

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

Cyber Warfare and Cyber Espionage

• State-Sponsored Hackers Exploit Two Cisco Zero-Day Vulnerabilities for Espionage (thehackernews.com)

China

• ToddyCat APT Is Stealing Data on 'Industrial Scale' (darkreading.com)

• Chinese, Russian espionage campaigns increasingly targeting edge devices (therecord.media)

• UK mulls fresh controls on 'sensitive tech' after China cyber claim (thenextweb.com)

• FBI Director Wray Issues Dire Warning on China's Cyber Security Threat (darkreading.com)

• Head of Belgian Foreign Affairs Committee says she was hacked by China | Reuters

• New tool used in China-linked attacks against Asia-Pacific | SC Media (scmagazine.com)

• Dutch intelligence warns of stronger threats from China, jihadists and extremists | NL Times

• MITRE breached by nation-state threat actor via Ivanti zero-days - Help Net Security

• Ads on .gov.uk websites raise eyebrows over privacy • The Register

• China's Vision for Global Security: Implications for Southeast Asia | United States Institute of Peace (usip.org)

Russia

• Microsoft: APT28 hackers exploit Windows flaw reported by NSA (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Microsoft issues warning over ‘GooseEgg’ tool used in Russian hacking campaigns | ITPro

• Chinese, Russian espionage campaigns increasingly targeting edge devices (therecord.media)

• Russia's Fancy Bear Pummels Windows Print Spooler Bug (darkreading.com)

• Who Are APT29? - Security Boulevard

• Overflowing Water Tank Linked to Russian Cyber Attack (govtech.com)

• Russia accused of jamming GPS signal on flights from UK causing route chaos (inews.co.uk)

• Russian Sandworm hackers targeted 20 critical orgs in Ukraine (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Rare Computer Virus Detected in Ukrainian Network, Confidential Document Potentially Compromised (kyivpost.com)

• Russian FSB Counterintelligence Chief Gets 9 Years in Cyber Crime Bribery Scheme – Krebs on Security

• Campaigns and political parties are in the crosshairs of election meddlers | CyberScoop

• Mandiant: Russia, Iran pose biggest threat to 2024 elections • The Register

• Ukrainian soldiers’ apps increasingly targeted for spying, cyber agency warns (therecord.media)

• MITRE breached by nation-state threat actor via Ivanti zero-days - Help Net Security

• Ukraine participates in NATO cyber security exercise in Estonia / The New Voice of Ukraine (nv.ua)

• Cyber attacks on Poland surged after election of pro-Ukraine regime (thenextweb.com)

Iran

• $10 Million Bounty on Iranian Hackers for Cyber Attacks on US Gov, Defence Contractors - Security Week

• Campaigns and political parties are in the crosshairs of election meddlers | CyberScoop

• Mandiant: Russia, Iran pose biggest threat to 2024 elections • The Register

• Iranian nationals charged with hacking US companies, Treasury and State departments | CyberScoop

• The Biggest 2024 Elections Threat: Kitchen-Sink Attack Chains (darkreading.com)

North Korea

• Over 10 Defence Industry Firms Targeted in Concentrated Cyber Attacks by N. Korean Hackers l KBS WORLD

• Hackers hijack antivirus updates to drop GuptiMiner malware (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Microsoft Warns: North Korean Hackers Turn to AI-Fuelled Cyber Espionage (thehackernews.com)

• North Korean Hackers Target Dozens of Defence Companies - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• North Korea's Lazarus Group Deploys New Kaolin RAT via Fake Job Lures (thehackernews.com)

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

• Dutch intelligence warns of stronger threats from China, jihadists and extremists | NL Times

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Vulnerability Management

• Third-Party Software Patching: Your Cyber Armor in 2024 | MSSP Alert

• Automated patch management: 9 best practices for success | TechTarget

• Vulnerability Exploitation on the Rise as Attacker Ditch Phishing - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Vulnerabilities Versus Intentionally Malicious Software Components - The New Stack

• GPT-4 can exploit real vulnerabilities by reading advisories • The Register

• CISA ransomware warning program set to fully launch by end of 2024 | CyberScoop

Vulnerabilities

• 22,500 Palo Alto firewalls "possibly vulnerable" to ongoing attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Palo Alto Networks Discloses More Details on Critical PAN-OS Flaw Under Attack (thehackernews.com)

• Nation-state actors exploited two zero-days in Cisco ASA and FTD firewalls to breach government networks - Security Affairs

• Russia's Fancy Bear Pummels Windows Print Spooler Bug (darkreading.com)

• 'MagicDot' Windows Weakness Allows Unprivileged Rootkit Activity (darkreading.com)

• Microsoft: APT28 hackers exploit Windows flaw reported by NSA (bleepingcomputer.com)

• MITRE says state hackers breached its network via Ivanti zero-days (bleepingcomputer.com)

• GitLab affected by GitHub-style CDN flaw allowing malware hosting (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Google Patches Critical Chrome Vulnerability - Security Week

• Microsoft releases Exchange hotfixes for security update issues (bleepingcomputer.com)

• PoC Exploit Released For Critical Oracle VirtualBox Vulnerability (gbhackers.com)

• Critical Forminator plugin flaw impacts over 300k WordPress sites (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Dependency Confusion Vulnerability Found in Apache Project - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Major Security Flaw in Popular Keyboard Apps Puts Millions at Risk (cybersecuritynews.com)

• Patch Now: CrushFTP Zero-Day Cloud Exploit Targets US Orgs (darkreading.com)

• GitHub vulnerability leaks sensitive security reports | TechTarget

• New Password Cracking Analysis Targets Bcrypt - Security Week

• Maximum severity Flowmon bug has a public exploit, patch now (bleepingcomputer.com)

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Tools and Controls

• Seedworm Hackers Exploit RMM Tools to Deliver Malware (cybersecuritynews.com)

• Third-Party Software Patching: Your Cyber Armour in 2024 | MSSP Alert

• The Role of Threat Intelligence in Financial Data Protection - Security Boulevard

• Automated patch management: 9 best practices for success | TechTarget

• Rethinking How You Work with Detection and Response Metrics (darkreading.com)

• Choosing SOC Tools? Read This First [2024 Guide] - Security Boulevard

• Research Shows How Attackers Can Abuse EDR Security Products - SecurityWeek

• What is multi-factor authentication (MFA), and why is it important? - Help Net Security

• Strengths & Weaknesses of MFA Methods Against Cyber Attacks | Duo Security

• Zero Trust Takes Over: 63% of Orgs Implementing Globally (darkreading.com)

• Pen Testing Infrequency Leaves Security Gaps | MSSP Alert

• 5 Hard Truths About the State of Cloud Security 2024 (darkreading.com)

• Explore CASB use cases before you decide to buy | TechTarget

• SD-WAN: Don't Build a Dead End, Prepare for Future-Proof Secure Networking - SecurityWeek

• Identity-based security threats are growing rapidly: report | CSO Online

• Microsoft criticized for charging for security add-ons • The Register

• 5 insights from new Microsoft CNAPP guide | Microsoft Security Blog

• The Peril of Badly Secured Network Edge Devices (inforisktoday.com)

• VPNs, Firewalls' Nonexistent Telemetry Lures APTs (darkreading.com)

• The first steps of establishing your cloud security strategy - Help Net Security

• 40% of organizations have AI policies for critical infrastructure | Security Magazine

• Understand the Benefits and Limitations of Automated Tools in Penetration Testing (prweb.com)

• World´s most advanced cyber defence exercise kicks off in Tallinn

• Tech Investments Help SMBs Fortify Supply Chains Amid Economic, Workforce, and Security Concerns | Business Wire

• CISA ransomware warning program set to fully launch by end of 2024 | CyberScoop

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Reports Published in the Last Week

• M-Trends 2024 | Google Cloud

• Mandiant's M-Trends Report Reveals New Insights from Frontline Cyber Investigations (prnewswire.com)

• Coalition's 2024 Cyber Claims Report (coalitioninc.com)

• Boost your data protection with insights from Dell's report - SiliconANGLE

• 2024 Cisco Cyber Security Readiness Index

• Rising Cyber Threats Pose Serious Concerns for Financial Stability (imf.org)

• Cyber Security in the UK - House of Commons Library (parliament.uk)

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Other News

• These sectors are top targets for cyber crime, and other cyber security news to know this month | World Economic Forum (weforum.org)

• Online Banking Security Still Not Up to Par, Says Which? - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Why Educating HR Professionals on Cyber Risk Is Crucial (thehrdirector.com)

• Where Hackers Find Your Weak Spots (darkreading.com)

• Network Threats: A Step-by-Step Attack Demonstration (thehackernews.com)

• Microsoft is reportedly making security improvements its current top priority at the company - Neowin

• UK cyber agency NCSC announces Richard Horne as its next chief executive (therecord.media)

• Internet cable at Cali airport cut in apparent sabotage • The Register

• DOD establishes Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defence for Cyber Policy (securityintelligence.com)

• EU Statement – UN General Assembly 1st Committee: Cyber Security | EEAS (europa.eu)

• US: The European Union and the United States hold the 9th Cyber Dialogue in Brussels | EEAS (europa.eu)

• Why Tourists Are Particularly Vulnerable To Cyber Attacks (maltatoday.com.mt)

• Microsoft needs to win back trust - The Verge

• AI Is Going Well For Microsoft, But Cyber Security Is Not - Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) - Benzinga

• Questions for IT and cyber leaders from the CSRB Microsoft report | Computer Weekly

• World´s most advanced cyber defence exercise kicks off in Tallinn

• Why Cyber Security Is Key To Solving Global Crises (forbes.com)

• Cyber Security is Relentless! | Gray Reed - JDSupra

• Colleges spending more than ever on cyber security efforts (insidehighered.com)

• Foreign states targeting UK universities, MI5 warns - BBC News

• Cyber resilience in the public sector: lessons for UK Councils (techinformed.com)

• Digital Blitzkrieg: Unveiling Cyber Logistics Warfare (darkreading.com)

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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 20 October 2023

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]

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Governance, Risk and Compliance

• Cyber Insecurity: Report Finds Majority of Enterprises Expect an Imminent Cyber Attack (prnewswire.com)

• Cyber Crime Costs Soar to $8 Trillion, Spotlighting the Critical Need for Cyber security Experts (globenewswire.com)

• 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)

• ‘A matter of when not if’: Why is it crucial for businesses to protect themselves from cyber attacks? | Euronews

• 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

• Lloyd’s systemic risk scenario reveals potential cyber attack losses of $3.5tn (insuranceinsider.com)

• Well-informed employees act as 1st line of defence against cyber threats: Cisco’s Samir Mishra (techcircle.in)

• 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

• New CISO research sets out priorities, challenges and tips for success in a challenging landscape post - BSS

• 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

• October Is Cyber security Awareness Month – It’s a Good Time to Update Your Training Program | Clark Hill PLC - JDSupra

• How do we measure cyber risk? | ITPro

• Ready For Cyber Readiness - Any Time Now (forbes.com)

• 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

• Cyber Insecurity, AI and the Rise of the CISO | ITPro Today: IT News, How-Tos, Trends, Case Studies, Career Tips, More

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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)

• Colonial Pipeline attributes ransomware claims to ‘unrelated’ third-party data breach (therecord.media)

• 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

• Healthcare Sector Warned About New Ransomware Group NoEscape - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• New trend in ransomware: Anonymity (betanews.com)

• 63% of organisations restore data after a ransomware attack | Security Magazine

• Hacker Group GhostSec Unveils New Generation Ransomware Implant - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• 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)

• Colonial Pipeline attributes ransomware claims to ‘unrelated’ third-party data breach (therecord.media)

• Kansas Supreme Court Probes Potential Ransomware Attack (govinfosecurity.com)

• KwikTrip all but says IT outage was caused by a cyber attack (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Some people whose personal data stolen in HWL Ebsworth hack not told for six months | Cyber crime | The Guardian

• Another small firm suffers a serious ransomware attack: Cadre Services gets mauled by AlphV (databreaches.net)

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

• CISA, NSA, FBI publish phishing guidance | TechTarget

• Generative AI's impact on phishing attacks | TechRadar

• Rising AI-Fueled Phishing Drives Demand for Password Alternatives - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Phishing: What’s in a Name? | CISA

• 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)

• AI Adoption Surges But Security Awareness Lags Behind - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.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

• Research: GPT-4 Jailbreak Easily Defeats Safety Guardrails

• Generative AI is scaring CISOs – but adoption isn’t slowing down | CSO Online

• Generative AI's impact on phishing attacks | TechRadar

• Rising AI-Fueled Phishing Drives Demand for Password Alternatives - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Cyber criminals register .AI domains of trusted brands for malicious activity | CSO Online

• The impact of artificial intelligence on cyber offence and defence | The Strategist (aspistrategist.org.au)

2FA/MFA

• Google Authenticator synchronization raises MFA concerns | TechTarget

Malware

• Phishing attacks hit record high in third quarter, with malware not far behind - SiliconANGLE

• Valve upgrades Steam's security after several games are hacked and filled with malware | Rock Paper Shotgun

• 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

• The forgotten malvertising campaign (malwarebytes.com)

• Malicious Notepad++ Google ads evade detection for months (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Lazarus Group Targeting Defence Experts with Fake Interviews via Trojanized VNC Apps (thehackernews.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

• DDoS Attacks in 2024: Distributed DoS Explained | Splunk

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

• Microsoft HoloLens for the military: Hacker attacks on VR headset may cause physical pain - NotebookCheck.net News

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

• Colonial Pipeline was hacked. No, wait, Accenture was hacked. No, wait….. untangling claims. (2) (databreaches.net)

• 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)

• Some people whose personal data stolen in HWL Ebsworth hack not told for six months | Cyber crime | The Guardian

• ServiceNow leak: thousands of companies at risk | Cybernews

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

• US authorities monitor China-linked Bitcoin miners amid national security concerns: Report (cointelegraph.com)

Insider Risk and Insider Threats

• Well-informed employees act as 1st line of defence against cyber threats: Cisco’s Samir Mishra (techcircle.in)

• 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

• Lloyd’s systemic risk scenario reveals potential cyber attack losses of $3.5tn (insuranceinsider.com)

• How MOVEit Is Likely to Shift Cyber Insurance Calculus (darkreading.com)

• Cyber insurance represents ‘small proportion’ of potential economic losses from major attack | Insurance Times

• 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

• Colonial Pipeline attributes ransomware claims to ‘unrelated’ third-party data breach (therecord.media)

• Why fourth-party risk management is a must-have | TechTarget

Identity and Access Management

• Fighting off cyber attacks? Make sure user credentials aren’t compromised (bleepingcomputer.com)

Encryption

• Microsoft to Phase Out NTLM in Favor of Kerberos for Stronger Authentication (thehackernews.com)

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

• Rising AI-Fueled Phishing Drives Demand for Password Alternatives - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

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

• The forgotten malvertising campaign (malwarebytes.com)

• Malicious Notepad++ Google ads evade detection for months (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Guide to detecting and disrupting fake ads | Netcraft

• 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

• Well-informed employees act as 1st line of defence against cyber threats: Cisco’s Samir Mishra (techcircle.in)

• SMBs seek cyber training, support as attack risk surges | CIO Dive

• October Is Cyber security Awareness Month – It’s a Good Time to Update Your Training Program | Clark Hill PLC - JDSupra

Regulations, Fines and Legislation

• UK watchdog fines Equifax $13.4 million for role in cyber breach | Reuters

• A Third of Organisations Not Ready to Comply with NIS2 - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• 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)

• SEC stepping up cyber security efforts | Inquirer Business

• 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

• A Third of Organisations Not Ready to Comply with NIS2 - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• 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

• Care provider under fire over response to cyber attack (thetimes.co.uk)

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)

• New Cyber security Salary Report Guides Hiring in an $8 Trillion Cyber Crime Landscape (prnewswire.com)

• One in five CISOs miss out on pay raise - Help Net Security

Law Enforcement Action and Take Downs

• Law enforcement operation seized Ragnar Locker group's infrastructure (securityaffairs.com)

Misinformation, Disinformation and Propaganda

• Gaza Conflict Paves Way for Pro-Hamas Information Operations (darkreading.com)

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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 Warn Deep Tech Start-Ups Against Nation-State Threats - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Five Eyes issues five tips on thwarting nation state threats | Computer Weekly

• APT trends report Q3 2023 | Securelist

• 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)

• Growing Concern Over Role of Hacktivism in Israel-Hamas Conflict - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.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)

• Mideast War Has Cyber Implications | Newsmax.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 Chinese Cyber Espionage | Silicon UK

• 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)

• US authorities monitor China-linked Bitcoin miners amid national security concerns: Report (cointelegraph.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)

• Russian Hackers Target Romanian Media - Valahia.News

• Highest percentage of cyber crime activity originates in Russia (securitybrief.co.nz)

• Five Eyes Warn Deep Tech Start-Ups Against Nation-State Threats - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

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

• North Korea has got its hands on AI - and is testing its ability to commit cyberwarfare | TechRadar

• Lazarus Group Targeting Defence Experts with Fake Interviews via Trojanized VNC Apps (thehackernews.com)

• North Korean hackers exploit critical TeamCity flaw to breach networks (bleepingcomputer.com)

• FBI: Thousands of Remote IT Workers Sent Wages to North Korea to Help Fund Weapons Program - SecurityWeek

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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)

• You Need to Update WinRAR, Right Now (gizmodo.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)

• ServiceNow leak: thousands of companies at risk | Cybernews

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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)

• Cyber expert calls for renewed focus on zero-trust and recovery as threat actors scale-up - SiliconANGLE

• How hackers use printers to gain access

• Google Authenticator synchronization raises MFA concerns | TechTarget

• Cyber insurance represents ‘small proportion’ of potential economic losses from major attack | Insurance Times

• Email Security Best Practices for Phishing Prevention (trendmicro.com)

• The impact of artificial intelligence on cyber offence and defence | The Strategist (aspistrategist.org.au)

• What to Look for in Cyber Insurance Coverage | Proofpoint US

• Reinforcing cyber security: The network's role to prevent, detect, and respond to attacks - Help Net Security

• How to go from collecting risk data to actually reducing risk? - Help Net Security

• October Is Cyber security Awareness Month – It’s a Good Time to Update Your Training Program | Clark Hill PLC - JDSupra

• How do we measure cyber risk? | ITPro

• 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)

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Reports Published in the Last Week

• Trustwave SpiderLabs Research: Cyber security in the Financial Services Sector

• APT trends report Q3 2023 | Securelist

• New CISO research sets out priorities, challenges and tips for success in a challenging landscape post - BSS

• ENISA THREAT LANDSCAPE REPORT 2023 REPORT IS OUT! (securityaffairs.com)

• Elastic Global Threat Report 2023 Reveals Dominance of Ransomware | Business Wire

• The CISO Report | Splunk

• VIPRE Security Group’s Q3 2023 Email Threat Report Reveals PDFs, Callback Phishing and Malware Via Google Drive Growing in Popularity Among Criminals - VIPRE

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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

• 51% of Financial Services Firms Reporting Breaches are From US: Trustwave Threat Landscape Report | The Fintech Times

• 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)

• Cyber risk report says shipping remains ‘easy target’, paying an average $3.2m In cyber attacks (shipmanagement idcinternational.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)

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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

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

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

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

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

Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 24 June 2022

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

• The NCSC Sets Out the UK’s Cyber Threat Landscape

The current state of the UK’s cyber threat landscape was outlined by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), during a keynote address on the final day of Infosecurity Europe 2022.

They described the cyber threats posed by nation-states, particularly Russia and China. Russia remains “one of the world’s most prolific cyber actors and dedicates significant resources to conducting cyber operations across the globe.”  The NCSC and international partner organisations have attributed a number of high-profile attacks related to the conflict to Russian state actors, including the Viasat incident on the eve of the invasion of Ukraine on February 24. Therefore, the NCSC recommends that organisations prepare for a dynamic situation that is liable to change rapidly.

The NCSC emphasised that a more significant long-term threat comes from China, citing GCHQ director Jeremy Fleming’s assertion that “Russia is affecting the weather, but China is shaping the climate.” She described the nation’s “highly sophisticated” activities in cyberspace, born out of its “increasing ambitions to project its influence beyond its borders.” This includes a keen interest in the UK’s commercial secrets.

In addition to nation-state attacks, the NCSC noted that cyber crime is continuing to rise, with ransomware a continuing concern. Attacks are expected to grow in scale, with threat actors likely to increasingly target managed service providers (MSPs) to gain access to a wider range of targets. More generally, cyber capabilities will become more commoditised over the next few years, meaning they are increasingly available to a larger group of would-be attackers who are willing to pay.

https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/ncsc-uk-cyber-threat-landscape/

• We're Now Truly in The Era of Ransomware as Pure Extortion Without the Encryption

Increasingly cyber crime rings tracked as ransomware operators are turning toward primarily data theft and extortion – and skipping the encryption step altogether. Rather than scramble files and demand payment for the decryption keys, and all the faff in between in facilitating that, simply exfiltrating the data and demanding a fee to not leak it all is just as effective. This shift has been ongoing for many months, and is now virtually unavoidable.

The FBI and CISA this month warned about a lesser-known extortion gang called Karakurt, which demands ransoms as high as $13 million. Karakurt doesn't target any specific sectors or industries, and the gang's victims haven't had any of their documents encrypted and held to ransom. Instead, the crooks claim to have stolen data, with screenshots or copies of exfiltrated files as proof, and they threaten to sell it or leak it publicly if they don't receive a payment.

Some of these thieves offer discounted ransoms to corporations to encourage them to pay sooner, with the demanded payment getting larger the longer it takes to cough up the cash (or Bitcoin, as the case may be).

Additionally, some crime groups offer sliding-scale payment systems. So you pay for what you get, and depending on the amount of ransom paid you get a control panel, you get customer support, you get all of the tools you need."

https://www.theregister.com/2022/06/25/ransomware_gangs_extortion_feature/

• 5 Social Engineering Assumptions That Are Wrong

Social engineering is involved in the vast majority of cyber attacks, but a new report from Proofpoint has revealed five common social engineering assumptions that are not only wrong but are repeatedly subverted by malicious actors in their attacks.

1. Threat actors don’t have conversations with targets.

2. Legitimate services are safe from social engineering abuse.

3. Attackers only use computers, not telephones.

4. Replying to existing email conversations is safe.

5. Fraudsters only use business-related content as lures.

Commenting on the report’s findings, Sherrod DeGrippo, Proofpoint’s Vice-President Threat Research and Detection, stated that the vendor has attempted to debunk faulty assumptions made by organisations and security teams so they can better protect employees against cyber crime. “Despite defenders’ best efforts, cyber criminals continue to defraud, extort and ransom companies for billions of dollars annually. Security-focused decision makers have prioritised bolstering defences around physical and cloud-based infrastructure, which has led to human beings becoming the most relied upon entry point for compromise. As a result, a wide array of content and techniques continue to be developed to exploit human behaviours and interests.”

Indeed, cyber criminals will go to creative and occasionally unusual lengths to carry out social engineering campaigns, making it more difficult for users to avoid falling victim to them.

https://www.csoonline.com/article/3664932/5-social-engineering-assumptions-that-are-wrong.html#tk.rss_news

• Gartner: Regulation, Human Costs Will Create Stormy Cyber Security Weather Ahead

Security teams should prepare for what researchers say will be a challenging environment through 2023, with increased pressure from government regulators, partners, and threat actors.

Gartner kicked off its Security & Risk Management Summit with the release of its analysts' assessments of the work ahead, which Richard Addiscott, the company's senior director analyst, discussed during his opening keynote address.

“We can’t fall into old habits and try to treat everything the same as we did in the past,” Addiscott said. “Most security and risk leaders now recognise that major disruption is only one crisis away. We can’t control it, but we can evolve our thinking, our philosophy, our program, and our architecture.”

Topping Gartner's list of eight predictions is a rise in the government regulation of consumer privacy rights and ransomware response, a widespread shift by enterprises to unify security platforms, more zero trust, and, troublingly, the prediction that by 2025 threat actors will likely have figured out how to "weaponise operational technology environments successfully to cause human casualties”, the cyber security report said.

https://www.darkreading.com/attacks-breaches/gartner-regulation-human-cost-stormy-cybersecurity-weather

• Ransomware Attacks - This Is the Data That Cyber Criminals Really Want to Steal

There are certain types of data that criminals target the most, according to an analysis of attacks.

Data theft and extortion has become a common – and unfortunately effective – part of ransomware attacks, where in addition to encrypting data and demanding a ransom payment for the decryption key, gangs steal information and threaten to publish it if a payment isn't received.

These so-called double extortion attacks have become an effective tool in the arsenal of ransomware gangs, who leverage them to force victims to pay up, even in cases where data could be restored from offline backups, because the threat of sensitive information being published is too great.

Any stolen data is potentially useful to ransomware gangs, but according to analysis by researchers at cyber security company Rapid7, of 161 disclosed ransomware incidents where data was published, some data is seen as more valuable than others.

According to the report, financial services is the sector that is most likely to have customer data exposed, with 82% of incidents involving ransomware gangs accessing and making threats to release this data. Stealing and publishing sensitive customer information would undermine consumer trust in financial services organisations: while being hacked in the first place would be damaging enough, some business leaders might view paying a ransom to avoid further damage caused by data leaks to be worth it.

The second most-leaked type of file in ransomware attacks against financial services firms, featuring in 59% of disclosures from victims, is employee personally identifiable information (PII) and data related to human resources. 

https://www.zdnet.com/article/ransomware-attacks-this-is-the-data-that-cyber-criminals-really-want-to-steal/

• Cloud Email Threats Soar 101% in a Year

The number of email-borne cyber-threats blocked by Trend Micro surged by triple digits last year, highlighting the continued risk from conventional attack vectors.

The vendor stopped over 33.6 million such threats reaching customers via cloud-based email in 2021, a 101% increase. This included 16.5 million phishing emails, a 138% year-on-year increase, of which 6.5 million were credential phishing attempts.

Trend Micro also blocked 3.3 million malicious files in cloud-based emails, including a 134% increase in known threats and a 221% increase in unknown malware.

The news comes as Proofpoint warned in a new report of the continued dangers posed by social engineering, and the mistaken assumptions many users make. 

Many users don’t realise that threat actors may spend considerable time and effort building a rapport over email with their victims, especially if they’re trying to conduct a business email compromise (BEC) attack, it said.

https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/cloud-email-threats-soar-101-in-a/

• 80% of Firms Suffered Identity-Related Breaches in Last 12 Months

Rapidly growing employee identities, third-party partners, and machine nodes have companies scrambling to secure credential information, software secrets, and cloud identities, according to researchers.

In a survey of IT and identity professionals from Dimensional Research, almost every organisation — 98% — experienced rapid growth in the number of identities that have to be managed, with that growth driven by expanding cloud usage, more third-party partners, and machine identities. Furthermore, businesses are also seeing an increase in breaches because of this, with 84% of firms suffering an identity-related breach in the past 12 months, compared with 79% in a previous study covering two years.

The number and complexity of identities organisations are having to manage and secure is increasing. Whenever there is an increase in identities, there is a corresponding heightened risk of identity-related breaches due to them not being properly managed and secured, and with the attack surfaces also growing exponentially, these breaches can occur on multiple fronts.

For the most part, organisations focus on employee identities, which 70% consider to be the most likely to be breached and 58% believe to have the greatest impact, according to the 2022 "Trends in Securing Digital Identities" report based on the survey. Yet third-party partners and business customers are significant sources of risk as well, with 35% and 25% of respondents considering those to be a major source of breaches, respectively.

https://www.darkreading.com/operations/identity-related-breaches-last-12-months

• After Being Breached Once, Many Companies Are Likely to Be Hit Again

Cymulate announced the results of a survey, revealing that two-thirds of companies who have been hit by cyber crime in the past year have been hit more than once, with almost 10% experiencing 10 or so more attacks a year.

Research taken from 858 security professionals surveyed across North America, EMEA, APAC and LATAM across a wide range of industries including technology, banking, finance and government, also highlighted larger companies hit by cyber crime are experiencing shorter disruption time and damage to business with 40% reported low damage compared with medium-size businesses (less than 2,500 employees) which had longer recovery times and more business affecting damage.

Other highlights

• 40% of respondents admitted to being breached over the past 12 months.

• After being breached once, statistics showed they were more likely to be hit again than not (66%).

• Malware (55%), and more specifically ransomware (40%) and DDoS (32%) were the main forms of cyber attacks experienced by those surveyed.

• Attacks primarily occurred via end-user phishing (56%), via third parties connected to the enterprise (37%) or direct attacks on enterprise networks (34%).

• 22% of companies publicly disclosed cyber attacks in the worst-case breaches, with 35% needing to hire security consultants, 12% dismissing their current security professionals and 12% hiring public relations consultants to deal with the repercussions to their reputations. Top three best practices for cyber attack prevention, mitigation and remediation include multi-factor authentication (67%), proactive corporate phishing and awareness campaigns (53%), and well-planned and practiced incident response plans (44%). Least privilege also ranked highly, at 43%.

• 29% of attacks come from insider threats – intentionally or unintentionally.

• Leadership and cyber security teams who meet regularly to discuss risk reduction are more cyber security-ready – those who met 15 times a year incurred zero breaches whereas those who suffered six or more breaches met under nine times on average.

https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2022/06/21/companies-hit-by-cybercrime/

• Do You Have Ransomware Insurance? Look at the Fine Print

Insurance exists to protect the insured party against catastrophe, but the insurer needs protection so that its policies are not abused – and that's where the fine print comes in. However, in the case of ransomware insurance, the fine print is becoming contentious and arguably undermining the usefulness of ransomware insurance.

In recent years, ransomware insurance has grown as a product field because organisations are trying to buy protection against the catastrophic effects of a successful ransomware attack. Why try to buy insurance? Well, a single, successful attack can just about wipe out a large organisation, or lead to crippling costs – NotPetya alone led to a total of $10bn in damages.

Ransomware attacks are notoriously difficult to protect against completely. Like any other potentially catastrophic event, insurers stepped in to offer an insurance product. In exchange for a premium, insurers promise to cover many of the damages resulting from a ransomware attack.

Depending on the policy, a ransomware policy could cover loss of income if the attack disrupts operations, or loss of valuable data, if data is erased due to the ransomware event. A policy may also cover you for extortion – in others, it will refund the ransom demanded by the criminal.

The exact payout and terms will of course be defined in the policy document, also called the "fine print." Critically, fine print also contains exclusions, in other words circumstances under which the policy won't pay out. And therein lies the problem.

https://thehackernews.com/2022/06/do-you-have-ransomware-insurance-look.html

• The Price of Stolen Info: Everything on Sale on The Dark Web

What is the price for personal information, including credit cards and bank accounts, on the dark web?

Privacy Affairs researchers concluded that criminals using the dark web need only spend $1,115 for a complete set of a person’s account details, enabling them to create fake IDs and forge private documents, such as passports and driver’s licenses.

Access to other information is becoming even cheaper. The Dark Web Price Index 2022 – based on data scanning dark web marketplaces, forums, and websites, revealed:

• Credit card details and associated information cost between $17-$120

• Online banking login information costs $45

• Hacked Facebook accounts cost $45

• Cloned VISA with PIN cost $20

• Stolen PayPal account details, with minimum $1000 balances, cost $20.

In December 2021, about 4.5 million credit cards went up for sale on the dark web, the study found. The average price ranged from $1-$20.

Scammers can buy full credit card details, including CVV number, card number, associated dates, and even the email, physical address and phone number. This enables them to penetrate the credit card processing chain, overriding any security countermeasures.

https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2022/06/22/stolen-info-sale-dark-web/

• How Companies Are Prioritising Infosec and Compliance

New research conducted by Enterprise Management Associates (EMA), examines the impact of the compliance budget on security strategy and priorities. It describes areas for which companies prioritise information security and compliance, which leaders control information security spending, how compliance has shifted the overall security strategy of the organisation, and the solutions and tools on which organisations are focusing their technology spending.

The findings cover three critical areas of an organisation’s security and compliance posture: information security and IT audit and compliance, data security and data privacy, and security and compliance spending.

One key takeaway is that merging security and compliance priorities addresses regulatory control gaps while improving the organisation’s security posture. Respondents revealed insights on how they handle compliance, who is responsible for compliance and security responsibilities, and what compliance-related security challenges organisations face.

Additional findings:

• Companies found the need to shift their information security strategy to address compliance priorities (93%).

• Information security and IT compliance priorities are generally aligned (89%).

• Existing security tools have to address data privacy considerations going forward (76%).

• Managing an organisation’s multiple IT environments and the controls that govern those environments is the greatest challenge in the IT audit and compliance space (39%).

https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2022/06/24/companies-infosec-compliance-priorities/

• Businesses Risk ‘Catastrophic Financial Loss’ from Cyber Attacks, US Watchdog Warns

A US Government watchdog has warned that private insurance companies are increasingly backing out of covering damages from major cyber attacks — leaving businesses facing “catastrophic financial loss” unless another insurance model can be found.

The growing challenge of covering cyber risk is outlined in a new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO), which calls for a government assessment of whether a federal cyber insurance option is needed.

The report draws on threat assessments from the National Security Agency (NSA), Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), and Department of Justice, to quantify the risk of cyber attacks on critical infrastructure, identifying vulnerable technologies that might be attacked and a range of threat actors capable of exploiting them.

Citing an annual threat assessment released by the ODNI, the report finds that hacking groups linked to Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea pose the greatest threat to US infrastructure — along with certain non-state actors like organised cyber criminal gangs.

Given the wide and increasingly skilled range of actors willing to target US entities, the number of cyber incidents is rising at an alarming rate.

https://www.theverge.com/2022/6/23/23180115/gao-infrastructure-catastrophic-financial-loss-cyberattacks-insurance

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Threats

Ransomware

• Attackers exploited a Mitel VOIP zero-day to compromise a network Security Affairs

• Chinese hackers use ransomware as decoy for cyber espionage (bleepingcomputer.com)

• If you don't store valuable data, ransomware is impotent • The Register

• Ransomware-as-a-Service: Learn to Enhance Cyber security Approaches (analyticsinsight.net)

• Mitigate Ransomware in a Remote-First World (thehackernews.com)

• Delivery Firm Yodel Scrambling to Restore Operations Following Cyber attack | SecurityWeek.Com

• Black Basta Ransomware Becomes Major Threat in Two Months | SecurityWeek.Com

• These hackers are spreading ransomware as a distraction - to hide their cyber spying | ZDNet

• Conti ransomware hacking spree breaches over 40 orgs in a month (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Conti effectively created an extortion-oriented IT company, says Group-IB - Help Net Security

• Conti ransomware finally shuts down data leak, negotiation sites (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Conti ransomware group's pulse stops, but did it fake its own death? | Malwarebytes Labs

• Without Conti on the Scene, LockBit 2.0 Leads Ransomware Attacks (darkreading.com)

• Cyber attack: Gloucester council services still not back to normal - BBC News

Phishing & Email Based Attacks

• Your email is a major source of security risks and it's getting worse | ZDNet

• New Phishing Attack Infects Devices with Cobalt Strike- IT Security Guru

• Voicemail phishing emails steal Microsoft credentials • The Register

• The Risk of Multichannel Phishing Is on the Horizon (darkreading.com)

• Cops arrests nine suspected of stealing millions via email • The Register

• Cyber criminals Use Azure Front Door in Phishing Attacks - Security Affairs

• Microsoft Exchange servers hacked by new ToddyCat APT gang (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Cyber attackers Abuse QuickBooks Cloud Service in 'Double-Spear' Campaign (darkreading.com)

Other Social Engineering

• Proofpoint: Social engineering attacks slipping past users (techtarget.com)

• #InfosecurityEurope2022: Actions Not Words: Hacking the Human Through Social Engineering - Infosecurity Magazine

• Inside a large-scale phishing campaign targeting millions of Facebook users - Help Net Security

Malware

• RIG Exploit Kit Now Infects Victims' PCs With Dridex Instead of Raccoon Stealer (thehackernews.com)

• Organisations Battling Phishing Malware, Viruses the Most (darkreading.com)

• This Linux botnet has found a novel way of spreading to new devices | ZDNet

• New 'Quantum' Builder Lets Attackers Easily Create Malicious Windows Shortcuts (thehackernews.com)

• NSA warns against silly mistake in the fight against Windows malware | TechRadar

Mobile

• This Android malware is so dangerous, even Google is worried | TechRadar

• Google is notifying Android users targeted by Hermit government-grade spyware | TechCrunch

• Google Says ISPs Helped Attackers Infect Targeted Smartphones with Hermit Spyware (thehackernews.com)

• This phone-wiping Android banking trojan is getting nastier | ZDNet

• BRATA Android Malware Group Now Classified As Advanced Persistent Threat - Infosecurity Magazine

• Spurred by Roe overturn, senators seek FTC probe of iOS and Android tracking | Ars Technica

Internet of Things – IoT

• Hackers can target Eufy Homebase 2 to spy on you (komando.com)

• Vulnerabilities in the Jacuzzi SmartTub app could allow to access users’ data - Security Affairs - Security Affairs

Data Breaches/Leaks

• US Bank Data Breach Impacts Over 1.5 Million Customers - Infosecurity Magazine

• CafePress fined $500,000 for breach affecting 23 million users (bleepingcomputer.com)

Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs/Blockchain

• Hackers steal $100 million from California cryptocurrency firm - CNN

• DARPA study finds blockchain not as decentralised as assumed • The Register

Insider Risk and Insider Threats

• Former Amazon Worker Convicted of Capital One Data Breach - Infosecurity Magazine

Fraud, Scams & Financial Crime

• Why Fraud On Linkedin A ‘Significant Threat’ To Platform And Consumer – Information Security Buzz

Supply Chain and Third Parties

• IT pros are not very confident in their organisation's supply chain security - Help Net Security

• #InfosecurityEurope2022: Tackling Widespread Data Breaches from Third Parties - Infosecurity Magazine

Cloud/SaaS

• Risk Disconnect in the Cloud (darkreading.com)

• Microsoft 365 Users in US Face Raging Spate of Attacks (darkreading.com)

• 7 Steps to Stronger SaaS Security (darkreading.com)

• Getting a Better Handle on Identity Management in the Cloud (darkreading.com)

• Researchers Uncover Ways to Break the Encryption of 'MEGA' Cloud Storage Service (thehackernews.com)

Identity and Access Management

• Risky behaviour reduced when executives put focus on identity security - Help Net Security

• Access management issues may create security holes (techtarget.com)

• IAM Research: Inadequate Programs Leave Organisations Open to Cyber Attacks - MSSP Alert

• Why 84% Of US Firms Hit With Identity-Related Breaches In 2021 – Information Security Buzz

Open Source

• Open-source software risks persist, according to new reports | CSO Online

• Less Than Half of Organisations Have Open Source Security Policy - Infosecurity Magazine

• Blind trust in open source security is hurting us: Report | ZDNet

Training, Education and Awareness

• #InfosecurityEurope2022: Security Awareness Must Be in the Moment - Infosecurity Magazine

Privacy

• Privacy-focused Brave Search grew by 5,000% in a year (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade reversal sparks calls for strengthening privacy - CyberScoop

Regulations, Fines and Legislation

• Do Privacy and Data Protection Regulations Create as Many Problems as They Solve? | SecurityWeek.Com

Law Enforcement Action and Take Downs

• Phishing gang behind millions in losses dismantled by police (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Euro Police Target Crime Groups Grooming Ukrainian Refugees Online - Infosecurity Magazine

Spyware, Cyber Espionage & Cyber Warfare, including Russian Invasion of Ukraine

• Microsoft: Russian Cyber Spying Targets 42 Ukraine Allies | SecurityWeek.Com

• Italian spyware firm is hacking into iOS and Android devices, Google says | Computerworld

• NSO claims 'more than 5' EU states used its Pegasus spyware • The Register

• #InfosecurityEurope2022: Geopolitical Tensions a “Danger” to Cyber security - Infosecurity Magazine

• Examples of Cyber Warfare #TrendTalksBizSec (trendmicro.com)

• Ukraine deploys a DDoS protection service to survive the cyberwar | VentureBeat

• Lithuania warns of rise in DDoS attacks against government sites (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Russia's APT28 Launches Nuke-Themed Follina Exploit Campaign (darkreading.com)

• Ukrainian cyber security officials disclose two new hacking campaigns - IT Security Guru

• Scalper bots out of control in Israel, selling state appointments (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Research questions potentially dangerous implications of Ukraine's IT Army - CyberScoop

• Lithuania under cyber-attack after ban on Russian railway goodsSecurity Affairs

• #InfosecurityEurope2022: Disinformation Warfare – How Do We Tackle Fake News? - Infosecurity Magazine

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Nation State Actors

Nation State Actors – Russia

• Microsoft reveals extent of attacks by Russian hackers on Ukraine allies - and why Estonia is striking exception | World News | Sky News

• Russia Steps Up Cyber-Espionage Against Ukraine Allies - Infosecurity Magazine

• Ukrainian organisations warned of hacking attempts using CredoMap malware, Cobalt Strike beacons | ZDNet

• Fancy Bear Uses Nuke Threat Lure to Exploit 1-Click Bug | Threatpost

• Russian APT28 hacker accused of the NATO think tank hack in Germany - Security Affairs

• Russia fines Google for spreading ‘unreliable’ info defaming its army (bleepingcomputer.com)

Nation State Actors – China

• Chinese APT 'Bronze Starlight' Uses Ransomware to Disguise Cyberespionage | SecurityWeek.Com

• Chinese Tropic Trooper APT spreads a hacking tool laced with a backdoor - Security Affairs

• Chinese hackers target script kiddies with info-stealer trojan (bleepingcomputer.com)

Nation State Actors – Iran

• False Air Raid Sirens in Israel Possibly Triggered by Iranian Cyber Attack | SecurityWeek.Com

Nation State Actors – Misc APT

• Elusive ToddyCat APT Targets Microsoft Exchange Servers | Threatpost

• APT Groups Swarming on VMware Servers with Log4Shell (darkreading.com)

• How APTs Are Achieving Persistence Through IoT, OT, and Network Devices (darkreading.com)

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Vulnerability Management

• Why We're Getting Vulnerability Management Wrong (darkreading.com)

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Vulnerabilities

• Cisco warns of security holes in its security appliances • The Register

• Citrix Releases Security Updates for Hypervisor | CISA

• Google Patches 14 Vulnerabilities With Release of Chrome 103 | SecurityWeek.Com

• Cisco will not address critical RCE in end-of-life Small Business RV routers - Security Affairs

• Google expert detailed a 5-Year-Old flaw in Apple Safari exploited in the wild - Security Affairs

• Oracle spent 6 months to fix 'Mega' flaws in the Fusion Middleware - Security Affairs

• Researchers criticize Oracle's vulnerability disclosure process (techtarget.com)

• Critical PHP Vulnerability Exposes QNAP NAS Devices to Remote Attacks (thehackernews.com)

Sector Specific

Financial Services Sector

• Flagstar Bank discloses data breach impacting 1.5 million customers (bleepingcomputer.com)

• 7 Cyber security Best Practices for Financial Services Firms - MSSP Alert

• Why Financial Institutions Must Double Down on Open Source Investments (darkreading.com)

• 10 Biggest Data Breaches in Finance | UpGuard

SMBs – Small and Medium Businesses

• How tool sprawl is becoming a common issue for SMEs - Help Net Security

• Middle market companies under attack: Threats coming from all directions - Help Net Security

• #InfosecurityEurope2022: How Should SMEs Defend Against Cyber-Risks? - Infosecurity Magazine

Legal

• #InfosecurityEurope2022: Lawyers Update Security for New Ways of Working - Infosecurity Magazine

Health/Medical/Pharma Sector

• Healthcare breaches on the rise in 2022 (techtarget.com)

Retail/eCommerce

• Magecart attacks are still around. And they are becoming more stealthy | ZDNet

• Newly Discovered Magecart Infrastructure Reveals the Scale of Ongoing Campaign- IT Security Guru

Manufacturing

• Automotive fabric supplier TB Kawashima announces cyber attack (bleepingcomputer.com)

CNI, OT, ICS, IIoT and SCADA

• Researchers disclose 56 vulnerabilities impacting thousands of OT devices - Help Net Security

• Operational Technology (OT) Security and Cyber attacks: Research Reveals Key Trends - MSSP Alert

• How To Minimise Your OT Blind Spots – Information Security Buzz

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Reports Published in the Last Week

• State of Open Source Security 2022 | Snyk

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Other News

• Threat Intelligence Services Are Universally Valued by IT Staff (darkreading.com)

• #InfosecurityEurope2022 Firms Face Emerging Threats as Bad Actors Evade Defences - Infosecurity Magazine

• Security pros increasingly plan to adopt MDR services in the next 12 months - Help Net Security

• Board members and the C-suite need secure communication tools - Help Net Security

• Adobe Acrobat may block antivirus tools from monitoring PDF files (bleepingcomputer.com)

• 7 Ways to Avoid Worst-Case Cyber Scenarios (darkreading.com)

• 3 threats dirty data poses to the enterprise (techtarget.com)

• Data recovery depends on how good your backup strategy is - Help Net Security

• Unsecured APIs Could Be Costing Firms $75bn Per Year - Infosecurity Magazine

• The Rise, Fall, and Rebirth of the Presumption of Compromise (darkreading.com)

• AI Is Not a Security Silver Bullet (darkreading.com)

• #InfosecurityEurope2022: Are You Prepared For The Next Big Crisis? - Infosecurity Magazine

• Ongoing PowerShell security threats prompt a call to action (techtarget.com)

• Despite known security issues, VPN usage continues to thrive - Help Net Security

• Space-based assets aren’t immune to cyber attacks | CSO Online

• Cyber security expert on how $13K of fuel was stolen from station (wtvr.com)

• Cloudflare Outage Knocks Hundreds of Websites Offline - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

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