Black Arrow Cyber Threat Briefing 07 July 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 Attacks Against Mobile Devices Growing Fast

A rise in mobile-powered businesses is creating vulnerability gaps that are being exploited by cyber criminals and nation-states, according to a new report. 43% of all compromised devices were fully exploited, not just jailbroken or rooted, which is an increase of 187% year-over-year.  The report found that the average user is 6 to 10 times more likely to fall for an SMS phishing attack than an email based attack.

It was also found that there was a 138% increase in critical Android vulnerabilities discovered in 2022, while Apple iOS accounted for 80% of the zero-day vulnerabilities actively being exploited in the wild. With malware increasingly spreading through legitimate channels, such as official marketplaces and ads in popular apps. This is true for both scam apps and dangerous mobile banking malware. For organisations, no matter if they are corporate-owned or part of a BYOD strategy, the need to implement appropriate security controls, and educate end-users about potential threats, is critical.

https://www.msspalert.com/cybersecurity-services-and-products/mobile/cyber-attacks-against-mobile-devices-growing-fast/

https://www.darkreading.com/endpoint/mobile-cyberattacks-soar-andoird-users

• One Third of Security Breaches Go Unnoticed by Security Professionals

While surface-level confidence around hybrid cloud security is high, with 94% of global respondents stating their security tools and processes provide them with complete visibility and insights into their IT infrastructure, the reality is nearly one third of security breaches are not spotted by IT and security professionals, according to a recent report.

The report highlighted that 50% of IT and security leaders lack confidence when it comes to knowing where their most sensitive data is stored and how it is secured. The issue is that 31% of breaches are being identified later down the line, rather than pre-emptively using security and observability tools either by data appearing on the dark web, files becoming inaccessible, or users experiencing slow application performance (likely due to DoS or inflight exfiltration). This number rises to 48% in the US, and 52% in Australia.

https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/07/03/hybrid-cloud-security-breaches/

• Cyber Security Experts Have Become Targets for Board Seats

The need for strong cyber security programs is a vital part of doing business today, and a good reflection of that is adding security executives to Boards. The trend is for chief information security officers (CISOs) to be elevated to the board of directors, as risk and regulatory compliance become more visible in an organisation, many of the initiatives and controls will be security related, addressing those controls usually falls to the CISO.

The research also showed that 90% of public companies lack even one qualified cyber expert, showing a significant cyber board supply-demand gap. With only 15% of CISOs have broader traits required for board level positions, such as a holistic understanding of the business, a global perspective and ability to navigate a range of stakeholders, with another 33% having a subset of those necessary traits.

CISOs are hard to come by and few have the requisite Board level experience. To fill this gap Black Arrow provide a virtual CISO (vCISO) where you get a whole team of highly skilled and experienced professionals for less than you would pay for one permanent resource, and firms can also take advantage of Black Arrow’s Cyber NED, incorporating Board, Governance, Finance, HR and Risk experience with specialist cyber expertise and experience.

https://www.cnbc.com/2023/07/03/cybersecurity-experts-have-become-targets-for-board-seats.html

• Phishing Attack Prevention as Email Attacks Surge Over 450%

A Recent report found that email attacks had surged 464% this year compared to the previous year as phishing attacks remain amongst the most used tactics by attackers due to their high success rate and the ease in which they can be conducted. For preventing such attacks, the following principles will help mitigate: not clicking on unknown links, not trusting unknown sites, enabling multi-factor authentication, hardly disclosing personal information and having increased phishing awareness.

In an organisation, such awareness and principles can be highlighted and continually reinforced through having an effective awareness training programme. This in turn, will help to create a cyber aware culture and reduce the risk of someone in the organisation falling victim to phishing.

https://cybersecuritynews.com/phishing-attack-prevention-checklist/

https://www.msspalert.com/cybersecurity-research/email-cyberattacks-spiked-nearly-500-in-first-half-of-2023-acronis-reports/

• Outsmarting Business Email Compromise (BEC) Scammers

Last year the FBI registered over 21,000 complaints about business email fraud, with adjusted losses of over $2.7 billion. Today this line of attack shows no sign of slowing down. Business email compromise (BEC) techniques are increasingly sophisticated and cyber crime-as-a-service (CaaS) along with AI have lowered the barrier to entry for threat actors.

There are six key elements which can help to mitigate the impact of BEC, these are; inbox protection, strong authentication, secure emails, zero-trust control, secure payment processes and education. Putting the brakes on this con game takes the entire organisation, from the C-suite and IT, compliance, and risk management teams to every business unit. Awareness, backed by policy and technology, is the crucial factor in a consistently strong defence.

https://www.darkreading.com/microsoft/6-steps-to-outsmarting-business-email-compromise-scammers

• Small Organisations Face Security Threats on a Limited Budget

Small organisations face the same security threats as larger organisations overall but have less resources to address them. The most common security incidents faced are phishing, ransomware, and user account compromise also known as business email compromise (BEC). However, smaller organisations usually have fewer resources and experience with which to address security threats. Indeed, lack of budget is their top security challenge, reported by one in two small companies.

The lack of budget won’t stop a threat actor from attacking however, and so small organisations need to be able to effectively identify, prioritise and mitigate against security incidents. This may require small organisations outsourcing some of their cyber strategy, to allow them access to expertise.

https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/07/05/small-organizations-security-threats/

• Cloud Security: Sometimes the Risks May Outweigh the Rewards

Threat actors are well-aware of the vulnerabilities in the cloud infrastructure. IT teams and decision-leadersmakers must have a clear understanding of the types of cloud services and the associated risk of cyber attacks associated. Around two in five (39%) businesses experienced a data breach in their cloud environment in 2022, a rise of 4% compared with 2021, a new report has found. The leading cause of cloud data breaches was human error, at 55%, according to the report. This was significantly above the next highest factor identified by respondents (21%), which was exploitation of vulnerabilities.

Other issues can arise from the cloud as it gives organisations the opportunity to create large amounts of infrastructure quickly and easily, which leaves it exposed to the possibility of substandard security configurations being applied to it. Due to the ease of use of cloud services, companies might become negligent in terms of their security.

https://cyber-reports.com/2023/07/03/cloud-security-sometimes-the-risks-may-outweigh-the-rewards/

https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/human-error-cloud-data-breaches/

• Cl0p's MOVEit Campaign Represents a New Era in Cyber Attacks

A number of organisations impacted by the mass hacks exploiting a security flaw in the MOVEit file transfer tool, including energy giant Shell and US-based First Merchants Bank, have confirmed that hackers accessed sensitive data. The ransomware group shows an evolution of its tactics with the MOVEit zero-day, potentially ushering in a new normal when it comes to extortion supply chain cyber attacks, experts say.

From what the industry has seen in recent Cl0p breaches, GoAnywhere, MFT and MOVEit, they have not executed ransomware to encrypt data within the target environments. The operations have strictly been exfiltrating data and using that stolen information for later blackmail and extortion. The MOVEit vulnerability isn't an easy or straightforward one, it required extensive research into the MOVEit platform to discover, understand, and exploit this vulnerability. The skill set required to uncover and exploit this vulnerability isn't easily learned and is hard to come by in the industry. This operation isn't something Cl0p ransomware group usually does, which is another clue leading to suspect Cl0p acquired the MOVEit zero-day vulnerability rather than developing it from scratch. Something future groups may decide to adopt.

https://www.darkreading.com/attacks-breaches/c10p-moveit-campaign-new-era-cyberattacks

https://techcrunch.com/2023/07/06/more-organizations-confirm-moveit-related-breaches-as-hackers-claim-to-publish-stolen-data

• 75% of Consumers Prepared to Ditch Brands Hit by Ransomware

As 40% of consumers harbour scepticism regarding organisations’ data protection capabilities, 75% would shift to alternate companies following a ransomware attack a recent report found. Furthermore, consumers request increased data protection from vendors, with 55% favouring companies with comprehensive data protection measures such as reliable backup and recovery, password protection, and identity and access management strategies.

While 37% of Gen Z prefers an apology from companies experiencing a ransomware attack, ranking 12% higher than monetary compensation, Baby Boomers are less forgiving. 74% of them agree their trust in the vendor is irreparably damaged after suffering more than one ransomware attack, compared to only 34% of Gen Z.

https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/07/05/consumers-data-protection-request/

• Scammers Using AI Voice Technology to Commit Crimes

The usage of platforms like Cash App, Zelle, and Venmo for peer-to-peer payments has experienced a significant surge, with scams increasing by over 58%. Additionally, there has been a corresponding rise of 44% in scams stemming from the theft of personal documents according to a recent report.

The report also highlights the rise of AI voice scams as a significant trend in 2023. AI voice technology enables scammers to create remarkably realistic voices and convincingly imitate family members, friends and other trusted individuals. With just a short voice clip usually taken from social media, a scammer can clone a loved one’s voice and call a victim pretending to be that person. The scammer deceives the victim into thinking their loved one is in distress to get them to send money, provide personal information or perform other actions. AI voice technology has gotten to the point where a mother can’t tell the difference between her child’s voice and a machine, and scammers have pounced on this to commit crimes.

https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/07/07/ai-voice-cloning-scams/

• What are the Causes of Data Loss and What it the Impact on Your Organisation?

In today’s digital age, data has become the lifeblood of organisations, driving critical decision-making, improving operational efficiency, and allowing for smoother innovation. Simply put, businesses heavily rely on data. In an era where data has become the cornerstone of business operations, the loss of vital information can result in severe setbacks and irreparable damage. Whether it’s due to accidental deletion, hardware failure, cyber-attacks, or natural disasters, the loss of valuable data can have devastating impacts on an organisation.

It's imperative that businesses understand different types of data (structured, unstructured, semi-structured, metadata) and deploy tailored protection strategies. A significant 26% of companies suffered data loss in 2022, underlining the need for robust data security measures like regular backups, cyber security protocols, employee training, and data encryption. Effective data loss prevention can shield organisations from severe impacts like intellectual property theft, operation disruption, and legal repercussions.

https://securityaffairs.com/148086/security/impacts-of-data-loss.html

• Ransomware Affiliates, Triple Extortion, and the Dark Web Ecosystem

Many people associate the dark web with drugs, crime, and leaked credentials, but in recent years the dark web has emerged as a complex and interdependent cyber crime ecosystem, exemplified by the increasingly complex methods used to extort companies.

One of the more recent trends we see is that groups are now setting up infrastructure, in some cases outsourcing actual infection (and in some cases negotiation) to “affiliates” who effectively act as contractors to the Ransomware as a Service (RaaS) group and split the profits at the end of a successful attacks. The world of cyber crime is ever-evolving and it is no easy task to stay on top of the changing landscape.

https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/ransomware-affiliates-triple-extortion-and-the-dark-web-ecosystem/

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Governance, Risk and Compliance

• Cyber Security experts have become targets for board seats (cnbc.com)

• The Impacts of Data Loss on Your Organisation -Security Affairs

• One third of security breaches go unnoticed by security professionals - Help Net Security

• Small organisations face security threats on a limited budget - Help Net Security

• How to cultivate a culture of continuous cyber Security improvement - Help Net Security

• CISOs Find 'Business as Usual' Shows the Harsh Realities of Cyber-Risk (darkreading.com)

• Mitigate Top 5 Common Cyber Security Vulnerabilities (trendmicro.com)

• Cyber Security's Future Hinges on Stronger Public-Private Partnerships (darkreading.com)

• Center for Internet Security, CREST launch new enterprise cyber Security accreditation scheme | CSO Online

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Threats

Ransomware, Extortion and Destructive Attacks

• 75% of consumers prepared to ditch brands hit by ransomware - Help Net Security

• More organisations confirm MOVEit-related breaches as hackers claim to publish stolen data | TechCrunch

• More than 16 million people and counting have had data exposed in MOVEit breaches (therecord.media)

• Cl0p's MOVEit Campaign Represents a New Era in Cyber Attacks (darkreading.com)

• Encryption-less ransomware: Warning issued over emerging attack method for threat actors | ITPro

• Malvertising: A stealthy precursor to infostealers and ransomware attacks (malwarebytes.com)

• 8Base ransomware group leaks data of 67 victim organisations - Help Net Security

• Cyber Security Awareness Training to Fight Ransomware (trendmicro.com)

• Ransomware Affiliates, Triple Extortion, and the Dark Web Ecosystem (bleepingcomputer.com)

• BlackCat Operators Distributing Ransomware Disguised as WinSCP via Malvertising (thehackernews.com)

• Seven ways to prepare for double extortion ransomware | SC Media (scmagazine.com)

• The rise in cyber extortion attacks and its impact on business security - Help Net Security

• University of California sues Lloyd’s of London in cyber insurance dispute | CSO Online

• Ransomware Criminals Are Dumping Kids' Private Files Online After School Hacks - SecurityWeek

• Microsoft Can Fix Ransomware Tomorrow (darkreading.com)

• Ransomware accounts for 54% of cyber threats in the health sector- Security Affairs

• Avast released a free decryptor for Windows version of Akira ransomware- Security Affairs

• Dark Web Intelligence Shows Everest Ransomware Group Increasing Initial Access Broker Activity (yahoo.com)

• FIS Global Data Breach: Cyber Attack On FIS Global Follows MOVEit Mayhem (thecyberexpress.com)

• Thirty-three US Hospitals Hit By Ransomware This Year - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• How ransomware impacts the healthcare industry - Help Net Security

• Zero to Full Domain Admin: The Real-World Story of a Ransomware Attack – Joseph Carson – ESW Vault | SC Media (scmagazine.com)

• June saw flurry of ransomware attacks on education sector | TechTarget

• Decryption tool for Akira ransomware available for free | Tripwire

• Japanese Port of Nagoya Resumes Operations After 2-Day Russian Ransomware Attack - MSSP Alert

• What is WannaCry Ransomware? | Definition from TechTarget

• FBI digital sting against Hive cyber Crime group shows the promise — and limits — of hacking hackers - POLITICO

Ransomware Victims

• More organisations confirm MOVEit-related breaches as hackers claim to publish stolen data | TechCrunch

• One million NHS patients’ data compromised after cyber Attack on University of Manchester | The Independent

• Shell Confirms MOVEit-Related Breach After Ransomware Group Leaks Data - SecurityWeek

• Dublin airport staff’s pay and benefits compromised in cyber attack (thetimes.co.uk)

• Hackers Claim $70 Million Ransomware Attack on TSMC, Hits Supplier Instead | Tom's Hardware (tomshardware.com)

• Japan’s largest port stops operations after ransomware attack (bleepingcomputer.com)

• TSMC says IT supplier extorted by LockBit • The Register

• Russians may have hacked NHS trust with 2.5 million patients (telegraph.co.uk)

• More than 16 million people and counting have had data exposed in MOVEit breaches (therecord.media)

• 8Base ransomware group leaks data of 67 victim organisations - Help Net Security

• Dublin airport staff’s pay and benefits compromised in cyber attack (thetimes.co.uk)

• FIS Global Data Breach: Cyber Attack On FIS Global Follows MOVEit Mayhem (thecyberexpress.com)

• TSMC says IT supplier extorted by LockBit • The Register

• MOVEit Hacks Ensnare US Department of Health and Human Services - Bloomberg

• UCLA among victims of worldwide cyber attack – NBC Los Angeles

• BlackCat Hacking Gang Says It Stole Data from UK's Barts Health NHS Trust - Bloomberg

• Chipmaker TSMC says supplier targeted in cyber Attack | Reuters

• MOVEit hack impacts US financial services provider for academics | SC Media (scmagazine.com)

Phishing & Email Based Attacks

• Suspicious Email Reports Up a Third as NCSC Trumpets Active Defence - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Email Cyber Attacks Spiked Nearly 500% in First Half of 2023, Acronis Reports - MSSP Alert

• Phishing Attack Prevention Checklist - A Detailed Guide (cybersecuritynews.com)

• Phishing Trends and Tactics: Q1 of 2023 | Tripwire

• African Nations Face Escalating Phishing & Compromised Password Cyber Attacks (darkreading.com)

BEC – Business Email Compromise

• 6 Steps To Outsmart Business Email Compromise Scammers (darkreading.com)

Other Social Engineering; Smishing, Vishing, etc

• Quishing on the rise: How to prevent QR code phishing | TechTarget

• Why cyberpsychology is such an important part of effective cyber Security | CSO Online

Artificial Intelligence

• AI’s rise is ‘most profound’ tech shift to impact ‘all of our lives’, Google UK chief says | The Independent

• Microsoft, OpenAI sued for ChatGPT 'privacy violations' • The Register

• Cyber Criminals can break voice authentication with 99% success rate - Help Net Security

• Dutch counterterrorism agency says Generative AI is posing new cyber threats | NL Times

• AI-generated attack vectors cyber Security should watch for (fastcompany.com)

• The EU hasn’t got its AI Act together yet - The Verge

• OpenAI Pauses ChatGPT's 'Browse With Bing' as Users Bypass Paywalls (gizmodo.com)

• Promoting responsible AI: Balancing innovation and regulation - Help Net Security

• GPT-4 is great at infuriating telemarketing scammers • The Register

• UK Citizens Wary of NHS AI Use, Citing Privacy Concerns - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• 3 Reasons SaaS Security is the Imperative First Step to Ensuring Secure AI Usage (thehackernews.com)

Malware

• Microsoft Teams Exploit Tool Auto-Delivers Malware (darkreading.com)

• Meduza Stealer Targets Windows Users With Advanced Tactics - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Fileless attacks increase 1,400% - Help Net Security

• Experts detected a new variant of RUSTBUCKET macOS malware- Security Affairs

• Researchers Uncover New Linux Kernel 'StackRot' Privilege Escalation Vulnerability (thehackernews.com)

• Iranian Hackers' Sophisticated Malware Targets Windows and macOS Users (thehackernews.com)

• Cyber agencies warn of new TrueBot malware variants targeting US and Canadian firms (therecord.media)

• CISA: Truebot malware infecting networks in US, Canada | TechTarget

• Mockingjay - A New Injection Technique to Bypass EDR (cybersecuritynews.com)

• Malvertising: A stealthy precursor to infostealers and ransomware attacks (malwarebytes.com)

• Mexican Hacker Unleashes Android Malware on Global Banks - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

Mobile

• Android Security Updates Patch 3 Exploited Vulnerabilities - SecurityWeek

• Samsung Phone Flaws Added to CISA 'Must Patch' List Likely Exploited by Spyware Vendor - SecurityWeek

• Mobile Cyber Attacks Soar, Especially Against Android Users (darkreading.com)

• Android users at risk as banking trojan targets more apps | Fox News

• Cyber Attacks Against Mobile Devices Growing Fast - MSSP Alert

• We can’t trust the Government to protect your privacy, says boss of Signal (telegraph.co.uk)

• 83% of Brits Demand Messaging Apps Remain Private, Ahead of Threat From Online Safety Bill (darkreading.com)

• Apps with 1.5M installs on Google Play send your data to China (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Mexican Hacker Unleashes Android Malware on Global Banks - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

Botnets

• Twitter's bot spam keeps getting worse — it's about porn this time (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Botnets Send Exploits Within Days to Weeks After Published PoC (darkreading.com)

Denial of Service/DoS/DDOS

• CISA issues DDoS warning after attacks hit multiple US orgs (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Russian Hacktivist Platform 'DDoSia' Grows Exponentially (darkreading.com)

• Surviving the 800 Gbps Storm: Gain Insights from Gcore's 2023 DDoS Attack Statistics (thehackernews.com)

Data Breaches/Leaks

• More organisations confirm MOVEit-related breaches as hackers claim to publish stolen data | TechCrunch

• FIS Global Data Breach: Cyber Attack On FIS Global Follows MOVEit Mayhem (thecyberexpress.com)

• Microsoft denies data breach, theft of 30 million customer accounts (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Capita’s own pension scheme suffered data breach in March hack | Financial Times (ft.com)Russians may have hacked NHS trust with 2.5 million patients (telegraph.co.uk)

• Cyber Attacks and Data Breaches in Review: June 2023 - IT Governance Blog En

• The Impacts of Data Loss on Your Organisation- Security Affairs

• Secrets, Secrets Are No Fun. Secrets, Secrets (Stored in Plain Text Files) Hurt Someone (thehackernews.com)

• Report Reveals Companies Unprepared For Darknet Data Leaks - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Nickelodeon investigates breach after leak of 'decades old’ data (bleepingcomputer.com)

• OpenAI lawsuit reignites privacy debate over data scraping | CyberScoop

• 28,000 Impacted by Data Breach at Pepsi Bottling Ventures - SecurityWeek

Organised Crime & Criminal Actors

• Exploring the Dark Web Job Market (socradar.io)

• INTERPOL Nabs Hacking Crew OPERA1ER's Leader Behind $11 Million Cyber Crime (thehackernews.com)

Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs/Blockchain

• Meduza Stealer targets tens of crypto wallers and pwd managers- Security Affairs

• $7.8 Billion Lost to Crypto Ponzi Schemes in 2022: Report (cryptopotato.com)

• Hackers stole millions of dollars worth of crypto assets from Poly Network platform- Security Affairs

Insider Risk and Insider Threats

• Human Error the Leading Cause of Cloud Data Breaches - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Why cyberpsychology is such an important part of effective cyber Security | CSO Online

Fraud, Scams & Financial Crime

• Google Searches for 'USPS Package Tracking' Leads to Banking Theft (darkreading.com)

• Support from British businesses crucial in removing over... - NCSC.GOV.UK

• GPT-4 is great at infuriating telemarketing scammers • The Register

• Ex-Amazon manager who stole $9m+ gets 16 years in prison • The Register

• $7.8 Billion Lost to Crypto Ponzi Schemes in 2022: Report (cryptopotato.com)

• International Police Operation Dismantles Phone Scam Network - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Four Men Face 20 Years For Money Laundering Charges - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

Deepfakes

• Scammers using AI voice technology to commit crimes - Help Net Security

• Cyber Criminals can break voice authentication with 99% success rate - Help Net Security

AML/CFT/Sanctions

• Four Men Face 20 Years For Money Laundering Charges - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

Insurance

• University of California sues Lloyd’s of London in cyber insurance dispute | CSO Online

• Find A Cyber Insurance Policy That Fits Your Small Business Budget (forbes.com)

• Cyber insurance rates drop 10% in June, report says | Reuters

• How Pen Testing can Soften the Blow on Rising Costs of Cyber Insurance (thehackernews.com)

• How Cyber Insurance Can Help Relieve The Costs Of A Cyber Attack (forbes.com)

Dark Web

• Ransomware Affiliates, Triple Extortion, and the Dark Web Ecosystem (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Report Reveals Companies Unprepared For Darknet Data Leaks - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Exploring the Dark Web Job Market (socradar.io)

• Deep Web vs Dark Web: What’s the Difference? - Keeper (keepersecurity.com)

Supply Chain and Third Parties

• Capita’s own pension scheme suffered data breach in March hack | Financial Times (ft.com)

• TSMC says IT supplier extorted by LockBit • The Register

• Hackers Claim $70 Million Ransomware Attack on TSMC, Hits Supplier Instead | Tom's Hardware (tomshardware.com)

Software Supply Chain

• A CISO's Guide to Paying Down Software Supply Chain Security Debt (darkreading.com)

Cloud/SaaS

• Microsoft Teams Exploit Tool Auto-Delivers Malware (darkreading.com)

• Japan rebukes Fujitsu for cloud security fails • The Register

• Cloud security: Sometimes the risks may outweigh the rewards – Cyber Reports Cyber Security News & Information (cyber-reports.com)

• 53% of SaaS licenses remain unused - Help Net Security

• IT leaders believe hybrid cloud solutions are the future of IT - Help Net Security

• Human Error the Leading Cause of Cloud Data Breaches - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Ongoing Incident Prompts JumpCloud to Reset API Keys - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Microsoft investigates Outlook.com bug breaking email search (bleepingcomputer.com)

• 11 best practices for securing data in the cloud | Microsoft Security Blog

• 3 Reasons SaaS Security is the Imperative First Step to Ensuring Secure AI Usage (thehackernews.com)

Attack Surface Management

• Attack surface visibility a top CISO priority amid growing attacks: Report | CSO Online

Encryption

• Cyber Criminals Hijacking Vulnerable SSH Servers in New Proxyjacking Campaign (thehackernews.com)

• Exploring the Dark Web Job Market (socradar.io)

• Apple, Civil Liberty Groups Condemn UK Online Safety Bill - SecurityWeek

• Online Safety Bill: WhatsApp, Signal, Element issue stark final warning against mass snooping of messages | Evening Standard

• Security Experts Raise Major Concerns With Online Safety Bill - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• 83% of Brits Demand Messaging Apps Remain Private, Ahead of Threat From Online Safety Bill (darkreading.com)

API

• Ongoing Incident Prompts JumpCloud to Reset API Keys - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

Open Source

• Mission Linux: How the open source software is now a lucrative target for hackers | CSO Online

• Researchers Uncover New Linux Kernel 'StackRot' Privilege Escalation Vulnerability (thehackernews.com)

Passwords, Credential Stuffing & Brute Force Attacks

• High school changes every student’s password to ‘Ch@ngeme!’ | TechCrunch

• Evasive Meduza Stealer Targets 19 Password Managers and 76 Crypto Wallets (thehackernews.com)

Social Media

• Twitter's bot spam keeps getting worse — it's about porn this time (bleepingcomputer.com)

• EU Court Deals Blow to Meta in German Data Case - SecurityWeek

• Instagram's Twitter Alternative 'Threads' Launch Halted in Europe Over Privacy Concerns (thehackernews.com)

• Privacy Woes Hold Up Global Instagram Threads Launch (darkreading.com)

Malvertising

• BlackCat Operators Distributing Ransomware Disguised as WinSCP via Malvertising (thehackernews.com)

Training, Education and Awareness

• Cyber Security Awareness Training to Fight Ransomware (trendmicro.com)

Regulations, Fines and Legislation

• France passes bill to allow police remotely activate phone camera, microphone, spy on people (gazettengr.com)

• Apple, Civil Liberty Groups Condemn UK Online Safety Bill - SecurityWeek

• EU Court Deals Blow to Meta in German Data Case - SecurityWeek

• Promoting responsible AI: Balancing innovation and regulation - Help Net Security

• European companies slam the EU’s incoming AI regulations in open letter - The Verge

• Stop using Google Analytics, warns Sweden’s privacy watchdog, as it issues over $1M in fines | TechCrunch

• 83% of Brits Demand Messaging Apps Remain Private, Ahead of Threat From Online Safety Bill (darkreading.com)

Models, Frameworks and Standards

• Center for Internet Security, CREST launch new enterprise cyber Security accreditation scheme | CSO Online

Careers, Working in Cyber and Information Security

• Crack the Code: How to Secure Your Dream Cyber Security Career - IT Security Guru

• 3 Ways to Build a More Skilled Cyber Security Workforce (darkreading.com)

• Make Diversity the 'How,' Not the 'What,' of Cyber Security Success (darkreading.com)

• CISO Speaks: Resilience and Avoiding Burnout - IT Security Guru

• Top 5 Free Online Cyber Security Courses in 2023 (analyticsinsight.net)

• ISACA joins ECSO to strengthen cyber Security and digital skills in Europe - Help Net Security

Law Enforcement Action and Take Downs

• INTERPOL Nabs Hacking Crew OPERA1ER's Leader Behind $11 Million Cyber Crime (thehackernews.com)

• International Police Operation Dismantles Phone Scam Network - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• FBI digital sting against Hive cyber Crime group shows the promise — and limits — of hacking hackers - POLITICO

Privacy, Surveillance and Mass Monitoring

• France passes bill to allow police remotely activate phone camera, microphone, spy on people (gazettengr.com)

• Microsoft, OpenAI sued for ChatGPT 'privacy violations' • The Register

• Online Safety Bill: WhatsApp, Signal, Element issue stark final warning against mass snooping of messages | Evening Standard

• TSA hopes to expand facial recognition over next ten years • The Register

• NJ cops must get wiretap order for real-time Facebook snoop • The Register

• Instagram's Twitter Alternative 'Threads' Launch Halted in Europe Over Privacy Concerns (thehackernews.com)

• UK Citizens Wary of NHS AI Use, Citing Privacy Concerns - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Stop using Google Analytics, warns Sweden’s privacy watchdog, as it issues over $1M in fines | TechCrunch

• Privacy Woes Hold Up Global Instagram Threads Launch (darkreading.com)

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

Russia

• Russians may have hacked NHS trust with 2.5 million patients (telegraph.co.uk)

• Switzerland’s Security Report: Impact of Russia–Ukraine Conflict - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Satellite system used by Russian military is hacked - The Washington Post

• Russian Hacktivist Platform 'DDoSia' Grows Exponentially (darkreading.com)

• Russian railway site allegedly taken down by Ukrainian hackers (therecord.media)

China

• US authorities warn on China’s new counter-espionage la' • The Register

• Chinese Threat Actors Targeting Europe in SmugX Campaign - Check Point Research

• Chinese threat actor attacks diplomats across Europe • The Register

• Apps with 1.5M installs on Google Play send your data to China (bleepingcomputer.com)

Iran

• Iran-Linked APT35 Targets Israeli Media With Upgraded Spear-Phishing Tools (darkreading.com)

• Iranian Hackers' Sophisticated Malware Targets Windows and macOS Users (thehackernews.com)

• Iranian hacking group impersonating nuclear experts to gain intel from Western think tanks | SC Media (scmagazine.com)

North Korea

• Experts detected a new variant of RUSTBUCKET macOS malware- Security Affairs

• North Korean satellite had no military utility for spying • The Register

Misc/Other/Unknown

• Advanced Persistent Threats: A Wake-Up Call for Cyber Security (ts2.space)

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Vulnerability Management

• Botnets Send Exploits Within Days to Weeks After Published PoC (darkreading.com)

• Mitigate Top 5 Common Cyber Security Vulnerabilities (trendmicro.com)

Vulnerabilities

• CISA warns Samsung handset bugs and D-Link router flaws are being exploited in wild | SC Media (scmagazine.com)

• 300,000+ Fortinet firewalls vulnerable to critical FortiOS RCE bug (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Microsoft puts out Outlook fire, downplays Teams flaw • The Register

• Critical Flaw Exposes ArcServe Backup to Remote Code Execution - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• WordPress plugin lets users become admins – Patch early, patch often! – Naked Security (sophos.com)

• Cyber Criminals Hijacking Vulnerable SSH Servers in New Proxyjacking Campaign (thehackernews.com)

• Firefox 115 Patches High-Severity Use-After-Free Vulnerabilities - SecurityWeek

• Microsoft fixes bug behind Windows LSA protection warnings, again (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Samsung Phone Flaws Added to CISA 'Must Patch' List Likely Exploited by Spyware Vendor - SecurityWeek

• Cisco warns of bug that lets attackers break traffic encryption (bleepingcomputer.com)

• StackRot Linux Kernel Bug Has Exploit Code on the Way (darkreading.com)

• Cisco warns of a flaw in Nexus 9000 series switches that allows modifying encrypted traffic- Security Affairs

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Tools and Controls

• Cyber Security Awareness Training to Fight Ransomware (trendmicro.com)

• Attack surface visibility a top CISO priority amid growing attacks: Report | CSO Online

• VMware, Other Tech Giants Announce Push for Confidential Computing Standards - SecurityWeek

• Small organisations face security threats on a limited budget - Help Net Security

• 11 best practices for securing data in the cloud | Microsoft Security Blog

• How Pen Testing can Soften the Blow on Rising Costs of Cyber Insurance (thehackernews.com)

• Mitigating Risk With Threat Intelligence (darkreading.com)

• How Cyber Insurance Can Help Relieve The Costs Of A Cyber Attack (forbes.com)

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Reports Published in the Last Week

• Phishing Trends and Tactics: Q1 of 2023 | Tripwire

• How to Use Threat Intelligence to Mitigate Third-Party Risk Free Report (tradepub.com)

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Other News

• Foreign spies hacked government 20 years ago (thetimes.co.uk)

• GCHQ Reveals Details of State-Backed Breach - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Police investigate stolen exam papers after cyber attack (schoolsweek.co.uk)

• VMware, Other Tech Giants Announce Push for Confidential Computing Standards - SecurityWeek

• Why Schools are Low-Hanging Fruit for Cyber Criminals - IT Security Guru

• Hacks targeting British exam boards raise fears of students cheating (therecord.media)

• Cyber Attacks and Data Breaches in Review: June 2023 - IT Governance Blog En

• Is your browser betraying you? Emerging threats in 2023 - Help Net Security

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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 27 January 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

• Supply Chain Attacks Caused More Data Compromises Than Malware

According to the Identity Theft Resource Center, data compromises steadily increased in the second half of 2022 and cyber attacks remained the primary source of data breaches.

The number of data breaches resulting from supply chain attacks exceeded malware related compromises in 2022 by 40%. According to the report, more than 10 million people were impacted by supply chain attacks targeting 1,743 entities. By comparison, 70 malware-based cyber attacks affected 4.3 million people.

https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/01/26/data-compromises-2022/

• What Makes Small and Medium-Sized Businesses Vulnerable to BEC Attacks

According to the United States’ FBI’s 2021 Internet Crime Report, business email compromise (BEC) accounted for almost a third of the country’s $6.9 billion in cyber losses that year – around $2.4 billion. In surprisingly sharp contrast, ransomware attacks accounted for only $50 million of those losses.

Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are especially vulnerable to this form of attack and BEC’s contribution to annual cyber losses not only makes sense but is also likely underreported.

In stark contrast to highly disruptive ransomware attacks, BEC is subversive and is neither technically complicated nor expensive to deploy. In the case of large organisations, the financial fallout of BEC is almost negligible. That’s not the case for small and medium-sized businesses, which often lack the means to absorb similar financial losses.

BEC’s simplicity gives more credence for attackers to target smaller organisations, and because of that, it’s doubly essential for SMBs to be vigilant.

https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/01/25/what-makes-small-medium-sized-businesses-vulnerable-bec-attacks-video/

• Understanding Your Attack Surface Makes It Easier to Prioritise Technologies and Systems

It has been observed that attackers will attempt to start exploiting vulnerabilities within the first fifteen minutes of their disclosure. As the time to patch gets shorter, organisations need to be more pragmatic when it comes to remediating vulnerabilities, particularly when it comes to prioritisation.

Attack surfaces constantly evolve and change as new applications are developed, old systems are decommissioned, and new assets are registered. Also, more and more organisations are moving towards cloud-hosted infrastructure, which changes the risk and responsibility for securing those assets. Therefore, it is essential to carry out continuous or regular assessments to understand what systems are at risk, instead of just taking a point-in-time snapshot of how the attack surface looks at that moment.

The first step would be to map “traditional” asset types – those easily associated with an organisation and easy to monitor, such as domains and IP addresses. Ownership of these assets can be easily identified through available information (e.g., WHOIS data). The less traditional asset types (such as GitHub repositories) aren’t directly owned by the organisation but can also provide high-value targets or information for attackers.

It’s also important to understand which technologies are in use to make sound judgements based on the vulnerabilities relevant to the organisation. For example, out of one hundred vulnerabilities released within one month only 20% might affect the organisation’s technologies.

Once organisations have a good understanding of which assets might be at risk, context and prioritisation can be applied to the vulnerabilities affecting those assets. Threat intelligence can be utilised to determine which vulnerabilities are already being exploited in the wild.

What is then the correct answer for this conundrum? The answer is that there is no answer! Instead, organisations should consider a mindset shift and look towards preventing issues whilst adopting a defence-in-depth approach; focus on minimising impact and risk by prioritising assets that matter the most and reducing time spent on addressing those that don’t. This can be achieved by understanding your organisation’s attack surface and prioritising issues based on context and relevance.

https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/01/24/understanding-your-attack-surface/

• Cyber Security Pros Sound Alarm Over Insider Threats

Gurucul, a security information and event management (SIEM) solution provider, and Cyber security Insiders, a 600,000-plus member online community for information security professionals, found in their annual 2023 Insider Threat Report that only 3% of respondents surveyed are not concerned with insider risk.

Among all potential insiders, cyber security professionals are most concerned about IT users and admins with far-reaching access privileges (60%). This is followed by third-party contractors (such as MSPs and MSSPs) and service providers (57%), regular employees (55%), and privileged business users (53%).

The research also found that more than half of organisations in the study had been victimised by an insider threat in the past year. According to the data, 75% of the respondents believe they are moderately to extremely vulnerable to insider threats, an 8% spike from last year. That coincided with a similar percentage who said attacks have become more frequent, with 60% experiencing at least one attack and 25% getting hit by more than six attacks.

https://www.msspalert.com/cybersecurity-research/research-report-cybersecurity-pros-sound-alarm-over-insider-threats/

• Ransomware Attack Hit KFC and Pizza Hut Stores in the UK

Nearly 300 fast food restaurants, including branches of KFC and Pizza Hut, were forced to close following a ransomware attack against parent company Yum! Brands. In a statement dated 18 January 2023, Yum! confirmed that unnamed ransomware had impacted some of its IT infrastructure, and that data had been exfiltrated by hackers from its servers. However, although an investigation into the security breach continues, the company said that it had seen no evidence that customer details had been exposed.

What has not yet been made public, and may not even be known to those investigating the breach, is how long hackers might have had access to the company's IT infrastructure, and how they might have been able to gain access to what should have been a secure system. Yum! has also not shared whether it has received a ransom demand from its attackers, and if it did how much ransom was demanded, and whether it would be prepared to negotiate with its extortionists.

https://www.bitdefender.com/blog/hotforsecurity/ransomware-attack-hit-kfc-and-pizza-hut-stores-in-the-uk/

• Forthcoming SEC Rules Will Trigger ‘Tectonic Shift’ in How Corporate Boards Treat Cyber Security

Under rules first proposed in 2022 but expected to be finalised as soon as April 2023, publicly traded companies in the US that determine a cyber incident has become “material”, meaning it could have a significant impact on the business, must disclose details to the SEC and investors within four business days. That requirement would also apply “when a series of previously undisclosed, individually immaterial cyber security incidents has become material in the aggregate.

The SEC’s rules will also require the boards of those companies to disclose significant information on their security governance, such as how and when it exercises oversight on cyber risks. That info includes identifying who on the board (or which subcommittee) is responsible for cyber security and their relevant expertise. Required disclosures will also include how often and by which processes board members are informed and discuss cyber risk. The former cyber adviser to the SEC commented that “The problem we have with the current cyber security ecosystem is that it’s very focused on technical mitigation measures and does not contemplate these business, operational, [or] financial factors.”

Whilst this only impacts US firms, we can expect other jurisdictions to follow suit.

https://www.itbrew.com/stories/2023/01/20/forthcoming-sec-rules-will-trigger-tectonic-shift-in-how-corporate-boards-treat-cybersecurity

• Why CISOs Make Great Board Members

Cyber security-related risk is a top concern, so boards need to know they have the proper oversight in place. The past three years created a perfect storm situation with lasting consequences for how we think about cyber security, and as a result cyber security technologies and teams have shifted from being viewed as a cost centre to a business enabler.

Gartner predicts that by 2025, 40% of companies will have a dedicated cyber security committee. Who is better suited than a CISO to lead that conversation? Cyber security-related risk is a top concern, so boards need to know they have the proper oversight in place. CISOs can provide advice on moving forward with digital change initiatives and help companies prepare for the future. They can explain the organisation’s risk posture, including exposure related to geopolitical conflict as well as to new business initiatives and emerging threats, and what can be done to mitigate risk.

Lastly, the role of the CISO has evolved from being a risk metrics presenter to a translator of risk to the business. Therefore, the expertise CISOs have developed in recent years in how to explain risk to the board makes them valuable contributors to these conversations. They can elevate the discussion to ensure deep understanding of the trade-offs between growth and risk, enable more informed decision-making, and serve as guardrails for total business alignment.

https://www.securityweek.com/why-cisos-make-great-board-members/

• View From Davos: The Changing Economics of Cyber Crime

Cyber crime is a risk created by humans, driven by the economic conditions of high profit and easy opportunity. Ransomware is the most recent monetisation of these motives and opportunities, and it has evolved from simple malware to advanced exploits and double or triple extortion models.

The motive for cyber crime is clear: to steal money, but the digital nature of cyber crime makes the opportunity uniquely attractive, due to the following:

·       Cryptocurrency makes online extortion, trading illicit goods and services, and laundering fraudulent funds highly anonymous and usually beyond the reach of financial regulators or inspection

·       There isn't enough fear of getting caught for cyber crime.

·       With the explosion in spending on digital transformation, data is the new gold and it is incredibly easy to steal, due to lapses in basic hygiene like encrypting data-at-rest and in-transit or limiting access to only authorised users.

·       Paying extortion through extensive cyber insurance policies only feeds the ransomware epidemic by incentivising further crime, as noted by the FBI.

Fighting cyber crime is a team sport, and to succeed, we must adopt this framework of cyber resilience that integrates the technical, policy, behavioural, and economic elements necessary to manage the reality of ever-growing cyber crime as a predictable and manageable cyber risk.

https://www.darkreading.com/edge-articles/view-from-davos-the-changing-economics-of-cybercrime

• Cloud Based Networks Under Increasing Attack, Report Finds

As enterprises around the world continue to move to the cloud, cyber criminals are following right behind them. There was a 48 percent year-over-year jump in 2022 in cyber attacks on cloud-based networks, and it comes at a time when 98 percent of global organisations use cloud services, according to Check Point. The increases in cyber attacks were experienced in various regions, including Asia (with a 60 percent jump), Europe (50 percent), and North America (28 percent) according to a report by Checkpoint last week.

Check Point explained that "The rise in attacks on the cloud was driven both by an overall increase in cyber attacks globally (38 percent overall in 2022, compared to 48 percent in the cloud) and also by the fact that it holds much more data and incorporates infrastructure and services from large amounts of potential victims, so when exploited the attacks could have a larger impact,". Later, Checkpoint highlighted that human error is a significant factor in the vulnerability of cloud-based networks.

The report highlighted the need for defence capabilities in the cloud to improve. According to Check Point, this means adopting zero-trust cloud network security controls, incorporating security and compliance earlier in the development lifecycle, avoiding misconfigurations, and using tools such as an intrusion detection and prevention systems and next-generation web application firewalls. As  commented by Check Point “it is still up to the network and security admins to make sure all their infrastructure is not vulnerable.

https://www.theregister.com/2023/01/20/cloud_networks_under_attack/

• GoTo Admits: Customer Cloud Backups Stolen Together with Decryption Key

On 2022-11-30, GoTo informed customers that it had suffered “a security incident”, summarising the situation as follows:

“Based on the investigation to date, we have detected unusual activity within our development environment and third-party cloud storage service. The third-party cloud storage service is currently shared by both GoTo and its affiliate, LastPass.”

Two months later, GoTo has come back with an update, and the news isn’t great:

“[A] threat actor exfiltrated encrypted backups from a third-party cloud storage service related to the following products: Central, Pro, join.me, Hamachi, and RemotelyAnywhere. We also have evidence that a threat actor exfiltrated an encryption key for a portion of the encrypted backups. The affected information, which varies by product, may include account usernames, salted and hashed passwords, a portion of Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) settings, as well as some product settings and licensing information.”

The company also noted that although MFA settings for some Rescue and GoToMyPC customers were stolen, their encrypted databases were not.

https://nakedsecurity.sophos.com/2023/01/25/goto-admits-customer-cloud-backups-stolen-together-with-decryption-key/

• State-Linked Hackers in Russia and Iran are Targeting UK Groups, NCSC Warns

Russian and Iranian state-linked hackers are increasingly targeting British politicians, journalists and researchers with sophisticated campaigns aimed at gaining access to a person’s email, Britain’s online security agency warned on Thursday. The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) issued an alert about two groups from Russia and Iran, warning those in government, defence, thinktanks and the media against clicking on malicious links from people posing as conference hosts, journalists or even colleagues.

Both groups have been active for some years, but it is understood they have recently stepped up their activities in the UK as the war in Ukraine continues, as well as operating in the US and other NATO countries.

The hackers typically seek to gain confidence of a target by impersonating somebody likely to make contact with them, such as by falsely impersonating a journalist, and ultimately luring them to click on a malicious link, sometimes over the course of several emails and other online interactions.

NCSC encourages people to use strong email passwords. One technique is to use three random words, and not replicate it as a login credential on other websites. It recommends people use two-factor authentication, using a mobile phone as part of the log on process, ideally by using a special authenticator app.

The cyber agency also advises people exercise particular caution when receiving plausible sounding messages from strangers who rely on Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook or other webmail accounts, sometimes impersonating “known contacts” of the target culled from social media.

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2023/jan/26/state-linked-hackers-in-russia-and-iran-are-targeting-uk-groups-ncsc-warns

• 3.7 Million Customers’ Data of Hilton Hotels Put Up For Sale

A member of a hacker forum going by the name IntelBroker, has offered a database allegedly containing the personal information of 3.7 million people participating in the Hilton Hotels Honors program. According to the actor, the data in question includes personally identifying information such as name, address and Honors IDs. According to the Hilton Hotel, no guest login credentials, contacts, or financial information have been leaked.

https://informationsecuritybuzz.com/3-7-millions-customers-data-hilton-hotel-up-for-sale/

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Threats

Ransomware, Extortion and Destructive Attacks

• Rebranded Ransomware Crews Spike Number of Hijacking Incidents in Q4 2022 - MSSP Alert

• The Unrelenting Menace of the LockBit Ransomware Gang | WIRED

• Ransomware access brokers use Google ads to breach your network (bleepingcomputer.com)

• FBI hacked into Hive ransomware gang, disrupted operations | TechTarget

• "Workarounds" Helped Royal Mail Resume Shipping After Ransomware Attack - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Ransomware victims are refusing to pay, tanking attackers’ profits | Ars Technica

• Vice Society Ransomware Group Targets Manufacturing Companies (trendmicro.com)

• New Mimic ransomware abuses ‘Everything’ Windows search tool (bleepingcomputer.com)

• BlackCat Ransomware gang stole secret military data from industrial explosives manufacturer - Security Affairs

• Contractor error led to Baltimore schools ransomware attack | TechTarget

• LAUSD says Vice Society ransomware gang stole contractors’ SSNs (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Riot Games receives ransom demand from hackers, refuses to pay (bleepingcomputer.com)

Phishing & Email Based Attacks

• State-linked hackers in Russia and Iran are targeting UK groups, NCSC warns | Hacking | The Guardian

• ChatGPT is a bigger threat to cyber security than most realize - Help Net Security

• Phishers Use Blank Images to Disguise Malicious Attachments - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Hackers often use this clever trick to take you to phishing sites — can you spot it? | Tom's Guide (tomsguide.com)

• Yahoo Most Faked Brand Name in Phishing Attempts by Threat Actors in Q4 2022 - MSSP Alert

• Yahoo Overtakes DHL As Most Impersonated Brand in Q4 2022 - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• ChatGPT could boost phishing scams | TechTarget

• SEABORGIUM and TA453 continue their respective... - NCSC.GOV.UK

• Bitwarden password vaults targeted in Google ads phishing attack (bleepingcomputer.com)

• New 'Blank Image' attack hides phishing scripts in SVG files (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Hackers now use Microsoft OneNote attachments to spread malware (bleepingcomputer.com)

BEC – Business Email Compromise

• What makes small and medium-sized businesses vulnerable to BEC attacks - Help Net Security

Other Social Engineering; Smishing, Vishing, etc

• Social Engineering Tactics are Changing. Awareness Training Must Change Too.| CSA (cloudsecurityalliance.org)

Malware                                                                                   

• BlackBerry: Threat Actors Launch A Unique Malware Sample Every Minute - MSSP Alert

• Linux malware hit a new high in 2022 | TechRadar

• Phishers Use Blank Images to Disguise Malicious Attachments - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Consumers Face Greater Risks from Malware but Many are Unprepared and Vulnerable - MSSP Alert

• New 'Blank Image' attack hides phishing scripts in SVG files (bleepingcomputer.com)

• ChatGPT Could Create Polymorphic Malware Wave, Researchers Warn (darkreading.com)

• Hackers now use Microsoft OneNote attachments to spread malware (bleepingcomputer.com)

• ChatGPT Can Write Polymorphic Malware to Infect Your Computer (gizmodo.com)

• Microsoft plans to kill malware delivery via Excel XLL add-ins (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Hackers use Golang source code interpreter to evade detection (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Hackers Deploy Open-Source Tool Sliver C2, Replacing Cobalt Strike, Metasploit - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Emotet Malware Makes a Comeback with New Evasion Techniques (thehackernews.com)

• 'DragonSpark' Malware: East Asian Cyber Attackers Create an OSS Frankenstein (darkreading.com)

• Malware exploited critical Realtek SDK bug in millions of attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)

• ‘DragonSpark’ threat actor leverages open-source RAT, other Chinese-language tools | SC Media (scmagazine.com)

Mobile

• Massive Ad Fraud Scheme Targeted Over 11 Million Devices with 1,700 Spoofed Apps (thehackernews.com)

• New 'Hook' Android malware lets hackers remotely control your phone (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Pair of Galaxy App Store Bugs Offer Cyber Attackers Mobile Device Access (darkreading.com)

• Google to phase out legacy apps with Android 14 to improve security - GSMArena.com news

Botnets

• How Does a Botnet Attack Work? - Cyber Defense Magazine

Denial of Service/DoS/DDOS

• Why a hybrid approach can help mitigate DDoS attacks | SC Media

• Russia’s largest ISP says 2022 broke all DDoS attack records (bleepingcomputer.com)

Internet of Things – IoT

• Nice smart device – how long does it get software updates? • The Register

• Why British homes are at risk from ‘Trojan Horse’ smart devices (telegraph.co.uk)

• Why most IoT cyber security strategies give zero hope for zero trust - Help Net Security

Data Breaches/Leaks

• Companies impacted by Mailchimp breach warn their customers - Security Affairs

• LastPass owner GoTo says hackers stole customers’ backups | TechCrunch

• GoTo admits: Customer cloud backups stolen together with decryption key – Naked Security (sophos.com)

• GoTo warns customers of crypto key and backup heist • The Register

• 3.7 Million Customers Data Of Hilton Hotels Put Up For Sale (informationsecuritybuzz.com)

• QUT confirms personal data of thousands of staff compromised in cyber attack - ABC News

• Riot Games hacked, now it faces problems to release content - Security Affairs

• ICE releases asylum seekers after exposing their data • The Register

• Hacker Gets Hands on No-Fly List of Alleged Terrorist Suspects (gizmodo.com)

• Risk & Repeat: Breaking down the LastPass breach | TechTarget

• After data breach put their lives at risk, US releases 3000 immigrants seeking asylum (bitdefender.com)

• TSA No-Fly List Snafu Highlights Risk of Keeping Sensitive Data in Dev Environments (darkreading.com)

• T-Mobile Cyber Attack Spurs Law Firm Investigation - MSSP Alert

• Risk & Repeat: Another T-Mobile data breach disclosed | TechTarget

• Entire US "No Fly List" Exposed Online Via Unsecured Server (informationsecuritybuzz.com)

• Near-Record Year for US Data Breaches in 2022 - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Zacks data breach impacted hundreds of thousands of customers - Security Affairs

• French rugby club Stade Français leaks source code - Security Affairs

Organised Crime & Criminal Actors

• View from Davos: The Changing Economics of Cyber crime (darkreading.com)

Cryptocurrency/Cryptomining/Cryptojacking/NFTs/Blockchain

• Inside the crypto ‘prisons’ scamming Britons out of their life savings (telegraph.co.uk)

• FBI Confirms Lazarus Group Was Behind $100m Harmony Hack - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Hackers Take Over Robinhood Twitter Account To Promote Scam - Decrypt

Insider Risk and Insider Threats

• Research Report: Cyber Security Pros Sound Alarm Over Insider Threats - MSSP Alert

• Hunting Insider Threats on the Dark Web (darkreading.com)

Fraud, Scams & Financial Crime

• Inside the crypto ‘prisons’ scamming Britons out of their life savings (telegraph.co.uk)

• P-to-P fraud most concerning cyber threat in 2023: CSI | CSO Online

• Lloyds Bank Warns of 80% Surge in Advance Fee Scams - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Dark Web Posts Advertising Counterfeit Cash Surge 90% - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Hackers Take Over Robinhood Twitter Account To Promote Scam - Decrypt

Insurance

• Regulator Stress Test Highlights Cyber Insurance Concerns - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• 4 tips to find cyber insurance coverage in 2023 | TechTarget

• Insurers in talks on adding state-backed cyber to UK reinsurance scheme | Financial Times (ft.com)

• Cyber Security Posture & Insurance Outlook with Advisen (trendmicro.com)

Dark Web

• Hunting Insider Threats on the Dark Web (darkreading.com)

• Dark Web Posts Advertising Counterfeit Cash Surge 90% - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

Software Supply Chain

• Attacking The Supply Chain: Developer (trendmicro.com)

Cloud/SaaS

• Report: Cloud-based networks under growing attack • The Register

• Chinese 8220 Gang Aims For Public Clouds And Vulnerable Apps (informationsecuritybuzz.com)

• Microsoft Azure-Based Kerberos Attacks Crack Open Cloud Accounts (darkreading.com)

Attack Surface Management

• Understanding your attack surface makes it easier to prioritize technologies and systems - Help Net Security

Encryption

• Bitwarden responds to encryption design flaw criticism | The Daily Swig (portswigger.net)

API

• 9 API security tools on the frontlines of cyber security | CSO Online

Passwords, Credential Stuffing & Brute Force Attacks

• Bitwarden password vaults targeted in Google ads phishing attack (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Popular password managers auto-filled credentials on untrusted websites | The Daily Swig (portswigger.net)

• Bitwarden responds to encryption design flaw criticism | The Daily Swig (portswigger.net)

• Password Dependency: How to Break the Cycle - SecurityWeek

Social Media

• The metaverse brings a new breed of threats to challenge privacy and security gatekeepers | CSO Online

Malvertising

• Massive Ad Fraud Scheme Targeted Over 11 Million Devices with 1,700 Spoofed Apps (thehackernews.com)

• Ad Fraud Scheme Tops 12 Billion Daily Bid Requests - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Google Ads invites being abused to push spam, adult sites (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Ransomware access brokers use Google ads to breach your network (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Over 4,500 WordPress Sites Hacked to Redirect Visitors to Sketchy Ad Pages (thehackernews.com)

Training, Education and Awareness

• Social Engineering Tactics are Changing. Awareness Training Must Too.| CSA (cloudsecurityalliance.org)

Regulations, Fines and Legislation

• Ireland’s data protection watchdog fines WhatsApp €5.5m • The Register

Governance, Risk and Compliance

• Forthcoming SEC rules will trigger ‘tectonic shift’ in how corporate boards treat cyber security (itbrew.com)

• Just Half of Firms Have Sufficient Cyber Security Budget - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• View from Davos: The Changing Economics of Cyber Crime (darkreading.com)

• Why CISOs Make Great Board Members - SecurityWeek

• Awareness Training Must Change | CSA (cloudsecurityalliance.org)

• Despite Slowing Economy, Demand for Cyber Security Workers Remains Strong (darkreading.com)

• Organisations Must Brace for Privacy Impacts This Year (darkreading.com)

• The Business Imperative of Cyber Information Sharing for Our Collective Defence | World Economic Forum (weforum.org)

Data Protection

• Ireland’s data protection watchdog fines WhatsApp €5.5m • The Register

• ICO Offers Data Protection Advice to SMBs - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

Careers, Working in Cyber and Information Security

• Why CISOs Make Great Board Members - SecurityWeek

• Davos Debrief: Critical Shortage of Cyber Security Talent Requires Action on Several Fronts, CompTIA Executive Says (darkreading.com)

• Despite Slowing Economy, Demand for Cyber Security Workers Remains Strong (darkreading.com)

• 8 cyber security roles to consider | TechTarget

• How To Safeguard Your Business From Cyber Security Stress And Prevent IT Burnout (informationsecuritybuzz.com)

• Can't Fill Open Positions? Rewrite Your Minimum Requirements (darkreading.com)

• Veterans bring high-value, real-life experience as potential cyber security employees | CSO Online

• US is Short Nearly 530,000 Skilled Cyber Security Workers, IT Layoffs Not Slowing Demand - MSSP Alert

• Dozens of Cyber Security Companies Announced Layoffs in Past Year - SecurityWeek

Law Enforcement Action and Take Downs

• FBI hacked into Hive ransomware gang, disrupted operations | TechTarget

• Dutchman Detained for Dealing Details of Tens of Millions of People (darkreading.com)

• Dutch suspect locked up for alleged personal data megathefts – Naked Security (sophos.com)

Privacy, Surveillance and Mass Monitoring

• Organisations Must Brace for Privacy Impacts This Year (darkreading.com)

• The metaverse brings a new breed of threats to challenge privacy and security gatekeepers | CSO Online

• Scientists use Wi-Fi routers to see humans through walls | ZDNET

• Most consumers would share anonymised personal data to improve AI products - Help Net Security

Artificial Intelligence

• ChatGPT is a bigger threat to cyber security than most realize - Help Net Security

• Learning to Lie: AI Tools Adept at Creating Disinformation - SecurityWeek

• Rogue AI ‘could kill everyone’ | News | The Times

• ChatGPT could boost phishing scams | TechTarget

• FBI Chief Says He's 'Deeply concerned' by China's AI Program | SecurityWeek.Com

• ChatGPT Can Write Polymorphic Malware to Infect Your Computer (gizmodo.com)

• Chat Cyber Security: AI Promises a Lot, but Can It Deliver? (darkreading.com)

Misinformation, Disinformation and Propaganda

• Learning to Lie: AI Tools Adept at Creating Disinformation - SecurityWeek

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

• State-linked hackers in Russia and Iran are targeting UK groups, NCSC warns | Hacking | The Guardian

• UK authorities warn of phishing from Iran, Russia • The Register

• Armis State of Cyberwarfare and Trends Report - IT Security Guru

• North Korean Hackers Turn to Credential Harvesting in Latest Wave of Cyber Attacks (thehackernews.com)

• SEABORGIUM and TA453 continue their respective... - NCSC.GOV.UK

• Gamaredon Group Launches Cyber Attacks Against Ukraine Using Telegram (thehackernews.com)

• Chinese 8220 Gang Aims For Public Clouds And Vulnerable Apps (informationsecuritybuzz.com)

• FBI Chief Says He's 'Deeply concerned' by China's AI Program | SecurityWeek.Com

• “Pegasus” lifts the lid on a sophisticated piece of spyware | The Economist

• North Korean Group TA444 Shows 'Startup' Culture, Tries Numerous Infection Methods - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• North Korea-linked TA444 turns to credential harvesting activity - Security Affairs

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Nation State Actors

Nation State Actors – Russia

• State-linked hackers in Russia and Iran are targeting UK groups, NCSC warns | Hacking | The Guardian

• UK authorities warn of phishing from Iran, Russia • The Register

• SEABORGIUM and TA453 continue their respective... - NCSC.GOV.UK

• Gamaredon Group Launches Cyber Attacks Against Ukraine Using Telegram (thehackernews.com)

• Russia’s largest ISP says 2022 broke all DDoS attack records (bleepingcomputer.com)

Nation State Actors – China

• Chinese 8220 Gang Aims For Public Clouds And Vulnerable Apps (informationsecuritybuzz.com)

• FBI Chief Says He's 'Deeply concerned' by China's AI Program | SecurityWeek.Com

Nation State Actors – North Korea

• North Korean Hackers Turn to Credential Harvesting in Latest Wave of Cyber Attacks (thehackernews.com)

• FBI Confirms Lazarus Group Was Behind $100m Harmony Hack - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• North Korean Group TA444 Shows 'Startup' Culture, Tries Numerous Infection Methods - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• North Korea-linked TA444 turns to credential harvesting activity - Security Affairs

Nation State Actors – Iran

• State-linked hackers in Russia and Iran are targeting UK groups, NCSC warns | Hacking | The Guardian

• UK authorities warn of phishing from Iran, Russia • The Register

• SEABORGIUM and TA453 continue their respective... - NCSC.GOV.UK

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Vulnerability Management

• Extent of reported CVEs overwhelms critical infrastructure asset owners - Help Net Security

• Security Navigator Research: Some Vulnerabilities Date Back to the Last Millennium (thehackernews.com)

• Log4j Vulnerabilities Are Here to Stay — Are You Prepared? (darkreading.com)

• Trained developers get rid of more vulnerabilities than code scanning tools - Help Net Security

• New Open Source OT Security Tool Helps Address Impact of Upcoming Microsoft Patch  - SecurityWeek

• Halo Security unveils KEV feature to improve attack surface visibility - Help Net Security

Vulnerabilities

• Crims can still exploit this NSA-discovered Microsoft bug • The Register

• 75k WordPress sites impacted by critical online course plugin flaws (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Security Navigator Research: Some Vulnerabilities Date Back to the Last Millennium (thehackernews.com)

• Log4j Vulnerabilities Are Here to Stay — Are You Prepared? (darkreading.com)

• Chrome 109 update addresses six security vulnerabilities - Security Affairs

• Microsoft urges admins to patch on-premises Exchange servers (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Drupal Patches Vulnerabilities Leading to Information Disclosure | SecurityWeek.Com

• Critical Vulnerabilities Patched in OpenText Enterprise Content Management System | SecurityWeek.Com

• Around 19,500 end-of-life Cisco routers exposed to hack - Security Affairs

• In-the-Wild Exploitation of Recent ManageEngine Vulnerability Commences | SecurityWeek.Com

• Apple patches are out – old iPhones get an old zero-day fix at last! – Naked Security (sophos.com)

• Apple Patches WebKit Code Execution in iPhones, MacBooks - SecurityWeek

• VMware Releases Patches for Critical vRealize Log Insight Software Vulnerabilities (thehackernews.com)

• Crooks are already exploiting this bug in old iPhones • The Register

• Logfile nightmare deepens thanks to critical VMware flaws • The Register

• Malware exploited critical Realtek SDK bug in millions of attacks (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Realtek SDK flaw CVE-2021-35394 actively exploited in the wild- Security Affairs

• Lexmark warns of RCE bug affecting 100 printer models, PoC released (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Crims can still exploit this NSA-discovered Microsoft bug • The Register

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Tools and Controls

• Is Once-Yearly Pen Testing Enough for Your Organisation? (thehackernews.com)

• Just Half of Firms Have Sufficient Cyber Security Budget - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• LastPass owner GoTo says hackers stole customers’ backups | TechCrunch

• Bitwarden password vaults targeted in Google ads phishing attack (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Bitwarden responds to encryption design flaw criticism | The Daily Swig (portswigger.net)

• Understanding your attack surface makes it easier to prioritize technologies and systems - Help Net Security

• Companies Struggle With Zero Trust as Attackers Adapt to Get Around It (darkreading.com)

• Federal Agencies Infested by Cyber Attackers via Legit Remote Management Systems (darkreading.com)

• Why a hybrid approach can help mitigate DDoS attacks | SC Media

• CISA Warns Against Malicious Use of Legitimate RMM Software - Infosecurity Magazine (infosecurity-magazine.com)

• Gartner Predicts 10% of Large Enterprises Will Have a Mature and Measurable Zero-Trust Program in Place by 2026 (darkreading.com)

• Steps To Planning And Implementation Of Endpoint Protection (informationsecuritybuzz.com)

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Other News

• Hackers can make computers destroy their own chips with electricity | New Scientist

• Scientists use Wi-Fi routers to see humans through walls | ZDNET

• Microsoft 365 outage takes down Teams, Exchange Online, Outlook (bleepingcomputer.com)

• Lessons Learned from the Windows Remote Desktop Honeypot Report (bleepingcomputer.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

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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.

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