Once used exclusively by the cybercriminals behind REVil ransomware and the Gootkit banking trojan, GootLoader and its primary payload have evolved into an initial access as a service platform—with Gootkit providing information stealing capabilities as well as the capability to deploy post-exploitation tools and ransomware.
GootLoader is known for using search engine optimization (SEO) poisoning for its initial access. Victims are often enticed into clicking on malicious adware or links disguised as legitimate marketing, or in this case a legitimate Google search directing the user to a compromised website hosting a malicious payload masquerading as the desired file. If the malware remains undetected on the victim’s machine, it makes way for a second-stage payload known as GootKit, which is a highly evasive info stealer and remote access Trojan (RAT) used to establish a persistent foothold in the victim’s network environment.
Read more…
Source: Sophos
Related:
- Online shoppers at risk as Magecart skimming hits major payment networks
January 14, 2026
Researchers have been tracking a Magecart campaign that targets several major payment providers, including American Express, Diners Club, Discover, and Mastercard. Magecart is an umbrella term for criminal groups that specialize in stealing payment data from online checkout pages using malicious JavaScript, a technique known as web skimming. In the early days, Magecart started as a ...
- Secure connectivity principles for Operational Technology (OT)
January 14, 2026
Operational technology (OT) environments – which have long been centred on safety, uptime, and operational continuity – are now more interconnected than ever. Driven by the need for increased efficiency, agility, and integration, these advancements offer significant operational benefits (such as real-time analytics, predictive maintenance and remote monitoring & administration), but they also introduce risks. Organisations ...
- China: Authorities tell domestic companies to stop using US and Israeli cybersecurity software
January 14, 2026
Chinese authorities have told domestic companies to stop using cybersecurity software made by more than a dozen firms from the U.S. and Israel due to national security concerns, three people briefed on the matter said. As trade and diplomatic tensions flare between China and the U.S. and both sides vie for tech supremacy, Beijing has been ...
- Hackers claim to have Target source code for sale following recent cyberattack
January 13, 2026
Hackers are apparently selling internal source code stolen from American retail giant Target. A previously unknown threat actor posted in an underground hacking community to claim they were selling Target’s data, and that this was the first of many datasets to go on auction. To support their claim, the poster created multiple repositories on Gitea, a ...
- Why iPhone users should update and restart their devices now
January 13, 2026
If you were still questioning whether iOS 26+ is for you, now is the time to make that call. Why? On December 12, 2025, Apple patched two WebKit zero‑day vulnerabilities linked to mercenary spyware and is now effectively pushing iPhone 11 and newer users toward iOS 26+, because that’s where the fixes and new memory ...
- Threat Brief: MongoDB Vulnerability (CVE-2025-14847)
January 13, 2026
On Dec. 19, 2025, MongoDB publicly disclosed MongoBleed, a security vulnerability (CVE-2025-14847) that allows unauthenticated attackers to leak sensitive heap memory by exploiting a trust issue in how MongoDB Server handles zlib-compressed network messages. This flaw occurs prior to authentication, meaning an attacker only needs network access to the database’s default port to trigger it. Read more… Source: ...