- Zimbra 0-day used to target international government organizations
November 16, 2023
In June 2023, Google’s Threat Analysis Group (TAG) discovered an in-the-wild 0-day exploit targeting Zimbra Collaboration, an email server many organizations use to host their email. Since discovering the 0-day, now patched as CVE-2023-37580, TAG has observed four different groups exploiting the same bug to steal email data, user credentials, and authentication tokens. Most of this ...
- #StopRansomware: Rhysida Ransomware
November 15, 2023
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), and the MultiState Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC) are releasing this joint CSA to disseminate known Rhysida ransomware IOCs and TTPs identified through investigations as recently as September 2023. Rhysida – an emerging ransomware variant – has predominately been deployed against the education, ...
- TA402 Uses Complex IronWind Infection Chains to Target Middle East-Based Government Entities
November 14, 2023
In mid-2023, Proofpoint researchers first identified TA402 (Molerats, Gaza Cybergang, Frankenstein, WIRTE) activity using a labyrinthine infection chain to target Middle Eastern governments with a new initial access downloader Proofpoint has dubbed IronWind. From July through October 2023, TA402 utilized three variations of this infection chain—Dropbox links, XLL file attachments, and RAR file attachments—with each variant ...
- Australia: Defence recalls cybersecurity coordinator Air Marshal Darren Goldie
November 14, 2023
The senior Air Force officer recently appointed as the National Cyber Security Coordinator has been recalled to Defence to deal with what the department describes as a “workplace matter”. The government said in a statement that Department of Home Affairs Deputy Secretary of Cyber and Infrastructure Security Hamish Hansford would act as National Cyber Security Coordinator ...
- UK: Government has never paid a ransomware demand, minister says
November 7, 2023
The government has announced that it has never paid a ransom demanded by cybercriminals – and pledged that it never will. The announcement – made to tie in with last week’s meeting of members of the international Counter Ransomware Initiative – rubber-stamps what the government said “has been a long-standing policy but … the first ...
- Do government sanctions against ransomware groups work?
November 2, 2023
Earlier this year, the U.S. government imposed sanctions against Russian national Mikhail Matveev, an FBI most-wanted cybercriminal, who authorities accuse of being a “prolific ransomware affiliate” involved in cyberattacks in the United States and overseas. Authorities say Matveev played a major role in the development and deployment of the Hive, LockBit and Babuk ransomware variants, ...
- Over the Kazuar’s nest: Cracking down on a freshly hatched backdoor used by Pensive Ursa
October 31, 2023
While tracking the evolution of Pensive Ursa (aka Turla, Uroburos), Unit 42 researchers came across a new, upgraded variant of Kazuar. Not only is Kazuar another name for the enormous and dangerous cassowary bird, Kazuar is an advanced and stealthy .NET backdoor that Pensive Ursa usually uses as a second stage payload. Pensive Ursa is a ...
- Canada bans Chinese app WeChat from government devices
October 30, 2023
Canada has announced it will ban WeChat on government devices. The Chinese-owned app is sometimes referred to as the “everything app” – like WhatsApp, Facebook, Amazon and Tinder all in one. However Western governments have security concerns about it, mainly that the app could be used to spy on users. WeChat is one of the most ...
- Philippines’ cybersecurity failures exposed as hackers leak state secrets, people’s data
October 22, 2023
All it apparently took for one Philippine hacker to break into a government website was “Admin123” – a password that reflects what experts say is the authorities’ lax attitude towards cybersecurity that not only leaves millions of Filipinos vulnerable to identity theft but has exposed some of the country’s top military secrets. On October 3, ...
- Irish-linked spyware used in brazen attacks
October 21, 2023
The Irish government is set to investigate a digital surveillance alliance that has been accused of letting its smartphone spyware “run wild across the world”, BBC News NI understands. It comes after Intellexa Limited and its parent company Thalestris were named in a damning report by a leading human rights body. The firms are registered at ...
- Kaspersky uncovers APT campaign targeting APAC government entities
October 17, 2023
Kaspersky researchers have discovered a persistent campaign compromising a specific type of secure USB drive used to provide encryption for safe data storage. Dubbed “TetrisPhantom,” this espionage effort targets government entities in the Asia-Pacific region (APAC), and shows no discernible overlap with any known threat actor. These and other findings are detailed in Kaspersky’s new ...
- Thailand: House of Representatives’ Website Hacked, Cyber Attack Investigation Underway
October 16, 2023
The House of Representatives’ website fell victim to a cyber attack on Sunday, October 15, 2023. The hackers, who go by the name 3MUSKETEERZ, managed to breach the website’s security and display a picture of a troll in the photo journal section. Additionally, the perpetrators altered the press releases and committee schedules featured on the site. ...
- Stayin’ Alive – targeted attacks against telecoms and government ministries in Asia
October 11, 2023
In the last few months, Check Point Research has been tracking “Stayin’ Alive”, an ongoing campaign that has been active since at least 2021. The campaign operates in Asia, primarily targeting the Telecom industry, as well as government organizations. The “Stayin’ Alive” campaign consists of mostly downloaders and loaders, some of which are used as ...
- ‘Predator Files’ spyware scandal reveals brazen targeting of civil society, politicians and officials
October 9, 2023
Shocking spyware attacks have been attempted against civil society, journalists, politicians and academics in the European Union (EU), USA and Asia, according to a major new investigation by Amnesty International. Among the targets of Predator spyware are United Nations (UN) officials, a Senator and Congressman in the USA and even the Presidents of the European ...
- Budworm: APT Group Uses Updated Custom Tool in Attacks on Government and Telecoms Org
September 28, 2023
The Budworm advanced persistent threat (APT) group continues to actively develop its toolset. Most recently, the Threat Hunter Team in Symantec, part of Broadcom, discovered Budworm using an updated version of one of its key tools to target a Middle Eastern telecommunications organization and an Asian government. Both attacks occurred in August 2023. Budworm (aka LuckyMouse, ...
- Rare Backdoors Suspected to be Tied to Gelsemium APT Found in Targeted Attack in Southeast Asian Government
September 22, 2023
A cluster of threat actor activity that Unit 42 observed attacking a Southeast Asian government target could provide insight into a rarely seen, stealthy APT group known as Gelsemium. The researchers found this activity as part of an investigation into compromised environments within a Southeast Asian government. Unit 42 researchers identified the cluster as CL-STA-0046. This unique ...
- Bermuda: Governor Confirms A ‘Major Cyber-Attack’
September 22, 2023
“Bermuda’s Government IT systems were subjected to a major cyber-attack” and the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre and the National Crime Agency “have been in contact with the Bermuda authorities, and are providing advice to support them,” Governor Rena Lalgie said. The Governor said, “Yesterday Bermuda’s Government IT systems were subjected to a major cyber-attack. That ...
- HWL Ebsworth hack: 65 Australian government agencies affected by cyber-attack
September 18, 2023
Sixty-five Australian government departments and agencies were victims of the cyber-attack on legal firm HWL Ebsworth, the national cybersecurity coordinator has revealed. In a speech on Monday, Air Marshal Darren Goldie also revealed that some people and clients with personal information exposed in the hack have yet to be informed. The Russian-linked ALPHV/BlackCat ransomware group hacked the law ...
- Kuwait’s finance ministry says cyberattack hit one of its systems
September 18, 2023
Kuwait’s finance ministry said on Monday that one of its systems had suffered a cyberattack in the early morning but that the ministry continued to work normally. The ministry said in a statement that protection systems and procedures had been activated and “the level of the hacking attempt is being assessed.” Read more… Source: Alarabiya News
- China denies iPhone ban for officials but notes its ‘security incidents’
September 13, 2023
Just hours after Apple wrapped up its annual product launch for the hotly anticipated iPhone 15, the Chinese government denied reports that it had banned officials from using the smartphones — and then noted recent “security incidents” involving the devices. “China has not issued any legislation, regulations or policy documents prohibiting the purchase and use of ...