Attackers are increasingly exploiting Windows shortcut (LNK) files for malware delivery. Palo Alto Unit 42 telemetry revealed 21,098 malicious LNK samples in 2023, which surged to 68,392 in 2024.
In this article, Unit 42 researchers present an in-depth investigation of LNK malware, based on analysis of 30,000 recent samples. Windows shortcut files use the .lnk file extension and function as a virtual link that allows people to easily access other files without having to navigate through multiple folders on a Windows host. The flexibility of LNK files makes them a powerful tool for attackers, as they can both execute malicious content and masquerade as legitimate files to deceive victims into unintentionally launching malware.
Read more…
Source: Palo Alto Unit 42
Sign up for the Cyber Security Review Newsletter
The latest news and insights delivered right to your inbox.
Related:
- Apple Patches Three Actively Exploited Zero-Days, Part of iOS Emergency Update
January 27, 2021
Apple continues to put out potential security fires by patching zero-day vulnerabilities, releasing an emergency update this week to patch three more recently discovered in iOS after a major software update in November already fixed three that were being actively exploited. The newly patched bugs are part of a security update released Tuesday for iOS 14.4 ...
- A look at Linux, Threats, Risks, and Recommendations
January 26, 2021
Linux, which started as a personal project 30 years ago, is presently one of the most powerful operating systems dominating cloud platforms and servers around the world today. In fact, Linux usage has now exceeded that of Windows on Azure, Microsoft’s own cloud platform. Linux is also undeniably ubiquitous. According to the Linux Foundation’s 2017 State ...
- DreamBus botnet targets enterprise apps running on Linux servers
January 25, 2021
Chances are that if you deploy a Linux server online these days and you leave even the tiniest weakness exposed, a cybercrime group will ensnare it as part of its botnet. The latest of these threats is named DreamBus. Analyzed in a report published last week by security firm Zscaler, the company said this new threat is ...
- Another ransomware now uses DDoS attacks to force victims to pay
January 24, 2021
Another ransomware gang is now using DDoS attacks to force a victim to contact them and negotiate a ransom. In October 2020, we reported that ransomware gangs were beginning to utilize DDoS attacks against a victims’ network or web site as an extra tool to force them to pay a ransom. At the time, the two ...
- Russian government warns of US retaliatory cyberattacks
January 23, 2021
The Russian government has issued a security warning to organizations in Russia about possible retaliatory cyberattacks by the USA for the SolarWinds breach. Last month, the SolarWinds network management company disclosed that they suffered a sophisticated cyberattack that led to a supply chain attack affecting 18,000 customers. The US government believes that this attack was conducted by ...
- SonicWall firewall maker hacked using zero-day in its VPN device
January 23, 2021
Security hardware manufacturer SonicWall has issued an urgent security notice about threat actors exploiting a zero-day vulnerability in their VPN products to perform attacks on their internal systems. SonicWall is a well-known manufacturer of hardware firewall devices, VPN gateways, and network security solutions whose products are commonly used in SMB/SME and large enterprise organizations. On Friday night, ...