Cyber Security

May 27, 2023Ravie LakshmananAPI Security / Vulnerability A critical security vulnerability has been disclosed in the Open Authorization (OAuth) implementation of the application development framework Expo.io. The shortcoming, assigned the CVE identifier CVE-2023-28131, has a severity rating of 9.6 on the CVSS scoring system. API security firm Salt Labs said the issue rendered services using

A new stealthy information stealer malware called Bandit Stealer has caught the attention of cybersecurity researchers for its ability to target numerous web browsers and cryptocurrency wallets. “It has the potential to expand to other platforms as Bandit Stealer was developed using the Go programming language, possibly allowing cross-platform compatibility,” Trend Micro said in a

Security researchers have shared a deep dive into the commercial Android spyware called Predator, which is marketed by the Israeli company Intellexa (previously Cytrox). Predator was first documented by Google’s Threat Analysis Group (TAG) in May 2022 as part of attacks leveraging five different zero-day flaws in the Chrome web browser and Android. The spyware,

May 26, 2023Ravie LakshmananData Safety / Cloud Security A new security flaw has been disclosed in the Google Cloud Platform’s (GCP) Cloud SQL service that could be potentially exploited to obtain access to confidential data. “The vulnerability could have enabled a malicious actor to escalate from a basic Cloud SQL user to a full-fledged sysadmin

May 26, 2023Ravie LakshmananICS/SCADA Security A new strain of malicious software that’s engineered to penetrate and disrupt critical systems in industrial environments has been unearthed. Google-owned threat intelligence firm Mandiant dubbed the malware COSMICENERGY, adding it was uploaded to a public malware scanning utility in December 2021 by a submitter in Russia. There is no

May 25, 2023Ravie LakshmananNetwork Security / Vulnerability Zyxel has released software updates to address two critical security flaws affecting select firewall and VPN products that could be abused by remote attackers to achieve code execution. Both the flaws – CVE-2023-33009 and CVE-2023-33010 – are buffer overflow vulnerabilities and are rated 9.8 out of 10 on

May 25, 2023Ravie LakshmananGaming / Server Security A new botnet called Dark Frost has been observed launching distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks against the gaming industry. “The Dark Frost botnet, modeled after Gafgyt, QBot, Mirai, and other malware strains, has expanded to encompass hundreds of compromised devices,” Akamai security researcher Allen West said in a new

May 25, 2023Ravie LakshmananRansomware / Endpoint Security The Iranian threat actor known as Agrius is leveraging a new ransomware strain called Moneybird in its attacks targeting Israeli organizations. Agrius, also known as Pink Sandstorm (formerly Americium), has a track record of staging destructive data-wiping attacks aimed at Israel under the guise of ransomware infections. Microsoft

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May 24, 2023Ravie LakshmananCyber Threat / Web Security At least eight websites associated with shipping, logistics, and financial services companies in Israel were targeted as part of a watering hole attack. Tel Aviv-based cybersecurity company ClearSky attributed the attacks with low confidence to an Iranian threat actor tracked as Tortoiseshell, which is also called Crimson

May 24, 2023Ravie LakshmananCyber Espionage / Server Security The infamous Lazarus Group actor has been targeting vulnerable versions of Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) servers as an initial breach route to deploy malware on targeted systems. The findings come from the AhnLab Security Emergency response Center (ASEC), which detailed the advanced persistent threat’s (APT) continued

May 23, 2023Ravie LakshmananCyber Threat / Malware The North Korean advanced persistent threat (APT) group known as Kimsuky has been observed using a piece of custom malware called RandomQuery as part of a reconnaissance and information exfiltration operation. “Lately, Kimsuky has been consistently distributing custom malware as part of reconnaissance campaigns to enable subsequent attacks,”

May 23, 2023Ravie LakshmananCyber Threat / APT Government and diplomatic entities in the Middle East and South Asia are the target of a new advanced persistent threat actor named GoldenJackal. Russian cybersecurity firm Kaspersky, which has been keeping tabs on the group’s activities since mid-2020, characterized the adversary as both capable and stealthy. The targeting

May 23, 2023Ravie LakshmananNational Security / Hardware China has banned U.S. chip maker Micron from selling its products to Chinese companies working on key infrastructure projects, citing national security risks. The development comes nearly two months after the country’s cybersecurity authority initiated a probe in late March 2023 to assess potential network security risks. “The

May 22, 2023Ravie LakshmananData Protection / Privacy Facebook’s parent company Meta has been fined a record $1.3 billion by European Union data protection regulators for transferring the personal data of users in the region to the U.S. In a binding decision taken by the European Data Protection Board (EDPB), the social media giant has been

May 22, 2023Ravie LakshmananCyber Espionage / Malware New findings about a hacker group linked to cyber attacks targeting companies in the Russo-Ukrainian conflict area reveal that it may have been around for much longer than previously thought. The threat actor, tracked as Bad Magic (aka Red Stinger), has not only been linked to a fresh

May 22, 2023Ravie LakshmananPassword Security / Exploit A proof-of-concept (PoC) has been made available for a security flaw impacting the KeePass password manager that could be exploited to recover a victim’s master password in cleartext under specific circumstances. The issue, tracked as CVE-2023-32784, impacts KeePass versions 2.x for Windows, Linux, and macOS, and is expected

May 19, 2023Ravie LakshmananArtificial Intelligence / Cyber Threat Malicious Google Search ads for generative AI services like OpenAI ChatGPT and Midjourney are being used to direct users to sketchy websites as part of a BATLOADER campaign designed to deliver RedLine Stealer malware. “Both AI services are extremely popular but lack first-party standalone apps (i.e., users