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Xeon Sender Tool Exploits Cloud APIs for Large-Scale SMS Phishing Attacks
Malicious actors are using a cloud attack tool named Xeon Sender to conduct SMS phishing and spam campaigns on a large scale by abusing legitimate services. “Attackers can use Xeon to send messages through multiple software-as-a-service (SaaS) providers using valid credentials for the service providers,” SentinelOne security researcher Alex Delamotte said in a report shared…
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Microsoft Patches Zero-Day Flaw Exploited by North Korea’s Lazarus Group
A newly patched security flaw in Microsoft Windows was exploited as a zero-day by Lazarus Group, a prolific state-sponsored actor affiliated with North Korea. The security vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2024-38193 (CVSS score: 7.8), has been described as a privilege escalation bug in the Windows Ancillary Function Driver (AFD.sys) for WinSock. “An attacker who successfully exploited…
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OpenAI Blocks Iranian Influence Operation Using ChatGPT for U.S. Election Propaganda
OpenAI on Friday said it banned a set of accounts linked to what it said was an Iranian covert influence operation that leveraged ChatGPT to generate content that, among other things, focused on the upcoming U.S. presidential election. “This week we identified and took down a cluster of ChatGPT accounts that were generating content for…
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Attackers Exploit Public .env Files to Breach Cloud and Social Media Accounts
A large-scale extortion campaign has compromised various organizations by taking advantage of publicly accessible environment variable files (.env) that contain credentials associated with cloud and social media applications. “Multiple security missteps were present in the course of this campaign, including the following: Exposing environment variables, using long-lived credentials, and absence
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Russian Hacker Jailed 3+ Years for Selling Stolen Credentials on Dark Web
A 27-year-old Russian national has been sentenced to over three years in prison for peddling financial information, login credentials, and other personally identifying information (PII) on a now-defunct dark web marketplace called Slilpp. Georgy Kavzharadze, 27, of Moscow, Russia, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud earlier this…
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Russian Hackers Using Fake Brand Sites to Spread DanaBot and StealC Malware
Cybersecurity researchers have shed light on a sophisticated information stealer campaign that impersonates legitimate brands to distribute malware like DanaBot and StealC. The activity cluster, orchestrated by Russian-speaking cybercriminals and collectively codenamed Tusk, is said to encompass several sub-campaigns, leveraging the reputation of the platforms to trick users into downloading the
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Multi-Stage ValleyRAT Targets Chinese Users with Advanced Tactics
Chinese-speaking users are the target of an ongoing campaign that distributes malware known as ValleyRAT. “ValleyRAT is a multi-stage malware that utilizes diverse techniques to monitor and control its victims and deploy arbitrary plugins to cause further damage,” Fortinet FortiGuard Labs researchers Eduardo Altares and Joie Salvio said. “Another noteworthy characteristic of this malware is…
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The Hidden Security Gaps in Your SaaS Apps: Are You Doing Due Diligence?
SaaS applications have become indispensable for organizations aiming to enhance productivity and streamline operations. However, the convenience and efficiency these applications offer come with inherent security risks, often leaving hidden gaps that can be exploited. Conducting thorough due diligence on SaaS apps is essential to identify and mitigate these risks, ensuring the protection of your
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SolarWinds Releases Patch for Critical Flaw in Web Help Desk Software
SolarWinds has released patches to address a critical security vulnerability in its Web Help Desk software that could be exploited to execute arbitrary code on susceptible instances. The flaw, tracked as CVE-2024-28986 (CVSS score: 9.8), has been described as a deserialization bug. “SolarWinds Web Help Desk was found to be susceptible to a Java deserialization…
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Russian-Linked Hackers Target Eastern European NGOs and Media
Russian and Belarusian non-profit organizations, Russian independent media, and international non-governmental organizations active in Eastern Europe have become the target of two separate spear-phishing campaigns orchestrated by threat actors whose interests align with that of the Russian government. While one of the campaigns – dubbed River of Phish – has been attributed to COLDRIVER, an
