Tag: cyberattack

CISA and Partners Release Joint Cybersecurity Advisory on Newly Identified Truebot Malware Variants

Agency News, Cyber Security CII sector, Industry News

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC), and the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security (CCCS) released a joint Cybersecurity Advisory (CSA), Increased Truebot Activity Infects U.S. and Canada Based Networks, to help organizations detect and protect against newly identified Truebot malware variants. Based on confirmation from open-source reporting and analytical findings of Truebot variants, the four organizations assess cyber threat actors leveraged the malware through phishing campaigns containing malicious redirect hyperlinks.

Additionally, newer versions of Truebot malware allow malicious actors to gain initial access by exploiting a known vulnerability with Netwrix Auditor application (CVE-2022-31199). As recently as May 2023, cyber threat actors used this common vulnerability and exposure to deliver new Truebot malware variants and to collect and exfiltrate information against organizations in the U.S. and Canada.

CISA, FBI, MS-ISAC, and the CCCS encourage all organizations to review this joint advisory and implement the recommended mitigations contained therein—including applying patches to CVE-2022-31199, to reduce the likelihood and impact of Truebot activity, as well as other ransomware related incidents.

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CISA and Partners Release Cybersecurity Advisory Guidance detailing PRC state-sponsored actors evading detection by “Living off the Land”

Agency News, Cyber Security CII sector, Industry News

The Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) joined the National Security Agency (NSA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and international partners in releasing a joint cybersecurity advisory highlighting recently discovered activities conducted by a People’s Republic of China (PRC) state-sponsored cyber threat actor.

This advisory highlights how PRC cyber actors use techniques called “living off the land” to evade detection by using built-in networking administration tools to compromise networks and conduct malicious activity. This enables the cyber actor to blend in with routine Windows system and network activities, limit activity and data captured in default logging configurations, and avoid endpoint detection and response (EDR) products that could alert to the introduction of third-party applications on the host or network. Private sector partners have identified that this activity affects networks across U.S. critical infrastructure sectors, and the authoring agencies believe the actor could apply the same techniques against these and other sectors worldwide.

The authoring agencies have identified potential indicators associated with these techniques. To hunt for this activity, CISA and partners encourage network defenders to use the actor’s commands and detection signatures provided in this advisory. CISA and partners further encourage network defenders to view the indicators of compromise (IOCs) and mitigations summaries to detect this activity.

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Germany and Ukraine hit two high-value ransomware targets

Agency News, Cyber Security CII sector, Industry News

The German Regional Police (Landeskriminalamt Nordrhein-Westfalen) and the Ukrainian National Police (Націона́льна полі́ція Украї́ни), with support from Europol, the Dutch Police (Politie) and the United States Federal Bureau of Investigations, targeted suspected core members of the criminal group responsible for carrying out large-scale cyberattacks with the DoppelPaymer ransomware.

This ransomware appeared in 2019, when cybercriminals started using it to launch attacks against organisations and critical infrastructure and industries. Based on the BitPaymer ransomware and part of the Dridex malware family, DoppelPaymer used a unique tool capable of compromising defence mechanisms by terminating the security-related process of the attacked systems. The DoppelPaymer attacks were enabled by the prolific EMOTET malware.

The ransomware was distributed through various channels, including phishing and spam emails with attached documents containing malicious code — either JavaScript or VBScript. The criminal group behind this ransomware relied on a double extortion scheme, using a leak website launched by the criminal actors in early 2020. German authorities are aware of 37 victims of this ransomware group, all of them companies. One of the most serious attacks was perpetrated against the University Hospital in Düsseldorf. In the US, victims payed at least 40 million euros between May 2019 and March 2021.

During the simultaneous actions, German officers raided the house of a German national, who is believed to have played a major role in the DoppelPaymer ransomware group. Investigators are currently analysing the seized equipment to determine the suspect’s exact role in the structure of the ransomware group. At the same time, and despite the current extremely difficult security situation that Ukraine is currently facing due to the invasion by Russia, Ukrainian police officers interrogated a Ukrainian national who is also believed to be a member of the core DoppelPaymer group. The Ukrainian officers searched two locations, one in Kiev and one in Kharkiv. During the searches, they seized electronic equipment, which is currently under forensic examination.
Europol on-site to speed up forensic analysis of seized data

On the action days, Europol deployed three experts to Germany to cross-check operational information against Europol’s databases and to provide further operational analysis, crypto tracing and forensic support. The analysis of this data and other related cases is expected to trigger further investigative activities. Europol also set up a Virtual Command Post to connect the investigators and experts from Europol, Germany, Ukraine, the Netherlands and the United States in real time and to coordinate activities during the house searches. Europol’s Joint Cybercrime Action Taskforce (J-CAT) also supported the operation. This standing operational team consists of cybercrime liaison officers from different countries who work on high-profile cybercrime investigations.

From the beginning of the investigation, Europol facilitated the exchange of information, coordinated the international law enforcement cooperation and supported the operational activities. Europol also provided analytical support by linking available data to various criminal cases within and outside the EU, and supported the investigation with cryptocurrency, malware, decryption and forensic analysis.

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UK and allies expose Iranian state agency for exploiting cyber vulnerabilities for ransomware operations

Agency News, Cyber Security CII sector, Industry News

The UK and international allies have issued a joint cyber security advisory highlighting that cyber actors affiliated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) are exploiting vulnerabilities to launch ransomware operations against multiple sectors.

Iranian-state APT actors have been observed actively targeting known vulnerabilities on unprotected networks, including in critical national infrastructure (CNI) organisations.

The advisory, published by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) − a part of GCHQ − alongside agencies from the US, Australia and Canada, sets out tactics and techniques used by the actors, as well as steps for organisations to take to mitigate the risk of compromise.

It updates an advisory issued in November 2021 which provided information about Iranian APT actors exploiting known Fortinet and Microsoft Exchange vulnerabilities.

They are now assessed to be affiliated to the IRGC and are continuing to exploit these vulnerabilities, as well as the Log4j vulnerabilities, to provide them with initial access, leading to further malicious activity including data extortion and disk encryption.

Paul Chichester, NCSC Director of Operations, said:

"This malicious activity by actors affiliated with Iran’s IRGC poses an ongoing threat and we are united with our international partners in calling it out.

“We urge UK organisations to take this threat seriously and follow the advisory’s recommendations to mitigate the risk of compromise.”

The NCSC urges organisations to follow the mitigation set out in the advisory, including:

- Keeping systems and software updated and prioritising remediating known exploited vulnerabilities
- Enforcing multi-factor authentication
- Making offline backups of your data

This advisory has been issued by the NCSC, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the National Security Agency (NSA), US Cyber Command (USCC), Department of the Treasury (DoT), the Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) and the Canadian Centre for Cybersecurity (CCCS).

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NCSC advises organisations to act following Russia’s attack on Ukraine

Agency News, Cyber Security CII sector, Industry News

Following Russia’s unprovoked, premeditated attack on Ukraine, the National Cyber Security Centre continues to call upon on organisations in the UK, and beyond, to bolster their online defences.

The NCSC – which is a part of GCHQ – has urged organisations to follow its guidance on steps to take when the cyber threat is heightened.

While the NCSC is not aware of any current specific threats to UK organisations in relation to events in and around Ukraine, there has been an historical pattern of cyber attacks on Ukraine with international consequences.

The guidance encourages organisations to follow actionable steps that reduce the risk of falling victim to an attack.

For the NCSC Guidance visit https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/guidance/actions-to-take-when-the-cyber-threat-is-heightened

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CISA and FBI Publish Advisory to Protect Organizations from Destructive Malware Used in Ukraine

Agency News, Cyber Security CII sector, Industry News

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) issued a joint Cybersecurity Advisory today providing an overview of destructive malware that has been used to target organizations in Ukraine as well as guidance on how organizations can detect and protect their networks. The joint Advisory, “Destructive Malware Targeting Organizations in Ukraine,” provides information on WhisperGate and HermeticWiper malware, both used to target organizations in Ukraine.

Destructive malware can present a direct threat to an organization’s daily operations, impacting the availability of critical assets and data. While there is no specific, credible threat to the United States at this time, all organizations should assess and bolster their cybersecurity. Some immediate actions that can be taken to strengthen cyber posture include:

- Enable multifactor authentication;
- Set antivirus and antimalware programs to conduct regular scans;
- Enable strong spam filters to prevent phishing emails from reaching end users;
- Update software; and
- Filter network traffic.

“In the wake of continued denial of service and destructive malware attacks affecting Ukraine and other countries in the region, CISA has been working hand-in-hand with our partners to identify and rapidly share information about malware that could threaten the operations of critical infrastructure here in the U.S.,” said CISA Director Jen Easterly. “Our public and private sector partners in the Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative (JCDC), international computer emergency readiness team (CERT) partners, and our long-time friends at the FBI are all working together to help organizations reduce their cyber risk.”

"The FBI alongside our federal partners continues to see malicious cyber activity that is targeting our critical infrastructure sector," said FBI Cyber Division Assistant Director Bryan Vorndran. "We are striving to disrupt and diminish these threats, however we cannot do this alone, we continue to share information with our public and private sector partners and encourage them to report any suspicious activity. We ask that organizations continue to shore up their systems to prevent any increased impediment in the event of an incident."

Executives and leaders are encouraged to review the advisory, assess their environment for atypical channels for malware delivery and/or propagation through their systems, implement common strategies, and ensure appropriate contingency planning and preparation in the event of a cyberattack.

CISA has updated the Shields Up webpage to include new services and resources, recommendations for corporate leaders and chief executive officers, and actions to protect critical assets. Additionally, CISA has created a new Shields Up Technical Guidance webpage that details other malicious cyber activity affecting Ukraine. The webpage includes technical resources from partners to assist organizations against these threats.

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CISA Issue Apache Log4j Vulnerability Guidance

Agency News, Association News, Cyber Security CII sector

CISA and its partners, through the Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative, are responding to active, widespread exploitation of a critical remote code execution (RCE) vulnerability (CVE-2021-44228) in Apache’s Log4j software library, versions 2.0-beta9 to 2.14.1, known as "Log4Shell" and "Logjam." Log4j is very broadly used in a variety of consumer and enterprise services, websites, and applications—as well as in operational technology products—to log security and performance information. An unauthenticated remote actor could exploit this vulnerability to take control of an affected system.

Apache released Log4j version 2.15.0 in a security update to address the CVE-2021-44228 vulnerability. However, in order for the vulnerability to be remediated in products and services that use affected versions of Log4j, the maintainers of those products and services must implement this security update. Users of such products and services should refer to the vendors of these products/services for security updates. Given the severity of the vulnerability and the likelihood of an increase in exploitation by sophisticated cyber threat actors, CISA urges vendors and users to take the following actions.

Vendors
Immediately identify, mitigate, and patch affected products using Log4j.
Inform your end users of products that contain this vulnerability and strongly urge them to prioritize software updates.
Affected Organizations
In addition to the immediate actions—to (1) enumerate external-facing devices that have Log4j, (2) ensure your SOC actions alerts on these devices, and (3) install a WAF with rules that automatically update—as noted in the box above, review CISA's upcoming GitHub repository

for a list of affected vendor information and apply software updates as soon as they are available. See Actions for Organizations Running Products with Log4j below for additional guidance. Note: CISA has added CVE-2021-44228 to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog, which was created according to Binding Operational Directive (BOD) 22-01: Reducing the Significant Risk of Known Exploited Vulnerabilities. In accordance with BOD 22-01, federal civilian executive branch agencies must mitigate CVE-2021-44228 by December 24, 2021.

Technical Details

This RCE vulnerability—affecting Apache’s Log4j library, versions 2.0-beta9 to 2.14.1—exists in the action the Java Naming and Directory Interface (JNDI) takes to resolve variables. According to the CVE-2021-44228 listing, affected versions of Log4j contain JNDI features—such as message lookup substitution—that "do not protect against adversary-controlled LDAP [Lightweight Directory Access Protocol] and other JNDI related endpoints."

An adversary can exploit this vulnerability by submitting a specially crafted request to a vulnerable system that causes that system to execute arbitrary code. The request allows the adversary to take full control over the system. The adversary can then steal information, launch ransomware, or conduct other malicious activity.
Actions for Organizations Running Products with Log4j

CISA recommends affected entities:

Review Apache’s Log4j Security Vulnerabilities page for additional information and, if appropriate, apply the provided workaround:
In releases >=2.10, this behavior can be mitigated by setting either the system property log4j2.formatMsgNoLookups or the environment variable LOG4J_FORMAT_MSG_NO_LOOKUPS to true.
For releases from 2.7 through 2.14.1 all PatternLayout patterns can be modified to specify the message converter as %m{nolookups} instead of just %m.
For releases from 2.0-beta9 to 2.7, the only mitigation is to remove the JndiLookup class from the classpath: zip -q -d log4j-core-*.jar org/apache/logging/log4j/core/lookup/JndiLookup.class.
Apply available patches immediately. See CISA's upcoming GitHub repository for known affected products and patch information.

Prioritize patching, starting with mission critical systems, internet-facing systems, and networked servers. Then prioritize patching other affected information technology and operational technology assets.
Until patches are applied, set log4j2.formatMsgNoLookups to true by adding -Dlog4j2.formatMsgNoLookups=True to the Java Virtual Machine command for starting your application. Note: this may impact the behavior of a system’s logging if it relies on Lookups for message formatting. Additionally, this mitigation will only work for versions 2.10 and above.
As stated above, BOD 22-01 directs federal civilian agencies to mitigate CVE-2021-44228 by December 24, 2021, as part of the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog.

Conduct a security review to determine if there is a security concern or compromise. The log files for any services using affected Log4j versions will contain user-controlled strings.
Consider reporting compromises immediately to CISA and the FBI.
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Joint global ransomware operation sees arrests and criminal network dismantled

Agency News, Cyber Security CII sector, Industry News

A four-year operation across five continents has disrupted a ransomware cybercrime gang and seen the arrest of seven suspects believed to be behind global malware crime operations.

Codenamed ‘Quicksand’ (GoldDust) and carried out by 19 law enforcement agencies in 17 countries, the transcontinental operation saw officers collect and examine intelligence to establish a global threat picture about attacks by ransomware families - particularly GandCrab and Revil-Sodinokibi - and the suspects behind them.

The organized crime group that used these malwares is known for breaking into business and private networks using a range of infiltration techniques, and then deploying ransomware against their victims. The ransomware then encrypts files which are then used to blackmail companies and people into paying huge ransoms.

The suspects arrested during Operation Quicksand are suspected of perpetrating tens of thousands of ransomware infections and demanding more than EUR 200 million in ransom
Tangible results: multiple arrests worldwide

Intelligence exchanged during the operation enabled:

- Korean law enforcement to arrest three suspects in February, April and October;
- Kuwaiti authorities to arrest a man thought to have carried out ransomware attacks using the GandGrab ransomware;
- Romanian authorities to arrest two individuals suspected of ransomware cyber-attacks and believed to be responsible for 5,000 infections as well as half a million euros profit in ransom payments;
- The arrest of a man believed to be responsible for the Kaseya ransomware attack, thought to have been carried out last July by the REvil gang with more than 1,500 people and 1,000 businesses affected worldwide.

“Ransomware has become too large of a threat for any entity or sector to address alone; the magnitude of this challenge urgently demands united global action which INTERPOL can uniquely facilitate as a neutral and trusted global partner,” said INTERPOL Secretary General Jürgen Stock.

“Policing needs to harness the insights of the cyber security industry to identify and disrupt cyber criminals as part of a true coalition, working together to reduce the global impact of ransomware cybercrime,” added the Secretary General.

A powerful global coalition

A joint INTERPOL-Europol operation, Quicksand was coordinated from INTERPOL’s Cyber Fusion Centre in Singapore where stakeholders shared live intelligence in an interactive and secure environment via INTERPOL’s global network and capabilities.

Through INTERPOL’s Gateway project, INTERPOL’s private partners Trend Micro, CDI, Kaspersky Lab and Palo Alto Networks also contributed to investigations by sharing information and technical expertise.
Gateway boosts law enforcement and private industry partnerships to generate threat data from multiple sources and enable police authorities to prevent attacks.

Bitdefender supported operations by releasing tailor-made decryption tools to unlock ransomware and enable victims to recover files. These innovative tools enabled more than 1,400 companies to decrypt their networks, saving them almost EUR 475 million in potential losses.

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T-Mobile confirmed latest data breach affecting millions of customers

Industry News, Telecomms sector

US telecom giant T-Mobile has confirmed their latest data breach affecting nearly 8 million customers was accessed by a hacker, totaling five breaches in the last four years.

Their preliminary analysis showed that almost 8 million current postpaid customers and 40 million records of former or prospective customers, who had at one point applied for credit with the company, were taken in a 'highly sophisticated cyberattack.'

The latest in the series of hacks on the company's customers' data comes on the heels of two attacks in 2020, one in 2019, and another in 2018. This most recent breach is by far the largest.

News broke that a hacker was trying to sell T-Mobile customer data online, data they claimed to have gotten via compromised T-Mobile servers. They claimed the data contained names, addresses, social security numbers (SSN), driver license information, phone numbers and unique IMEI numbers.

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NCSC CEO warns that ransomware is key cyber threat

Agency News, Cyber Security CII sector, Industry News
The chief of the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre said ransomware was the key threat facing the UK and urged the public and business to take it seriously.
Speaking virtually to an audience at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) Annual Security Lecture, Lindy Cameron warned of the “cumulative effect” of failing to properly deal with the rising threat.
She also revealed the threat faced by think tanks, noting that it is “almost certain” that the primary cyber threat they face is from nation state espionage groups, and it is highly likely that they seek to gain strategic insights into government policy and commercially sensitive information.
The CEO of the NCSC – which is a part of GCHQ – also warned that for the vast majority of UK citizens and organisations, the primary key threat is not state actors but cyber criminals.
She highlighted the importance of building organisational cyber resilience which, in combination with government capabilities and law enforcement action, is the most effective way to counter threats in cyberspace.
Lindy Cameron said:
“For most UK citizens and businesses, and indeed for the vast majority of critical national infrastructure providers and government service providers, the primary key threat is not state actors but cyber criminals, and in particular the threat of ransomware.
“While government is uniquely able to disrupt and deter our adversaries, it is network defenders in industry, and the steps that all organisations and citizens are taking that are protecting the UK from attacks, day in, day out.
“The protection they provide is crucial to the digital transformation of the economy, and every organisation, large and small, has a role to play.”
On the recent rise in ransomware attacks, Lindy Cameron noted that the ecosystem is evolving through the Ransomware as a Service (RaaS) model, whereby ransomware variants and commodity listings are available off the shelf for a one-off payment or a share of the profits.
As the RaaS model has become increasingly successful, with criminal groups securing significant ransom payments from large profitable businesses who cannot afford to lose their data to encryption or to suffer the down time while their services are offline, the market for ransomware has become increasingly “professional”.
Elsewhere, Lindy Cameron also set out the context of the Integrated Review and forthcoming cyber strategy, highlighting the need to better integrate our security, economic, technical, and diplomatic capabilities in support of shared national objectives.
She outlined how our allies and adversaries alike are betting on cyber, and that the UK needs to continue setting the pace.
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