Eskenzi PR ad banner Eskenzi PR ad banner
  • About Us
Saturday, 25 March, 2023
IT Security Guru
Eskenzi PR banner
  • Home
  • Features
  • Insight
  • Events
    • Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2022
  • Topics
    • Cloud Security
    • Cyber Crime
    • Cyber Warfare
    • Data Protection
    • DDoS
    • Hacking
    • Malware, Phishing and Ransomware
    • Mobile Security
    • Network Security
    • Regulation
    • Skills Gap
    • The Internet of Things
    • Threat Detection
    • AI and Machine Learning
    • Industrial Internet of Things
  • Multimedia
  • Product Reviews
  • About Us
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Features
  • Insight
  • Events
    • Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2022
  • Topics
    • Cloud Security
    • Cyber Crime
    • Cyber Warfare
    • Data Protection
    • DDoS
    • Hacking
    • Malware, Phishing and Ransomware
    • Mobile Security
    • Network Security
    • Regulation
    • Skills Gap
    • The Internet of Things
    • Threat Detection
    • AI and Machine Learning
    • Industrial Internet of Things
  • Multimedia
  • Product Reviews
  • About Us
No Result
View All Result
IT Security Guru
No Result
View All Result

Case study: Lurk group's Angler exploit

by The Gurus
August 31, 2016
in Editor's News
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

At the beginning of the summer, Kaspersky Lab assisted in the arrest of suspects that were part of the Lurk gang, which allegedly stole more than 45 million dollars from a number of companies and banks in Russia. It was the largest financial cybercrime group to be caught in recent years. However, this wasn’t the only cybercriminal activity Lurk group has been involved in. According to analysis of the IT infrastructure behind the Lurk malware, its operators were developing and renting their exploit kit out to other cybercriminals. Their Angler exploit kit is a set of malicious programs capable of exploiting vulnerabilities in widespread software and silently installing additional malware on PCs.
For years, the Angler exploit kit was one of the most powerful tools on the underground available for hackers. Angler activity dates back to late 2013, when the kit became available for hire. Multiple cybecriminal groups involved in propagating different kinds of malware used it: from adware to banking malware and ransomware. In particular, this exploit kit was actively used by the group behind CryptXXX ransomware – one of the most active and dangerous ransomware threats online, TeslaCrypt and others. Angler was also used to propagate the Neverquest banking trojan, which was built to attack nearly 100 different banks. The operations of Angler were disrupted right after the arrest of the Lurk group.
As research conducted by Kaspersky Lab security experts has shown, the Angler exploit kit was originally created for a single purpose: to provide the Lurk group with a reliable and efficient delivery channel, allowing their banking malware to target PCs. Being a very closed group, Lurk tried to accumulate control over their crucial infrastructure instead of out-sourcing some parts of it as other groups do. However, in 2013, things changed for the gang, and they opened access to the kit to all who were willing to pay.
“We suggest that the Lurk gang’s decision to open access to Angler was partly provoked by necessity to pay bills. By the time they opened Angler for rent, the profitability of their main “business” – cyber-robbing organisations – was decreasing due to a set of security measures implemented by remote banking system software developers. These made the process of theft much harder for these hackers. However, by that time Lurk had a huge network infrastructure and a large number of “staff” – and everything had to be paid for. They therefore decided to expand their business, and they succeeded to a certain degree. While the Lurk banking trojan only posed a threat to Russian organisations, Angler has been used in attacks against users worldwide”, explained Ruslan Stoyanov, Head of Computer incident investigations department.
The Angler exploit kit – its development and support – wasn’t the only Lurk group side activity. Over more than a five year period, the group moved from creating very powerful malware for automated money theft with Remote Banking Services software, to sophisticated theft schemes involving SIM-card swap fraud and hacking specialists familiar with the inside infrastructure of banks.
All Lurk group actions during this time were monitored and documented by Kaspersky Lab security experts.

FacebookTweetLinkedIn
Tags: anglerCyber SecuritycybercrimeExploitinfosecurityLurkRansomware
ShareTweetShare
Previous Post

Growth In Cybercrime And Uptake Of Encryption Services May Save Blackberry

Next Post

Reported UK Data Breaches Soar 88% in a Year

Recent News

Synopsys discover new vulnerability in Pluck Content Management System

Synopsys discover new vulnerability in Pluck Content Management System

March 24, 2023
Dole Food Company

Dole confirms employee data was breached following February ransomware attack

March 24, 2023
call centre

MyCena Improves Customer Data Access Protection in Call Centers and BPOs

March 23, 2023
Blue logo, capitalised letters. SPECOPS.

Fortune 500 Company Names Found in Compromised Password Data

March 23, 2023

The IT Security Guru offers a daily news digest of all the best breaking IT security news stories first thing in the morning! Rather than you having to trawl through all the news feeds to find out what’s cooking, you can quickly get everything you need from this site!

Our Address: 10 London Mews, London, W2 1HY

Follow Us

© 2015 - 2019 IT Security Guru - Website Managed by Calm Logic

  • About Us
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Features
  • Insight
  • Events
    • Most Inspiring Women in Cyber 2022
  • Topics
    • Cloud Security
    • Cyber Crime
    • Cyber Warfare
    • Data Protection
    • DDoS
    • Hacking
    • Malware, Phishing and Ransomware
    • Mobile Security
    • Network Security
    • Regulation
    • Skills Gap
    • The Internet of Things
    • Threat Detection
    • AI and Machine Learning
    • Industrial Internet of Things
  • Multimedia
  • Product Reviews
  • About Us

© 2015 - 2019 IT Security Guru - Website Managed by Calm Logic

This site uses functional cookies and external scripts to improve your experience.

Privacy settings

Privacy Settings / PENDING

This site uses functional cookies and external scripts to improve your experience. Which cookies and scripts are used and how they impact your visit is specified on the left. You may change your settings at any time. Your choices will not impact your visit.

NOTE: These settings will only apply to the browser and device you are currently using.

GDPR Compliance

Powered by Cookie Information