Malware, Phishing and Ransomware

Kaspersky researchers have uncovered a highly sophisticated cyberespionage campaign aimed at stealing information from South Asian diplomatic, government and military entities. The campaign lasted almost six years and had ties to other recent attacks detected in the region. Further investigation into the tools and methods used in the campaign led researchers to the conclusion that the attacker behind it is the PLATINUM group – a cyberespionage actor that they thought had gone. For the activity...

Kaspersky Lab researchers have uncovered a worrying rise in malware designed to steal credentials and money from users’ bank accounts: in Q1 2019, researchers found 29,841 files of such malware, up from 18,501 in Q4 2018. Overall, attacks on more than 300,000 users were detected. These are among the main findings of Kaspersky Lab’s IT threat evolution in Q1 2019 report. Mobile banking Trojans are one of the most rapidly-developing, flexible and dangerous types of...

Nyotron, provider of the industry's first OS-Centric Positive Security solution to strengthen endpoint protection, today published the results of its study of the efficacy of leading antivirus (AV) solutions against known malware, including samples that first appeared over 20 years ago, such as 2001’s infamous ILOVEYOU virus. The top findings: even for decades-old malware, detection rarely lives up to vendors’ claims of 99.9% efficacy, and that rate drops dramatically with easy file modification or when...

The cost to companies from malware and “malicious insider”-related cyberattacks jumped 12 percent in 2018 and accounted for one-third of all cyberattack costs, according to new research published today by Accenture (NYSE: ACN) and the Ponemon Institute. Based on interviews with more than 2,600 security and information technology (IT) professionals at 355 organisations worldwide, Accenture’s 2019 "Cost of Cybercrime Study" found that the cost to companies due to malware increased 11 percent, to more than...

Kaspersky Lab technologies have automatically detected a new exploited vulnerability in the Microsoft Windows OS kernel, the third consecutive zero-day exploit to be discovered in three months. The latest exploited vulnerability (CVE-2018-8611) was found in malware targeting a small number of victims in the Middle East and Asia. Because the vulnerability exists in the kernel mode module of the operating system, the exploit is particularly dangerous and can be used to bypass built-in exploit mitigation...

Mac-based malware has appeared on the list of the top ten most common types of malware for the first time in WatchGuard’s quarterly Internet Security Report. The Mac scareware appeared in sixth place in WatchGuard’s latest Q3 2018 report and is primarily delivered by email to trick victims into installing fake cleaning software. The new report also found that 6.8 percent of the world’s top 100,000 websites still accept old, insecure versions of the SSL...

Highlights: Barracuda extends its award-winning CloudGen WAF to Google Cloud Platform (GCP) to help customers defend against advanced layer 7 threats, OWASP Top 10, bots, DDoS, and zero-day threats. Well-architected, frictionless deployment, with flexible billing options. Automation first ethos helps SecOps better collaborate with DevOps and NetOps to easily deploy application security. Barracuda Networks, Inc., a leading provider of cloud-enabled security and data protection solutions, today announced the availability of its CloudGen WAF on Google...

If you're a security professional who has pondered the question of how to visually demonstrate the nastiness of malware, then wonder no more! Lastline, a leading advanced network based malware protection company  announced today the launch of Maltoons™, malware cartoons designed to help media and security professionals visualize and raise awareness of malware, cybercrime tactics, and defense strategies. The program employs Lastline’s expertise in advanced malware behavior towards helping potential victims visualize and remain vigilant in...

Two new reports from lead author Professor Nick Jennings of Imperial College London and other cybersecurity experts assert that device manufacturers have a larger burden to protect consumers from cybersecurity attacks than the device users themselves. The report points out that although it’s important for users to be as proactive as possible in that regard, many people don’t know the most effective ways to do so. It suggests using a safety mark system that acts...

Kaspersky Lab’s Global Research and Analysis Team has discovered a new sophisticated wiper malware, called StoneDrill. Just like another infamous wiper, Shamoon, it destroys everything on the infected computer. StoneDrill also features advanced anti-detection techniques and espionage tools in its arsenal. In addition to targets in the Middle East, one StoneDrill target has also been discovered in Europe, where wipers used in the Middle East have not previously been spotted in the wild. In 2012,...