UK Electoral Commission hack and Microsoft’s role in China email breach
Cyberattack on the UK Electoral Commission exposes data of nearly 40 million voters, US cyber inquiry to investigate Microsoft’s role in China-backed email breach and the Knight spam campaign. Catch all this and more in this week’s edition of Cybersecurity Weekly.
Should you pay the ransom?
1. UK Electoral Commission breach exposes personal data of 40 million voters
The UK Electoral Commission has disclosed a data breach that enabled threat actors to access personal data of 40 million voters. The intruders' identities are presently unknown, and reports say they were able to access the Commission's control systems, hosting email and copies of the electoral registers. The registers had the name and addresses of voters registered between 2014 and 2022. While the breach did not jeopardize the registration or electoral process, the Commission urges voters to stay vigilant for potential data misuse.
2. U.S. Cyber Board to investigate Microsoft for its role in China-backed email breach
The U.S. Cyber Safety Review Board (CSRB) recently stated that it will probe risks associated with cloud computing. This will include an investigation of Microsoft Corp's involvement in a government email system breach, which is believed to be orchestrated by Chinese cybercriminals. Following this breach, Oregon Senator Ron Wyden urged action against Microsoft. This cyberattack allegedly granted hackers significant access to Microsoft's cloud-based email, impacting communications of key U.S. figures, including Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.
3. Knight ransomware found in an ongoing TripAdvisor spam campaign
BleepingComputer reports that malicious actors are distributing the Knight ransomware through spam campaigns cleverly disguised as TripAdvisor complaints. Knight is not entirely new; it's a rebranded version of the Cyclop Ransomware-as-a-Service, updated in July 2023. The ransomware tricks users into downloading and activating it, after which it encrypts their files and demands a Bitcoin ransom of $5,000. Experts advise against paying due to the high risk of not receiving a decryption tool.
4. Xiaomi’s MIUI blocks Telegram, which flags it as dangerous in China
Asian smartphone maker Xiaomi has halted Telegram installations on its MIUI devices. MIUI's 2022 update introduced a feature that blocks perceived malicious apps, with Telegram now on that list. Critics suggest this might be Xiaomi's alliance with the Chinese Community Party to surveil and censor user activities. The recent restriction of Telegram, branded as "dangerous," underscores China's growing ambition to oversee digital communications.
5. Cyber espionage group leveraging AiTM techniques to spy on diplomats
Belarus-affiliated APT "MoustachedBouncer" reportedly spied on staff across four embassies in Belarus, possibly exploiting the local ISP. ESET senior malware researcher, Matthieu Faou, revealed this espionage activity dating from 2017 to 2022 during a Black Hat presentation. The APT likely leveraged lawful interception technology, common in Belarus and Russia, at the ISP level. The group's tactics include redirecting users to fake Windows Update pages with malware capable of extensive data exfiltration. Faou emphasized the importance of VPNs for secure communications in such nations.
Phishing simulations & training
In this Series
- UK Electoral Commission hack and Microsoft’s role in China email breach
- Canada Flipper Zero ban and new RustDoor macOS malware
- AnyDesk hack and iPhone patched kernel flaw
- Tesla Pwn2Own hacks and iOS push alerts abuse
- TeamViewer breach and Atlassian Jira outage
- Moscow ISP revenge hack and Microsoft Sharepoint bug warning
- X verified accounts hack and SpectralBlur macOS malware
- CISA default password alert and SOHO KV-botnet campaign
- New 5G modem flaws and Apple’s data breach report
- Staples cyberattack, Agent Racoon backdoor and other news
- British Library ransomware attack, Windows fingerprint authentication bypass
- Samsung UK data breach and ransomware actor’s SEC complaint
- ICBC ransomware attack and ChatGPT outage
- Boeing Lockbit ransomware attack, Apple’s vulnerability and WhatsApp mods spyware
- Octo Tempest hacking group and new iLeakage attack
- Okta support system breach and Google Ads fake KeePass campaign
- Skype DarkGate malware, Shadow PC breach and AvosLocker ransomware warning
- 23andMe data theft, MGM’s $100M ransomware loss and the Azure VM breach
- Malicious Bing Chat ads and FBI’s dual ransomware warning
- T-Mobile app glitch and fake Booking.com pages
- Airbus data leak, Cisco Webex ad malware and €345 million TikTok fine
- New Apple iMessage exploit and CISA’s Apache RocketMQ warning
- Forever 21 data breach and Android BadBazaar espionage
- Duolingo data leak and the Met Police IT hack
- Discord.io data breach and Ivanti Avalanche vulnerabilities
- Salesforce email zero-day exploit and Microsoft Power Platform criticism
- Airlines disclose pilot data breach and the Microsoft Teams bug
- GravityRAT Android Trojan and new MOVEit Transfer flaw
- University of Manchester hack and Honda API flaws
- MOVEit zero-day exploit and the U.S. iPhone hack accusation
- Daam Android virus and Barracuda zero-day flaw
- TP-Link router exploit and 18-year-old charged with hacking DraftKings accounts
- Discord support hack and Toyota location data leak
- Twitter private tweets bug and Cisco phone router vulnerabilities
- Cisco XSS zero-day flaw and PaperCut vulnerabilities
- 3CX hackers hit critical infrastructure and secondhand routers cause security concerns
- Hyundai data breach and Microsoft’s warning to accountants
- Western Digital cloud breach and the MSI ransomware hack
- TMX loan data breach, Italy bans ChatGPT and WordPress Elementor Pro exploit
- ChatGPT data leak and Gmail message theft by North Korean hackers
- U.S. federal agency hack and the return of FakeCalls Android malware
- Massive AT&T data breach and fake jobs targeting security researchers
- U.S. Marshals service breach and TPM 2.0 security flaws
- Dangerous ChatGPT apps and food giant Dole ransomware attack
- GoDaddy malware installations, record-breaking DDoS attack and the new WhiskerSpy malware
- Reddit’s employees phished, healthcare firms targeted and the new Screenshotter malware
- JD Sports data breached, VMware ESXi servers attacked and the HeadCrab malware
- Yandex source code leaked, 4500+ WordPress sites hacked and the new SwiftSlicer malware
- PayPal accounts breached, Fortinet VPN flaw exploited, and the new Hook malware
- Twitter users’ emails leaked, ChatGPT used to write malware and Slack’s repository breach
- Uber data leaked, 48 DDoS-for-hire domains seized and Facebook posts phishing attack
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