Displaying items by tag: Security

A newly released CVE (common vulnerabilities and exposures) CVE-2021-4034 for Linux has identified a vulnerability in PolKit’s (formerly PolicyKit) pkexe that exists in very major release of Linux. The vulnerability known as PwnKit can be exploited to gain full root on a target system. The flaw, according to researchers has also been present for more than 12 years.

Irony is a funny thing especially when it is so blatantly obvious as in our example today. Google, owners of YouTube, Adsense and many other internet properties. Google has a history of policing content they do not agree with going so far as to demonetize and even ban differing options on topics such as the US 2nd amendment and de-prioritizing searches for topics that run counter to their viewpoint.

Dropbox, Google Docs and other cloud storage services are great tools for collaboration and to ensure that your files are kept, relatively, safe. These services can also be used by attackers with the right setup and files. The APT group know as Molerats is just such a group. They have been identified is several attacks that leveraged Dropbox and Google Docs as their C2 and payload sources. In December of 2021 the ThreatLabz team at zscaler noticed some unusual behavior that turned out to be just such an attack.

In a list of things that should be killed with fire, Excel 4.0 Macros are high up. However, the fat that Spamming “services” like Emotet are still using Excel 4.0 Macros tells me that some are not getting the hint. According to recent research from TrendMicro, Emotet is using some very unconventional methods of obfuscating the C2 server IP addresses. The attack patter is the same, email with a poisoned Excel spreadsheet. This spreadsheet contains HTA with the command script, you know the drill.

Online gaming is pretty much the way game developers want to go these days. However, online modes come with risks. With Arner Bros. Games it was Back 4 Blood’s online only progression created such a massive backlash they had to backtrack on their online push. Now we see something more serious than fan backlash, Remote Code Execution bugs in Dark Souls.

The Ultimate Kronos Group was the target of a Ransomware attack in Late 2021 coincidentally at the same time the Log4Shell vulnerability was disclosed. Kronos has not disclosed how the ransomware got into their environment, nor has it been revealed who might be behind the attack. Original estimates were that Kronos would be able to restore the impacted systems and be back online in a few weeks. Now, a bit more than a month later, there have been no real updates on the situation and many organizations are still feeling the effects.

APT group 41 also known as Winnti has been tied to a wonderful new piece of malware that does not infect your operating system, but the UEFI firmware on your device. The malware in question has been dubbed MoonBounce by the security researchers at Kaspersky who are responsible for finding it. APT41 has been in operation for a while and is identified by their tactics techniques and protocols (TTPs) which include stealthy attacks meant to maintain a long-term presence for information gathering on the target.

It is no secret that the NSA and DoD (Department of Defense) and other Government agencies have an issue with security. Over the last few years their security has been about as effect as using a sieve to carry water. The top 10 list of security faux paus include such wonders as the Snowden leak and the OPM breach. However, when I see the White House (any administration) send out memorandums telling Government agencies to tighten up security I laugh a bit.

SaaS is the de facto way of doing business for the SMB (and even for the enterprise). The costs of building your own infrastructure and maintaining it are just too high for most. Instead, it is easier and more cost effective to let someone else handle it. Buying a spot in Amazon Webs Service, Google Cloud Platform, or Microsoft Azure it not complicated and the tools to help you set up your new business infrastructure are well done (if not always well documented). When you use these services, you do expect them to provide security, but what you may find out is that not all cloud vendors think that should come as part of the package. In fact, many look at them as little more than a way to gain extra revenue and not something that just should be done.

The current threat landscape has user account compromise and endpoint takeover as the most common first acts in a security event. The methods used to accomplish this are varied but include such blockbusters as poisoned websites and URLs embedded in email. Once the website is processed the exploit kicks off and things tend to go downhill from there. The most common item abused in your web browser is its ability to process scripts (especially JavaScript). Now Microsoft says they have a way to knock out as much as 45% of exploit attempts related to JavaScript and WebAssembly when using their Chromium based Edge browser.