Kaspersky reveals details of extraordinarily powerful Android trojan, Skygofree
Security firm Kaspersky Lab has revealed details of a highly-sophisticated Android trojan that takes advantage of multiple vulnerabilities to gain full control of a device. Skygofree has capabilities that have never been seen in the wild before.
In the malware's arsenal of weapons is the ability to track user location, record audio, connect to attacker-controlled networks, monitor messaging apps, intercept text messages, take photographs, and much more. Kaspersky says its capabilities are "reminiscent of Hollywood spy movies."
Malwarebytes warns that fake Meltdown and Spectre patches are being used to spread Smoke Loader malware
News of the Meltdown and Spectre processor bugs quickly spread around the world, as companies and individuals tried to protect their systems. But in addition to concerns about the performance hit patches may have on computers, Malwarebytes has also issued a stark warning about fake patches.
The security firm warns that criminals have used interest in Meltdown and Spectre to push out fraudulent bug fixes that are laced with Smoke Loader malware.
Google kicks over 60 games out of the Play Store for serving up porn ads via AdultSwine malware
Google has removed more than 60 games from the Play Store after security firm Check Point discovered they were laced with malware and serving up porn ads. Check Point claims that the games were aimed at children, but Google says this was not the case.
The AdultSwine malware was found to be bundled in a number of games, many of which had been downloaded millions of times. As well as displaying pornographic ads, the malware also tried to trick users into installing fake security tools, and also encouraged people to register for expensive premium services.
Malicious flashlight apps found on Google Play store
Whether you need to put your key in the lock on a dark night, or explore the depths of the cupboard under the stairs, having a flashlight app on your phone can prove useful.
But researchers at Check Point have discovered more than 22 different flashlight and utility apps harboring adware called, appropriately, 'LightsOut'.
TVAddons: Streaming through Kodi addons protects you from malware and cryptocurrency miners
Kodi has been the subject of controversy for some time, and addon repository TVAddons has, in particular, been criticized from many quarters. Having recently announced that it will no longer proactively check for pirated content, TVAddons is suggesting that there's a very good reason to use Kodi addons to stream online content -- security.
The site says that one of the reasons Kodi is so hated by the industry is that addons give users the chance to avoid advertisements and "all forms of monetization." TVAddons says that Kodi addons not only enable people to avoid ads, but also potentially dangerous malware and secretive cryptocurrency miners.
2017 -- the year malware became evasive
While 2017 saw enhancements in defenses -- such as the use of artificial intelligence -- it also demonstrated that cyber criminals continue to find their way around defensive measures with new evasion techniques.
Anti-evasion software specialist Minerva Labs has released its Year in Review report, which takes an in-depth look at the approaches used by common malware families to bypass anti-malware tools, including antivirus and analysis sandboxes.
World's biggest botnet delivers new ransomware threat
The latest Global Threat Index from cyber security specialist Check Point reveals that the Necurs spam botnet -- reckoned to be the largest in the world -- is being used to distribute one of the latest ransomware threats.
During the Thanksgiving holiday in the US, Necurs sent over 12 million emails in just one morning, distributing the relatively new Scarab ransomware, first seen in June 2017.
'Doppelgänging' attack hides malware from security tools
Endpoint protection company enSilo has used this week's Black Hat Europe conference in London to reveal how Microsoft Windows features can be used to slip malicious ransomware and other threats past most updated, market-leading AV products.
enSilo researchers demonstrated how, by manipulating how Windows handles file transactions, they could pass off malicious actions as benign, legitimate processes, even if they use known malicious code.
Adwind remote access Trojan makes a comeback and it's got smarter
The Adwind cross-platform, malware-as-a-service Trojan has been around since 2012. Spread by phishing emails claiming to be invoices, purchase orders, and requests for quotations, it's aimed at high value targets like finance departments.
While it never completely disappeared in recent years the number of attacks did die down. However, security awareness training company KnowBe4 has noted an upsurge in Adwind emails during October of this year.
Cryptocurrency mining a growing threat to businesses
The CoinHive malware, designed to mine the Monero cryptocurrency when a user visits a web page -- without the user's approval -- was the sixth most common malware during October.
The latest Global Threat Impact Index by Check Point released this week shows the RoughTed ad-blocker malware and Rocky ransomware are still the top two threats. However, there's a new trend toward sneakier programs with Seamless -- which redirects the victim to a malicious web page -- at number three.
100 percent of enterprises have suffered mobile malware attacks
A new study of over 850 organizations around the world shows that all of them have experienced a mobile malware attack.
The research by cyber security company Check Point shows an average of 54 mobile malware attacks per business with Android and iOS platforms both proving vulnerable.
Malware goes global with every nation affected
Malware is a worldwide problem affecting every nation state on the planet according to the latest Comodo Threat Research Labs report.
Comodo detected almost 400 million malware incidents around the globe in the third quarter of this year, with even the tiny island nation of Kiribati in the central Pacific being affected. The top five malware hit countries are, Russia, the US, Poland, the UK and Germany.
Traditional antivirus fails to protect 40 percent of users
Conventional antivirus solutions are failing to protect users from attacks according to a Malwarebytes report.
The study is based on real-world clean up scans performed by Malwarebytes. Nearly 40 percent (39.18percent) of all malware attacks cleaned on endpoints with an AV installed occurred on endpoints that had two or more traditional AV solutions registered.
How to protect yourself against Bad Rabbit ransomware
News broke earlier about the spread of a new form of ransomware going by the name of Bad Rabbit. It name drops Game of Thrones and bears more than a passing resemblance to WannaCry and Petya.
While the main impact of Bad Rabbit has been felt in Eastern Europe, some instances of the ransomware have also been detected in the US. Thankfully, it's relatively easy -- and free -- to protect your computer. By simply tweaking a couple of files, you can stop the ransomware in its tracks.
Bad Rabbit ransomware spreads across Eastern Europe with echoes of WannaCry and Petya
A new strain of ransomware -- dubbed Bad Rabbit -- has struck in Russia, Ukraine and other parts of Eastern Europe. It is thought to be a variation on Petya due to a number of similarities, and it is wreaking havoc with media outlets and transport systems, including an airport in Ukraine, and the underground in Kiev.
Like many other forms of malware, Bad Rabbit was initially spread through a fake Flash installer, but it was then able to spread via networks to hit a larger number of machines. The spread of the ransomware is further facilitated by using the open source Mimikatz for extracting credentials, and DiskCryptor for encrypting data.
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