Tag Archive for: Cybercrime

Justice Department doubles down on efforts to thwart global cybercrime

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Fresh off its largest financial seizure ever, the Justice Department said Thursday it is doubling down on U.S. efforts to combat the sharp rise in ransomware attacks worldwide and will now prioritize disrupting cybercriminals before they act.

In a speech to attendees at the annual Munich Cyber Security Conference, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco unveiled several new initiatives by the Justice Department and FBI that she said will speed up their transformations into the kind of high-tech law enforcement agencies required to go after today’s hyperconnected and globalized cybercriminals.

Feds say "majority" of $4.4 million Colonial Pipeline cryptocurrency ransom recovered

Feds say “majority” of $4.4 million Colonial Pipeline cryptocurrency ransom recovered

By doing so, she said, the U.S. government is sending a clear message to hackers, crackers and other digital bad actors everywhere: “The long arm of the law can and now will stretch much farther into cyberspace than you think. If you continue to come for us, we will come for you.”

More: A Russian invasion could reach farther than Ukraine. How a cyberattack could affect you.

As part of that transformation, Monaco said, federal agents and prosecutors will focus far more intensively on the use of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies in a wide array of malicious activities targeting American citizens and corporations.

“Ransomware and digital extortion – like many other crimes that are fueled by cryptocurrency – only work if the bad guys get paid,which means we have to bust their business model,” Monaco said.

The Justice Department and FBI also will expand their international operations and country-to-country partnerships to better thwart cybercriminals where they live and work, Monaco told the assembled group of security leaders.

In recent years, U.S. efforts to apprehend – and even identify – the perpetrators of massive cyberattacks against U.S. interests have been stymied by their ability to operate in countries like Russia, China and Iran, including at times with those countries’ consent or cooperation.

Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco speaks to The Associated Press during an interview at the Department of Justice in Washington on Nov. 2, 2021. Two suspected hackers accused of ransomware attacks resulting in 5,000 infections have been arrested as part of a global cybercrime crackdown, according to an announcement Monday by Europol.

Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco speaks to The Associated Press during an interview at the Department of Justice in Washington on Nov. 2, 2021. Two suspected hackers accused of ransomware attacks…

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DressCode Android Malware Discovered on Google Play | SandBlast Mobile Security | Android

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Cybercrime Has Gone Commercial (And It’s Easier Than Ever)

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CEO and Co-Founder of Egress.

What level of IT skills would you need to infiltrate an enterprise organization? Some might assume you’d require at least intermediate (or even expert) skills to hack a major business. But in reality, all someone needs is an internet-connected device, a few hundred dollars and to know the right place to look.

Recent threat intelligence research published by Egress shows that cybercrime has truly gone commercial — and it’s simpler than ever for a wannabe cybercriminal to get started.

Phishing-As-A-Service (PhaaS)

A modern business doesn’t specialize in everything. It borrows (and pays for) the expertise of others to handle a multitude of operations. For example, you might have software bought or leased from a third party to handle accounting, cybersecurity or digital communication. Modern cybercrime gangs specialize to sell their knowledge and skills in a similar way.

Within the phishing-as-a-service (PhaaS) industry, different vendors offer services to other cybercriminals who don’t share the same skills or experience. Some might specialize in open-source intelligence (OSINT) or creating initial breaches into organizations. Others might develop ransomware or create phishing email templates.

Buyers can browse online marketplaces, make requests for specific products and leave their Telegram handles for more information. Sellers offer their products complete with customer feedback and reviews, plus we’ve even seen Black Friday sales tactics aiming to sweeten deals. Many of these marketplaces are hosted on the dark web — but not all of them. If someone wants to, they can pretty easily find one.

Lowering The Cybercrime Skills Barrier

It’s possible to infiltrate a major organization with few (or no) hacking skills. Phishing is the perfect crime for inexperienced cybercriminals, as all the scammer needs to do is wait for an insider to click on a link in a phishing email and download malware or enter credentials into a spoofed website. And they don’t even need to create the email template or back-end code — everything they need for a hack can be purchased in a “phishing kit.”

Phishing kits are popular…

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Cybercrime matures as hackers are forced to work smarter

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hacker

An analysis of 500 hacking incidents across a wide range of industries has revealed trends that characterize a maturity in the way hacking groups operate today.

Researchers at Kaspersky have focused on the Russian cybercrime underground, which is currently one of the most prolific ecosystems, but many elements in their findings are common denominators for all hackers groups worldwide.

Pursuing new avenues

One key finding of the study is that the level of security on office software, web services, email platforms, etc., is getting better.

As Kaspersky explains, browser vulnerabilities have reduced in numbers, and websites are not as easy to compromise and use as infection vectors today.

This has resulted in making web infections too difficult to pursue for non-sophisticated threat groups.

The case is similar with vulnerabilities, which are fewer and more expensive to discover.

Instead, hacking groups are waiting for a PoC or patch to be released, and then use that information to create their own exploits.

Becoming more efficient

Hacking groups are now optimizing its member structure and providing distinct functional roles to each person.

In modern cybercrime operations, there’s no longer a need for malware authors and testers, because actors are sourcing their tools from central selling points on the dark web.

Moreover, with much of stolen money being transacted in cryptocurrency, actors only need money mules or someone to manage cash withdrawal operations when cashing out into fiat currency.

The same goes for account credentials, webshell access to various organizations, and even DDoS attacks. All of these are bought from providers instead of “employing” an expert in the team.

Typical cybercrime group structure - 2016 left 2021 right
Cybercrime group structure – 2016 on the left, 2021 on the right
Source: Kaspersky

Another way of optimization for cybercriminals today is to turn to cloud service providers instead of choosing the more costly and risky option of renting or setting up their own physical server infrastructure.

The downside of this is that cloud servers are regulated and service providers are responsive to reports, but threat actors can always hop to other platforms or create new accounts when they’re…

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