Tag Archive for: hackers

Hackers slip mysterious malware into 30K Apple Macs

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Security researchers have discovered a mysterious malware on nearly 30,000 Apple Macs and they have no idea what this is for and how is this virus going to infected the devices.

The malware named ‘Silver Sparrow’ comes with a mechanism to self-destruct itself, a capability that’s typically reserved for high-stealth operations.

“So far, though, there are no signs the self-destruct feature has been used, raising the question of why the mechanism exists,” Ars Technica first reported about the presence of malware citing security researchers.

The lack of a final payload suggests that the malware may spring into action anytime.

The malware has been found in 153 countries with heavy detection reported in the US, the UK, Canada, France and Germany.

Silver Sparrow is an activity cluster that includes a binary compiled to run on Apple’s new M1 chips but lacks one very important feature: a payload.

“Though we haven’t observed Silver Sparrow delivering additional malicious payloads yet, its forward-looking M1 chip compatibility, global reach, relatively high infection rate, and operational maturity suggest Silver Sparrow is a reasonably serious threat,” according to researchers from cyber security firm Red Canary.

The malware is uniquely positioned to deliver a potentially impactful payload at a moment’s notice.

Silver Sparrow comes in two versions — one with a binary in mach-object format compiled for Intel x86_64 processors and the other Mach-O binary for the M1.

Researchers have earlier warned that Apple’s transition from Intel to its own silicon M1 chip may make it easy for hackers to introduce malware.

“To me, the most notable [thing] is that it was found on almost 30K macOS endpoints… and these are only endpoints the MalwareBytes can see, so the number is likely way higher,” said Patrick Wardle, a macOS security expert.

–IANS

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North Korean military hackers indicted in cyber plot to rob banks, attack companies

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Three North Korean computer programmers have been charged in Los Angeles with conspiring to steal and extort more than $1 billion in a sweeping array of cyberattacks against banks, other companies and cryptocurrency traders around the world, federal authorities announced Wednesday.



Kotaro Koizumi et al. posing for the camera: From left, Park Jin Hyok, Kim Il and Jon Chang Hyok are accused of conspiring to steal more than $1 billion in a sweeping array of cyberattacks. (U.S. Justice Department)

© (U.S. Justice Department)
From left, Park Jin Hyok, Kim Il and Jon Chang Hyok are accused of conspiring to steal more than $1 billion in a sweeping array of cyberattacks. (U.S. Justice Department)

The hackers were working for a North Korean military agency, the Reconnaissance General Bureau, and pursuing strategic and financial goals of the country’s leader, Kim Jong Un, authorities said.

In an indictment unsealed Wednesday, a federal grand jury in Los Angeles charged that Jon Chang Hyok, Kim Il and Park Jin Hyok attacked banks, entertainment companies, online casinos, defense contractors, energy utilities and others in the U.S., Bangladesh, Mexico, Indonesia, Britain, Vietnam, Pakistan and other countries.



a group of people walking down a street next to a sign: Federal authorities say embarrassing emails of Sony executives were hacked by North Korean computer programmers and made public as revenge for the studio's release of "The Interview," a comedy that mocked North Korea's leader, Kim Jong Un. (Christopher Polk / Getty Images)

© (Christopher Polk / Getty Images)
Federal authorities say embarrassing emails of Sony executives were hacked by North Korean computer programmers and made public as revenge for the studio’s release of “The Interview,” a comedy that mocked North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong Un. (Christopher Polk / Getty Images)

The victims included Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. Embarrassing emails sent by Sony executives were made public in 2014, allegedly in retaliation for the studio’s release of “The Interview,” a comedy film that depicted the fictional assassination of Kim Jong Un. One of the accused hackers, Park, was charged in the Sony attack in 2018, and now the other two men are accused of having a hand in the incursion as well.

Beyond the Sony attack, the indictment announced Wednesday alleges a broader scheme to carry out various cybercrimes, including the attempted theft of $1.2 billion from banks across the globe, wide distribution of malicious cryptocurrency apps and spear-phishing campaigns to penetrate computer systems of U.S. defense contractors, the Pentagon and the U.S. State Department.

“As laid out in today’s indictment, North Korea’s…

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Nigerian Instagram star helped North Korean hackers in $1.3B scheme: Feds

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A Nigerian Instagram star conspired with North Korean hackers to steal more than $1.3 billion from companies and banks in the U.S. and other countries, federal prosecutors said.

Ramon Olorunwa Abbas, 37, also known as “Ray Hushpuppi,” is being accused of helping three North Korean computer hackers steal the funds from companies and banks, including one in Malta, in February 2019, according to the Justice Department.

“North Korea’s operatives, using keyboards rather than guns, stealing digital wallets of cryptocurrency instead of sacks of cash, are the world’s leading bank robbers,” Assistant Attorney General John Demers of the Justice Department’s National Security Division said in a statement on Feb. 17.

Abbas — who has 2.5 million followers on Instagram, where he would post photos of his luxury cars — somehow found time for still more banking-related crimes, the feds say.

He worked with Ghaleb Alaumary, 37, a Canadian who was charged with laundering millions of dollars from ATMs in the U.S. and Pakistan and a bank in India, prosecutors say.

Last July, the Nigerian national was arrested in still another, separate case.

He was extradited from Dubai to the U.S. where he was charged with “laundering hundreds of millions of dollars from business email compromise (BEC) frauds and other scams, including schemes targeting a US law firm, a foreign bank and an English Premier League soccer club,” according to the Justice Department.

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Hushpuppi, alleged internet fraudster, named among North Korean bank hackers

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Ramon Olorunwa Abbas popular known as Hushpuppi has been linked to North Korean hackers, who have been described as the biggest bank robbers in the world.

The Instagram celebrity was linked to the North Korean hackers by The Federal Bureau of Investigation, (FBI.).

The Justice Department in a detailed statement released on Friday, February 19, alleged that Hushpuppi took part in a “North Korean-perpetrated cyber-enabled heist from a Maltese bank in February 2019.”

According to the statement, his role was as a collaborator with a North Korean money launderer, Ghaleb Alaumary, 37, based in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.

“Alaumary agreed to plead guilty to the charge, which was filed in the U.S. District Court in Los Angeles on Nov. 17, 2020.

“Alaumary was a prolific money launderer for hackers engaged in ATM cash-out schemes, cyber-enabled bank heists, business email compromise (BEC) schemes, and other online fraud schemes. Alaumary is also being prosecuted for his involvement in a separate BEC scheme by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Georgia.

“With respect to the North Korean co-conspirators’ activities, Alaumary organized teams of co-conspirators in the United States and Canada to launder millions of dollars obtained through ATM cash-out operations, including from BankIslami and a bank in India in 2018.

“Alaumary also conspired with Ramon Olorunwa Abbas, aka “Ray Hushpuppi,” and others to launder funds from a North Korean-perpetrated cyber-enabled heist from a Maltese bank in February 2019” the statement read

Hushpuppi was arrested in Dubai in June 2020, and extradited to the US where he is being charged by the United States Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles with conspiring to launder hundreds of millions of dollars from “business email compromise” (BEC) frauds and other scams.

His trial was to have commenced late last year, however, it was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Read the full US Justice Department statement on Hushpuppi’s alleged involvement with the three North Korean military hackers.

“A federal indictment unsealed today charges three North Korean computer programmers with participating in a wide-ranging…

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