Have you ever wondered about the invisible dangers that exist in the digital world, waiting to compromise your device and personal information?
Malware, a portmanteau of malicious software, is a broad term encompassing various types of harmful programs designed to infiltrate, damage, or disrupt computer systems. In this article, we’ll delve into different malware types, demystifying these digital threats with real-world examples.
https://spinsafe.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/1JCmR6KvuqbtueNl8LWs5YA.jpeg415739SecureTechhttps://spinsafe.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SS-Logo.svgSecureTech2023-12-10 08:00:082023-12-10 08:00:08Revealing Malware Secrets in a Digital World #POST 47 | by Monty Excel | Dec, 2023
A prolific espionage hacking group with ties to China spent over two years looting the corporate network of NXP, the Netherlands-based chipmaker whose silicon powers security-sensitive components found in smartphones, smartcards, and electric vehicles, a news outlet has reported.
The intrusion, by a group tracked under names including “Chimera” and “G0114,” lasted from late 2017 to the beginning of 2020, according to Netherlands national news outlet NRC Handelsblad, which cited “several sources” familiar with the incident. During that time, the threat actors periodically accessed employee mailboxes and network drives in search of chip designs and other NXP intellectual property. The breach wasn’t uncovered until Chimera intruders were detected in a separate company network that connected to compromised NXP systems on several occasions. Details of the breach remained a closely guarded secret until now.
No material damage
NRC cited a report published (and later deleted) by security firm Fox-IT, titled Abusing Cloud Services to Fly Under the Radar. It documented Chimera using cloud services from companies including Microsoft and Dropbox to receive data stolen from the networks of semiconductor makers, including one in Europe that was hit in “early Q4 2017.” Some of the intrusions lasted as long as three years before coming to light. NRC said the unidentified victim was NXP.
“Once nested on a first computer—patient zero—the spies gradually expand their access rights, erase their tracks in between and secretly sneak to the protected parts of the network,” NRC reporters wrote in an English translation. “They try to secrete the sensitive data they find there in encrypted archive files via cloud storage services such as Microsoft OneDrive. According to the log files that Fox-IT finds, the hackers come every few weeks to see whether interesting new data can be found at NXP and whether more user accounts and parts of the network can be hacked.”
https://spinsafe.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/data-breach-760x380.jpeg380760SecureTechhttps://spinsafe.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SS-Logo.svgSecureTech2023-12-04 08:30:092023-12-04 08:30:09Hackers spent 2+ years looting secrets of chipmaker NXP before being detected
THE Ministry of Defence has been hit by hackers with links to Russia, as security secrets have been leaked and the data posted online.
Hackers have released thousands of pages of information with could be used by criminals to access the HMNB Clyde nuclear submarine base, the Porton Down chemical weapons lab and a GCHQ listening post.
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The Royal Navy’s Trident-class nuclear submarine VanguardCredit: s
Information concerning high-security prisons and a military site key to our cyber defences was also stolen in the raid by group LockBit.
Hackers are said to have targeted the databases of Zaun, a firm which makes the fences for maximum security sites.
The information was published on the internet’s dark web, which can be accessed with specialist software.
It’s thought the information was stolen last month during an attack on the firm based in the West Midlands, according to a report by the Mirror.
LockBit is regarded as the world’s most dangerous hacking gang with its keys suspects listed on the FBI’s Most Wanted list.
It’s thought they are responsible for 1,400 attacks on global targets.
The group is also allegedly behind a £66million blackmail attempt on the Royal Mail – with the postal service refusing to cave in to their demands.
A number of Russian nationals have been accused of cyber attacks and held in both the United States and Canada.
LockBit is said to have financial connections to Russian gangsters.
One document which was leaked relates to specific equipment bought to protect Porton Down in Wiltshire.
Zaun describes its work there as “very secretive”.
Another leaked document posted on the dark web is a sales order detailing goods purchased for HMNB Clyde – also known as Faslane – which is home to Trident nuclear subs.
Other documents include a sales order report for equipment at GCHQ’s communications complex in Bude, Cornwall, as well as security equipment at RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire, where the Reaper attack drones squadron is based, and Cawdor Barracks, the base of the 14th Signal Regiment, which deals in electronic warfare.
Detailed drawings for perimeter fencing at Cawdor, in Pembrokeshire, were attached to company emails.
https://spinsafe.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/2016-snp-long-standing-opposition-252117060.jpg10801920SecureTechhttps://spinsafe.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SS-Logo.svgSecureTech2023-09-03 03:30:092023-09-03 03:30:09Ministry of Defence hit by Russia-linked hackers as security secrets are leaked in data posted online
