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Forge Report: First Half Threat Trends of 2024
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Earlier Intrusions from Volt Typhoon
Secureworks reveals early intrusions by the Chinese espionage group Volt Typhoon (BRONZE SILHOUETTE), targeting critical infrastructure in 2021 and 2022. Volt Typhoon employs living-off-the-land binaries and web shells for persistence and stealth. Notable tactics include exploiting public-facing applications and compromised credentials, obtaining the ntds.dit AD database, and using reconnaissance commands. The group's minimal intrusion footprint makes detection challenging, emphasizing the need for vigilant monitoring and robust security measures.
Chinese Hackers Compromised US Infrastructure for Data Collection and Disruption
Volt Typhoon, a Chinese espionage group, has been targeting US critical infrastructure since 2021, focusing on intelligence collection and developing capabilities for potential disruption. The group uses living-off-the-land binaries (LOLBins) and proxies traffic through compromised network devices for stealth. Industries targeted include communications, government, education, manufacturing, maritime, and utilities. Organizations are urged to monitor for suspicious activities and secure their networks.
Cyberattacks Escalating Between China & Taiwan
Geopolitical tensions between China and Taiwan have led to a surge in cyberattacks, with a significant increase in malicious email distribution targeting Taiwanese individuals. Trellix reports a fourfold increase in such emails from April 7th to April 10th, 2023, targeting the technology, manufacturing, and logistics sectors. The PlugX RAT, commonly used by Chinese-linked threat groups, has been the primary payload, aiding in intelligence collection and espionage.
Stealthy and Targeted Attacks Against Southern Asian Organizations from Lancefly
Lancefly, an APT group, uses the Merdoor malware to target organizations in South and Southeast Asia for intelligence gathering. Since mid-2022, they have focused on sectors such as aviation, communications, government, and technology. Lancefly's campaigns involve sophisticated techniques like SSH brute force attacks, process injection, and credential dumping. Symantec researchers note potential links to Chinese APT groups APT41 and TG-3390.
#StopRansomware: Highlights BianLian Ransomware
The BianLian ransomware gang targets critical infrastructure, shifting from double extortion to exfiltration-based extortion. The gang uses phishing, RDP, and compromised accounts for initial access, and employs tools like PsExec and Rclone for lateral movement and data exfiltration. Federal agencies warn of their tactics and methods, emphasizing the need for vigilance and strong security measures.
New Akira Ransomware
The new Akira ransomware strain, active since April 2023, has targeted 16 organizations across various industries, including construction, education, financial services, healthcare, insurance, and manufacturing. Akira's threat actors use double extortion techniques, threatening to leak stolen data on their data leak site. The ransomware's homepage reveals a list of victims, and data from those who refused to pay the ransom is available for download.
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