All news in category “Incidents and Data Breaches”

🚨 Ten typosquatted packages on npm were found delivering a 24 MB PyInstaller infostealer that targets Windows, Linux, and macOS. Uploaded on July 4 and downloaded nearly 10,000 times, the packages used heavy obfuscation and a fake CAPTCHA to evade detection. Researchers at Socket say the malware harvests keyrings, browser credentials, SSH keys and API tokens, then exfiltrates data to a remote server. Developers who installed these packages should remove them, perform remediation, and rotate all secrets.

⚠️ The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security warns that hacktivists recently breached multiple internet-exposed industrial control systems across Canada. Attackers modified settings at a water treatment facility, an oil and gas site (manipulating an Automated Tank Gauge), and a farm grain dryer, causing disruptions, false alarms, and potentially unsafe conditions. Authorities describe the intrusions as opportunistic attempts to attract media attention and erode public trust rather than highly sophisticated campaigns. The bulletin urges organizations to inventory exposed ICS assets, remove direct internet access, use VPNs with two‑factor authentication, keep firmware updated, and report suspicious activity.

🐦 The PhantomRaven campaign distributes dozens of malicious npm packages that steal authentication tokens, CI/CD secrets, and GitHub credentials. Discovered by Koi Security, the activity began in August and involved 126 packages with over 86,000 downloads. The packages use a remote dynamic dependency mechanism to fetch and execute payloads during npm install, enabling stealthy credential exfiltration. Developers should verify package provenance and avoid unvetted LLM-generated package suggestions.

🕵️ Researchers at Koi Security uncovered an ongoing npm credential-harvesting campaign called PhantomRaven, active since August 2025, that steals npm tokens, GitHub credentials and CI/CD secrets. The attacker hides malicious payloads using Remote Dynamic Dependencies (RDD), fetching code from attacker-controlled servers at install time to bypass static scans. The campaign leveraged slopsquatting—typo variants that exploit AI hallucinations—to increase installs; Koi found 126 infected packages with about 20,000 downloads and at least 80 still live at publication.

🔴 Symantec and Carbon Black reported a Russian-origin campaign that targeted a large business services firm and a local government entity in Ukraine, relying on web shells and living-off-the-land techniques to reduce detection. Early activity began on June 27, 2025 with deployment of the LocalOlive web shell, PowerShell exclusions, scheduled memory dumps and credential-theft attempts. Operators used dual-use tools (OpenSSH, RDP changes, winbox64.exe), PowerShell backdoors and native Windows utilities to maintain persistence while minimizing custom malware use. Researchers noted strong Windows tradecraft but could not conclusively attribute the intrusions to a named Russian group.

🚨 BlueNoroff, a North Korea–linked subgroup of the Lazarus Group, has reemerged with two focused campaigns—GhostCall and GhostHire—targeting executives, Web3 developers and blockchain professionals. Operators use social engineering on Telegram and LinkedIn to stage fake investor meetings and recruiter coding tests, then deliver multi-stage, cross-platform malware. Samples were found written in Go, Rust, Nim and AppleScript and deploy implants such as DownTroy, CosmicDoor and Rootroy to harvest crypto keys, credentials and project assets.

🔒 On October 25, 2025 the ransomware group Everest listed state grid operator Svenska kraftnät on its darknet leak site, claiming about 280 GB of stolen data. Svenska kraftnät confirmed on October 26 that attackers accessed certain sensitive information via an isolated external file-transfer solution and said investigations are underway. The utility — which operates roughly 16,000 km of high-voltage lines — said there is currently no indication the physical grid was affected and that it is coordinating with police and national cybersecurity authorities.

🛡️ We have discovered a new Windows-based malware family named Airstalk that abuses the AirWatch (Workspace ONE UEM) API to establish a covert command-and-control channel and exfiltrate browser artifacts. Two variants were observed: a PowerShell variant focused on Chrome cookie and bookmark theft, and a more advanced .NET variant that adds multi-threaded C2, beaconing, versioning, and support for Microsoft Edge and Island Browser. Several .NET samples were signed with a likely stolen certificate that was revoked shortly after issuance. Unit 42 assesses with medium confidence that a suspected nation-state actor used Airstalk in a likely supply chain compromise and provides IoCs and mitigation guidance.

🛡️ Cloudflare assisted the Moldovan Central Election Commission (CEC) during the September 28, 2025 parliamentary vote, rapidly onboarding election sites and deploying mitigations under the Athenian Project. On election day Cloudflare mitigated over 898 million malicious requests across multiple DDoS waves, including a peak of 324,333 rps, keeping official result reporting and civic sites online. Automated defenses and coordination with STISC ensured no interruptions to public access and authoritative information.

⚠️ Security researchers revealed 10 typosquatted npm packages uploaded on July 4, 2025, that install a cross-platform information stealer targeting Windows, macOS, and Linux. The packages impersonated popular libraries and use a postinstall hook to open a terminal, display a fake CAPTCHA, fingerprint victims, and download a 24MB PyInstaller stealer. The obfuscated JavaScript fetches a data_extracter binary from an attacker server, harvests credentials from browsers, system keyrings, SSH keys and config files, compresses the data into a ZIP, and exfiltrates it to the remote host.

🛡️ Aisuru, first identified in August 2024, has been retooled from launching record DDoS assaults to renting hundreds of thousands of compromised IoT devices as residential proxies. Researchers warn the change powers a massive proxy market that is being used to anonymize large-scale content scraping for AI training and other abuses. The botnet — roughly 700,000 devices strong — previously produced multi‑terabit attacks that disrupted ISPs and damaged router hardware. Industry and law enforcement are sharing blocklists and probing proxy reseller ecosystems tied to the infections.

🔒 Dentsu disclosed a cybersecurity incident at its U.S. subsidiary Merkle, saying attackers accessed and stole files containing client, supplier, and employee information. The company detected abnormal activity, proactively took certain systems offline, and initiated incident response procedures while engaging third‑party responders. A circulated memo indicated exposed payroll and bank details, salary and National Insurance numbers, and personal contact details; impacted individuals are being notified and authorities in affected countries have been informed. Dentsu said Japan-based systems were not impacted and that the full scope and financial impact remain under investigation; no ransomware group has claimed responsibility so far.

🔐 Qilin ransomware operators have been observed using the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) to execute Linux ELF encryptors on compromised Windows hosts, allowing them to bypass many Windows-focused EDR solutions. Trend Micro and Cisco Talos report attackers enable or install WSL, transfer payloads with WinSCP, and launch the ELF encryptor via Splashtop (SRManager.exe). Affiliates also deploy signed vulnerable drivers and DLL sideloading to disable security tools and escalate privileges, while the encryptor targets VMware ESXi environments.

⚠️ Herodotus, a new Android banking trojan, has been observed conducting device takeover (DTO) attacks in Italy and Brazil and was advertised as a malware‑as‑a‑service supporting Android 9–16. According to ThreatFabric, it abuses accessibility services and overlay screens to steal credentials and SMS 2FA, intercept the screen, and install remote APKs. Uniquely, operators added randomized typing delays (300–3000 ms) to mimic human input and evade behaviour‑based anti‑fraud detections.

🔍 Kaspersky details two tied campaigns, GhostCall and GhostHire, that target Web3 and blockchain professionals worldwide and emphasize macOS-focused infection chains and social-engineering lures. The attacks deploy a range of payloads — DownTroy, CosmicDoor, RooTroy and others — to harvest secrets, escalate access, and persist. Guidance stresses user vigilance, strict dependency vetting, and centralized secrets management. Kaspersky links the activity to the BlueNoroff/Lazarus cluster and notes the actor has increasingly used generative AI to craft imagery and accelerate malware development.

🛡️ A Kaspersky GReAT analysis describes two BlueNoroff campaigns—GhostCall and GhostHire—linked to the Lazarus threat actor and focused on the cryptocurrency sector. GhostCall targets executives, often on macOS, using investor-themed social engineering and fake meeting portals that prompt malicious updates and downloads. GhostHire lures blockchain developers with job offers and Telegram bots that point to GitHub test tasks or archived files with tight deadlines; performing the tasks leads to infection. The campaigns share a common management infrastructure and multiple infection chains; technical details and indicators of compromise are published on Securelist.

🔒 In August 2025 Volvo Group North America disclosed a breach that originated in its third‑party HR provider, Miljödata, and a slow timeline of detection and notification has raised questions about forensic readiness. Reported exposed records included Social Security numbers and sensitive employee identifiers, and Volvo offered 18 months of identity‑protection services. The author provides five practical recommendations to preserve evidentiary integrity: embed forensics from day zero, align IR and forensic priorities, automate collection and triage, contractually manage vendor response, and coordinate legal messaging to reduce litigation and regulatory risk.

💳 Criminal gangs operating from China send deceptive texts about overdue tolls, postal fees, and municipal fines to trick victims into divulging credit-card details. Investigators say the groups exploit an installation trick that provisions stolen card numbers into Google and Apple Wallet accounts in Asia, then share those virtual cards with buyers in the United States. The Department of Homeland Security estimates the scheme has generated over $1 billion in the last three years, enabling purchases of phones, gift cards, apparel and cosmetics by fraud rings that coordinate messaging, remote provisioning, and cross-border purchasing.

⚠️ Kaspersky reports a patched Google Chrome zero-day (CVE-2025-2783) was exploited to deploy a newly documented spyware called LeetAgent linked to Italian firm Memento Labs. The operation used personalized, short‑lived phishing links to a Primakov Readings lure that triggered a sandbox escape in Chromium browsers and dropped a loader to launch the implant. Targets included media, universities, research centers, government and financial organizations in Russia and Belarus.

🛡️ Trellix researchers report that the threat actor SideWinder has evolved its tradecraft in 2025 by adopting a PDF + ClickOnce infection chain alongside previously used Word exploit vectors. Four spear‑phishing waves from March through September targeted a European embassy in New Delhi and organizations in Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh, using tailored lures and a signed MagTek executable that side‑loads a malicious DLL. The DLL decrypts and runs a .NET loader (ModuleInstaller) which fetches StealerBot, a .NET implant capable of reverse shells, delivering additional payloads, and collecting screenshots, keystrokes, credentials and files.