All news in category “Incidents and Data Breaches”

⚠️The QuickLens Chrome extension was removed from the Chrome Web Store after a malicious update (v5.8) was pushed that added info‑stealing and ClickFix attack functionality. Security researchers found the extension stripped security headers, added powerful permissions, and contacted a command‑and‑control server to fetch and run payloads on every page. A fake Google Update prompt led to malware that targeted Windows and attempted to steal browser credentials and cryptocurrency seed phrases. Google has disabled the extension; affected users should remove it, scan devices, reset passwords, and move funds from compromised wallets.

🔓 South Korea’s National Tax Service inadvertently exposed the mnemonic recovery phrase of a seized Ledger hardware wallet in a press release, enabling an attacker to drain approximately $4.8 million in crypto. The assets were confiscated during raids on 124 high-value tax evaders, but photos released by authorities showed a handwritten seed phrase that was not redacted. On-chain analysis shows the attacker deposited ETH for gas and moved 4 million Pre-Retogeum (PRTG) tokens to a new address in three transactions. The NTS removed the press release, and it is unclear whether a formal investigation has been launched.

🔎 This article analyzes public evidence tying the alleged Kimwolf botmaster—known online as Dort and by earlier handles like CPacket and M1ce—to accounts, emails and domain registrations linked to an Ottawa-based Jacob Butler. It reviews GitHub and forum footprints (jay.miner232@gmail.com / MemeClient), ties to SIM Land and LAPSUS$ activity, and allegations that Dort sold disposable-email and CAPTCHA-bypass tools. After KrebsOnSecurity published research in January 2026 that disrupted Kimwolf’s spread, Dort allegedly mounted doxing, DDoS, email-flooding and swatting campaigns against researchers and the author.

⚠️ Truffle Security found nearly 3,000 Google Cloud API keys (prefix "AIza") embedded in client-side code that can now authenticate to Gemini endpoints when a project enables the Generative Language API. Attackers scraping sites can use exposed keys to access uploaded files, cached contents, and make LLM calls that charge victims' accounts. Google says it has implemented measures to detect and block leaked keys and advises rotating and restricting exposed keys.

🛡️ Zscaler researchers uncovered a toolkit named Ruby Jumper used by North Korea–linked APT37 to bridge internet-connected and air-gapped systems via removable drives. The campaign begins with a malicious LNK that launches a PowerShell script, a decoy document, and the RESTLEAF implant, which fetches encrypted shellcode via Zoho WorkDrive and loads the Ruby-based loader SNAKEDROPPER. The threat persists by installing a Ruby runtime masked as usbspeed.exe and weaponizes USB media to relay commands and exfiltrate data.

🔎 Europol-led Operation Compass has resulted in 30 arrests and linked 179 suspects to The Com, a decentralized cybercrime collective that targets children and teenagers. Launched in January 2025 and coordinated with law enforcement from 28 countries, the action identified 62 victims and directly safeguarded four. Investigators mapped multiple subgroups—Offline Com, Cyber Com, and (S)extortion Com—that facilitate violence, intrusions, and sexual exploitation.

🔒 The U.S. Department of Justice announced the seizure of $61 million in Tether allegedly tied to pig-butchering crypto scams that lured victims through romance and fake investment platforms. Authorities say the funds were traced to wallets used to launder stolen proceeds, with rapid routing across many addresses to obscure ownership. HSI officials highlighted global tracing efforts while Tether noted extensive freezing of illicit assets.

⚠ The Shadowserver Foundation reports that more than 900 FreePBX instances remain infected with web shells after exploitation of the CVE-2025-64328 post-auth command injection flaw. The vulnerability (CVSS 8.6) affects versions >=17.0.2.36 and was fixed in 17.0.3; recommended mitigations include restricting access to the Administration Control Panel, updating the filestore module, and applying available updates. Fortinet links active exploitation since December 2025 to the INJ3CTOR3 actor delivering an EncystPHP web shell that enables arbitrary shell execution as the asterisk user and can initiate outbound call activity via compromised PBX instances.

🔒 A malicious Go module, github.com/xinfeisoft/crypto, impersonating the legitimate golang.org/x/crypto mirror, was found to exfiltrate terminal-entered secrets and deliver a Linux backdoor. The injected backdoor hooks ssh/terminal/terminal.go so calls to ReadPassword() capture interactive passwords and send them to a remote endpoint, which responds with a shell script. That script appends an SSH key to /home/ubuntu/.ssh/authorized_keys, relaxes iptables defaults, and downloads two payloads—one that probes connectivity and contacts 154.84.63.184:443, and the other identified as the Rekoobe trojan. The Go security team has blocked the package, but researchers warn this low-effort impersonation pattern will likely be reused against other credential-edge libraries.

🔎 APT37 has launched the 'Ruby Jumper' campaign using removable-media infection tools to compromise air‑gapped systems, researchers at Zscaler ThreatLabz found. The actor abused malicious .LNK shortcuts to run a PowerShell stager that extracts multiple embedded payloads and deploys a new implant, Restleaf, which uses Zoho WorkDrive for C2. Additional undocumented tools—SnakeDropper, ThumbSBD, VirusTask and FootWine—enable in‑memory execution, USB propagation and staged exfiltration.

🔒 In December 2025, Zscaler ThreatLabz exposed the Ruby Jumper campaign linking North Korea's ScarCruft to a novel multi-stage intrusion that abuses cloud storage and removable media. The attack begins with a malicious LNK that launches PowerShell to extract an embedded decoy document and multiple payloads, including the in-memory loader RESTLEAF. RESTLEAF uniquely leverages Zoho WorkDrive for C2 to fetch shellcode and stage follow-on components, while SNAKEDROPPER, THUMBSBD, and VIRUSTASK enable persistence, surveillance, and propagation to air-gapped systems via USB.

🛂 Yurii Nazarenko pleaded guilty to operating OnlyFake, an AI-driven subscription site that generated and sold more than 10,000 counterfeit identification images worldwide. The platform produced realistic digital passports, U.S. driver's licenses for all 50 states, Social Security cards, and IDs for roughly 56 other countries, with options for customization and output as scans or tabletop photos. Only accepting cryptocurrency and offering bulk discounts, the site was used to circumvent Know Your Customer (KYC) checks; undercover FBI agents purchased fake documents in a 2024 sting. Nazarenko was extradited from Romania in September 2025, agreed to forfeit $1.2 million, and faces up to 15 years in prison with sentencing set for June 26, 2026.

⚠️ Researchers report a new phishing campaign in which North Korean hackers pose as company recruiters and lure developer job candidates with seemingly legitimate coding challenges. When victims run the supplied code, it installs malware on their machines, creating a direct avenue for compromise. Reversing Labs analyzed the samples and BleepingComputer provided additional reporting. Candidates and employers should be cautious about running unvetted code and verify recruiter identities.

🧭 Europol's Project Compass has targeted The Com, a transnational online collective linked to extortion, ransomware and violent abuse. Over the past 12 months the operation resulted in 30 arrests and the full or partial identification of 179 alleged members, while several victims were identified and safeguarded. The initiative spans EU states, Norway, Switzerland and all Five Eyes partners and focuses on disrupting recruitment and account-takeover tactics such as phishing, vishing and SIM swapping, as well as the group's links to extremist and Russian cyber-criminal networks.

🎮 Microsoft Threat Intelligence warns that threat actors are distributing trojanized gaming utilities via browsers and chat platforms to deliver a Java-based remote access trojan (RAT). A malicious downloader stages a portable Java runtime and executes a jd-gui.jar, leveraging PowerShell and LOLBins like cmstp.exe for stealth and self-deletion while configuring Microsoft Defender exclusions. Persistence is achieved with a scheduled task and a startup script named world.vbs, and the final payload phones home to 79.110.49[.]15 for command-and-control.

🚨 Cisco Talos reports an ongoing campaign by UAT-10027 using a new backdoor called Dohdoor since December 2025. Dohdoor leverages DNS-over-HTTPS (DoH) for stealthy command-and-control, downloads and executes payloads within legitimate Windows processes, and employs phishing, PowerShell abuse, and DLL sideloading. The campaign targets U.S. education and health care organizations with C2 infrastructure hidden behind reputable services.

🧭 Researchers disclosed a new botnet loader named Aeternum C2 that stores encrypted commands on the public Polygon blockchain, making its C2 infrastructure resistant to conventional takedowns. The native C++ loader (x86/x64) polls Polygon RPC endpoints to retrieve transactions written by a web panel implemented in Next.js. Operators can deploy multiple smart contracts, write immutable encrypted commands, and manage payloads with minimal operational cost while leveraging anti-analysis checks and AV-evasion scanning.

🛠️ ManoMano has notified customers that a security incident tied to a third‑party customer service subcontractor resulted in the unauthorized extraction of personal data for approximately 38 million individuals. Exposed information reportedly varies by interaction and may include full name, email address, phone number, and customer service communications; no account passwords were accessed. Identified in January 2026, ManoMano says it revoked the subcontractor’s access, strengthened controls, informed regulators, and is advising customers to remain vigilant against phishing and social engineering.

⚠️ Olympique de Marseille says it was the target of an attempted cyberattack after a threat actor claimed to have breached some servers and leaked a sample of allegedly stolen information. The actor claims the database includes details on about 400,000 individuals and more than 2,050 Drupal CMS accounts, including staff, contributors, and moderators. The club reports its technical teams and specialized providers quickly contained the situation, that operations continue normally, and that no banking details or passwords have been compromised; it has reported the incident to the CNIL and filed a complaint.

⛓️ A newly discovered loader named Aeternum relocates botnet command-and-control onto the Polygon blockchain, researchers at Qrator Research Lab report. Infected machines retrieve instructions written as on-chain transactions and poll more than 50 RPC endpoints instead of contacting centralized servers or domains. The seller offers native C++ builds and a web dashboard that writes commands to smart contracts, creating a low-cost, resilient C2 channel that complicates traditional takedowns and shifts defensive emphasis to edge filtering and proactive DDoS mitigation.