All news with #backdoor found tag

Rigged DeckMate 2 Shufflers Used to Cheat High-Stakes Poker

🃏 Security researchers demonstrated at Black Hat 2023 that the popular DeckMate 2 automated shuffler can be compromised to reveal card order, exploiting an exposed USB port, hard-coded credentials, and an internal camera. The device’s firmware hash check was bypassed in the proof-of-concept, allowing attackers to transmit card sequences to accomplices. Two years later, DOJ indictments show criminals used pre-hacked units, invisible card markings, and remote signaling to defraud players of millions.

Malicious Chrome and Edge Extensions Threaten Enterprises

🔍 Koi Security revealed a long-running surveillance campaign by an actor it calls 'ShadyPanda' that abused legitimate-seeming Chrome and Edge extensions to harvest browsing data, hijack search results, and deploy a backdoor enabling remote code execution. The group built trust by publishing useful extensions (including Clean Master) and then silently pushed malicious updates that bypassed marketplace re-approval. With an estimated 4.3 million infected browser instances, enterprises should treat browser extensions as high-risk assets and urgently audit and remediate add-ons on corporate and employee devices.

ShadyPanda Browser Extension Campaign Hits 4.3M Users

🛡️ A seven-year browser extension campaign attributed to the actor known as ShadyPanda has infected 4.3 million Chrome and Edge users by operating legitimately for years and then pushing malicious updates. A Koi Security report describes a remote code execution backdoor that affected roughly 300,000 users across five extensions, including Clean Master, and a parallel spyware push via Edge extensions such as WeTab. Malicious updates enabled hourly downloads of arbitrary JavaScript, extensive logging of site visits, exfiltration of encrypted browsing histories, and comprehensive browser fingerprinting.

GlassWorm Returns: 24 Malicious Extensions Target Developers

🔍 The GlassWorm supply-chain campaign has resurfaced with 24 malicious extensions distributed across the Microsoft Visual Studio Marketplace and Open VSX, impersonating popular developer tools such as Flutter, React and Tailwind. Researchers say attackers inflated download counts and slipped malicious updates after initial approval to evade filters. Analysis found Rust-based implants that load platform-specific libraries (os.node and darwin.node) to fetch Solana-based C2 details and download encrypted JavaScript payloads, while a Google Calendar fallback is also used. Developers and repository maintainers are urged to audit installed extensions and review update histories.

New eBPF Filters in Symbiote and BPFDoor Malware Variants

🛡️ FortiGuard Labs reports new Linux-focused eBPF malware updates in 2025, including 151 new BPFDoor samples and three new Symbiote samples. Both families abuse eBPF to install kernel-level packet filters that enable stealthy C2 channels; Symbiote is using UDP port-hopping across high ports while BPFDoor has added IPv6 and DNS-based filtering. Detection is difficult but Fortinet provides AV and IPS protections.

Iran-linked MuddyWater Deploys MuddyViper Against Israel

🔒 ESET reports Iranian-aligned MuddyWater has deployed a previously undocumented backdoor named MuddyViper against Israeli organizations across academia, engineering, local government, manufacturing, technology, transportation, and utilities, as well as one Egyptian technology company. The intrusions began with spear-phishing PDFs and exploitation of VPN and remote-access vulnerabilities to deliver loaders called Fooder, which decrypt and execute the C/C++ backdoor or drop tunneling proxies and browser-data collectors. MuddyViper implements about 20 commands for reconnaissance, file transfer, command execution, and exfiltration of Windows credentials and browser data; several Fooder variants masquerade as the Snake game and use delayed execution to evade detection.

MuddyWater targets Israel with new Fooder and MuddyViper

🛡️ ESET researchers identified a MuddyWater campaign running from 30 September 2024 to 18 March 2025 that primarily targeted organizations in Israel and one confirmed technology victim in Egypt. Operators deployed newly observed custom tools — a reflective loader called Fooder and a C/C++ backdoor named MuddyViper — and abused RMM installers and reverse tunnels. The malware uses Windows CNG for AES-CBC encryption and communicates over HTTPS; operators deliberately minimized hands-on-keyboard activity to hinder detection.

Glassworm Malware Surges in Third Wave of VS Code Extensions

🐛 The Glassworm campaign has resurfaced in a third wave, with 24 new malicious VS Code-compatible extensions appearing on both the Microsoft Visual Studio Marketplace and OpenVSX. Once installed, these extensions push updates that deploy Rust-based implants, use invisible Unicode to evade review, exfiltrate GitHub, npm, and OpenVSX credentials and cryptocurrency wallet data, and deploy a SOCKS proxy and an HVNC client for stealthy remote access. Researchers say attackers inflate download counts to blend with legitimate projects and manipulate search results; both vendors have been contacted about continued bypasses.

SmartTube Android TV App Breached, Malicious Update Pushed

⚠️ The popular open-source SmartTube YouTube client for Android TV was compromised after the developer's signing keys were stolen, allowing a malicious update to be distributed to users. A hidden native library, libalphasdk.so, was discovered in release builds and appears absent from the public source. The library runs silently, fingerprints devices, registers them with a remote backend, and exchanges encrypted configuration, while the developer has revoked the old signature and plans a rebuilt app under a new ID, though definitive safe versions and a full public post-mortem are not yet available.

ShadyPanda Converts Popular Browser Extensions into Spyware

🔒 A threat actor tracked as ShadyPanda operated a seven-year browser-extension campaign that amassed over 4.3 million installs by converting popular add-ons into data-stealing spyware. Koi Security reports that five extensions were modified in mid-2024 to run hourly remote code execution, download arbitrary JavaScript, and exfiltrate encrypted browsing histories and full browser fingerprints. Notable victims include Clean Master — once verified by Google — and WeTab, which still had millions of installs. Users should remove affected extensions and rotate credentials immediately while marketplaces review post-approval update controls.

ShadyPanda Extensions Reach 4.3M Installs, Spyware

⚠️ Koi Security uncovered the long-running "ShadyPanda" operation that amassed over 4.3 million installs of Chrome and Edge browser extensions, many of which transitioned from legitimate tools to spyware. The campaign, active since 2018, progressed through phases—starting with affiliate-fraud injections, moving to search hijacking, and culminating in a remote backdoor capable of executing arbitrary JavaScript. Google has removed numerous extensions from the Chrome Web Store, but several high-install Edge add-ons remain available and continue to collect browsing data, keystrokes, cookies, and device fingerprints. Users are advised to remove suspect extensions immediately and reset account passwords.

Albiriox Android MaaS Targets 400+ Banking and Wallet Apps

📱 Cleafy researchers disclosed Albiriox, a new Android malware offered as a malware‑as‑a‑service that facilitates on‑device fraud, screen manipulation, and real‑time remote control. The family includes a hard‑coded list of over 400 banking, fintech, payment processor, exchange and wallet apps and is distributed via packed droppers and lookalike Google Play pages using social‑engineering lures. Infections often begin with German‑language SMS or fake PENNY app listings that deliver a dropper APK which requests installation permissions and then deploys the main payload. Albiriox uses an unencrypted TCP C2 and a VNC‑based remote module that abuses Android accessibility services to stream UI elements and bypass FLAG_SECURE, enabling overlays, credential harvesting, and hidden background fraud.

Tomiris Shifts to Public Services for C2 Evasion Tactics

🛡️ Kaspersky researchers report that the Tomiris threat actor has increasingly used legitimate public services such as Telegram and Discord as command-and-control channels to blend malicious traffic with benign activity. The campaign relies on tailored spear-phishing with password-protected RAR attachments, multi-language implants, and open-source C2 frameworks like Havoc and AdaptixC2. Targeting focuses on Russian-speaking governmental and diplomatic entities across Central Asia and Russia, enabling long-term persistence and covert intelligence collection.

Legacy Python bootstrap scripts enable PyPI takeover risk

🔍 ReversingLabs discovered legacy bootstrap code in Python packages that fetches and executes an installer from the unclaimed domain python-distribute.org. The zc.buildout bootstrap.py pulls distribute_setup.py, and because the domain is for sale an attacker could acquire it and serve malicious payloads. Packages including tornado and slapos.core still contain the script; it targets Python 2 and is not executed automatically during installation, but its presence increases the supply-chain attack surface if developers run it.

Google Antigravity AI coding tool vulnerable to exploits

⚠️ Google’s AI-assisted coding tool Antigravity, launched in early November, has a critical vulnerability discovered by researchers at Mindgard within 24 hours that can install a persistent backdoor and execute malicious code each time the application starts. The flaw arises because the assistant follows custom user rules unconditionally and gives excessive weight to rules embedded in project source, while a global configuration directory can hold files specifying arbitrary commands that are read and acted on at startup. Mindgard also identified two additional vulnerabilities that could expose user data, and no patch is yet available.

RomCom Uses SocGholish to Deliver Mythic Agent to US Firms

🔒 Arctic Wolf Labs observed a targeted September 2025 campaign in which the Russia-aligned RomCom group used fake browser-update prompts to deliver the Mythic Agent implant via a classic SocGholish chain. Researchers say this is the first observed instance of RomCom pairing SocGholish initial access with a Mythic C2-based loader. The intrusion was stopped before impact, and Arctic Wolf published IOCs and mitigation guidance.

Bloody Wolf APT Expands NetSupport Campaign in Central Asia

🔎 Researchers at Group-IB and UKUK have identified a widening campaign by the Bloody Wolf APT that uses streamlined Java-based loaders to deliver NetSupport remote administration software to government targets. The operation, active since late 2023 and observed in Kyrgyzstan from at least June 2025 before spreading to Uzbekistan in early October, relies on convincing PDF lures, spoofed domains and geofenced infrastructure. Simple Java 8 loaders fetch NetSupport over HTTP, add persistence via autorun entries and scheduled tasks, display fake error messages, and include a launch-limit counter to limit execution and avoid detection. The group has shifted from using STRRAT to deploying an older 2013 build of NetSupport Manager and uses a custom JAR generator to mass-produce variants.

ToddyCat toolkit pivots to Outlook and Microsoft tokens

🔒 Kaspersky researchers report that ToddyCat updated its toolkit in late 2024 and early 2025 to target Outlook email data and Microsoft 365 access via OAuth 2.0 tokens. Previously known for compromising internet-facing Microsoft Exchange servers, the group now uses a C++ utility, TCSectorCopy, to copy OST files and parses them with XstReader to read full email archives. When browser-based token extraction was blocked, attackers deployed ProcDump to dump tokens from Outlook memory. Kaspersky released IOCs and technical details to support detection and response.

Smashing Security #445: Broadcast Hacks and Insider Risk

🧟 In episode 445 of the Smashing Security podcast, Graham Cluley and guest Dan Raywood review a decade of insecure broadcast infrastructure that has allowed attackers to hijack TV and radio, issue fake emergency alerts, and even replace sermons with explicit content. They also examine an alleged insider leak at a cybersecurity firm that raises urgent questions about trusted access and internal controls. The discussion highlights persistent vulnerabilities in broadcast hardware and the broader implications for public safety and incident response.

Shai-Hulud v2 Supply-Chain Campaign Hits Maven Central

⚠️ The second wave of the Shai-Hulud supply-chain attack has moved from npm into the Maven ecosystem after researchers found org.mvnpm:posthog-node:4.18.1 embedding the same setup_bun.js loader and bun_environment.js payload. The artifact was rebundled via an automated mvnpm process and was not published by PostHog; mirrored copies were purged from Maven Central on Nov 25, 2025. The campaign steals API keys, cloud credentials and npm/GitHub tokens by backdooring developer environments and injecting malicious GitHub workflows, affecting thousands of repositories.