Insights

CISA and Partners Release Cybersecurity Advisory Guidance detailing PRC state-sponsored actors evading detection by “Living off the Land”

Today, CISA joined the National Security Agency (NSA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and international partners in releasing a joint cybersecurity advisory highlighting recently discovered activities conducted by a People’s Republic of China (PRC) state-sponsored cyber threat actor.  This advisory highlights how PRC cyber actors use techniques called “living off the land” to evade detection by using built-in networking administration tools to compromise networks and conduct malicious activity. This enables the cyber actor to…

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CISA and Partners Update the #StopRansomware Guide, Developed through the Joint Ransomware Task Force (JRTF)

Today, CISA, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the National Security Agency (NSA), and the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC) published an updated version of the #StopRansomware Guide, as ransomware actors have accelerated their tactics and techniques since its initial release in 2020. The update incorporates lessons learned from the past two years and includes additional recommended actions, resources, and tools to maximize its relevancy and effectiveness and to further help reduce the prevalence…

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Interview With a Crypto Scam Investment Spammer

Social networks are constantly battling inauthentic bot accounts that send direct messages to users promoting scam cryptocurrency investment platforms. What follows is an interview with a Russian hacker responsible for a series of aggressive crypto spam campaigns that recently prompted several large Mastodon communities to temporarily halt new registrations. According to the hacker, their spam software has been in private use until the last few weeks, when it was released as open source code. Renaud…

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Mapping out our Destination: Responsible Innovation via the NIST Identity Roadmap

RSA Conference week is always a whirlwind. NIST was there front and center last month, and we learned a lot, shared a lot, and made a big announcement during the festivities… We were excited to announce that NIST’s DRAFT Identity and Access Management Roadmap was released for public comment on Friday, April 14th and that the comment period will be extended to June 16th. What is the Roadmap? The Roadmap provides a consolidated view of…

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Cisco Releases Security Advisory for Small Business Series Switches

Cisco released a security advisory to address multiple vulnerabilities affecting the web-based user interface of certain Cisco Small Business Series Switches. A remote attacker could exploit these vulnerabilities to cause a denial-of-service condition or execute arbitrary code with root privileges on an affected device. CISA encourages users and administrators to review the following advisory and apply the necessary updates: •    Cisco Small Business Series Switches Buffer Overflow Vulnerabilities For updates addressing lower severity vulnerabilities, see…

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CISA Releases Five Industrial Control Systems Advisories

CISA released five Industrial Control Systems (ICS) advisories on May 16, 2023. These advisories provide timely information about current security issues, vulnerabilities, and exploits surrounding ICS.  ICSA-23-138-01 Carlo Gavazzi Powersoft ICSA-23-138-02 Mitsubishi Electric MELSEC WS ICSA-23-138-03 Hitachi Energy MicroSCADA Pro/X SYS600 ICSA-23-138-04 Johnson Controls OpenBlue Enterprise Manager Data Collector ICSA-20-051-02 Rockwell Automation FactoryTalk Diagnostics Update B   CISA encourages users and administrators to review the newly released ICS advisories for technical details and mitigations.

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Russian Hacker “Wazawaka” Indicted for Ransomware

A Russian man identified by KrebsOnSecurity in January 2022 as a prolific and vocal member of several top ransomware groups was the subject of two indictments unsealed by the Justice Department today. U.S. prosecutors say Mikhail Pavolovich Matveev, a.k.a. “Wazawaka” and “Boriselcin” worked with three different ransomware gangs that extorted hundreds of millions of dollars from companies, schools, hospitals and government agencies. An FBI wanted poster for Matveev. Indictments returned in New Jersey and the…

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Re-Victimization from Police-Auctioned Cell Phones

Countless smartphones seized in arrests and searches by police forces across the United States are being auctioned online without first having the data on them erased, a practice that can lead to crime victims being re-victimized, a new study found. In response, the largest online marketplace for items seized in U.S. law enforcement investigations says it now ensures that all phones sold through its platform will be data-wiped prior to auction. Researchers at the University…

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CISA and Partners Release BianLian Ransomware Cybersecurity Advisory

CISA, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) have released a joint Cybersecurity Advisory (CSA) with known BianLian ransomware and data extortion group technical details. Microsoft and Sophos contributed to the advisory. To reduce the likelihood and impact of BianLian and other ransomware incidents, CISA encourages organizations to implement mitigations recommended in this advisory. Mitigations align with the Cross-Sector Cybersecurity Performance Goals (CPGs) developed by CISA and the National Institute of…

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CISA and FBI Release Joint Advisory in Response to Active Exploitation of PaperCut Vulnerability

CISA and FBI have released a joint Cybersecurity Advisory (CSA), Malicious Actors Exploit CVE-2023-27350 in PaperCut MF and NG. This joint advisory provides details related to an exploitation of PaperCut MF/NG vulnerability (CVE-2023-27350). FBI observed malicious actors exploit CVE-2023-27350 beginning in mid-April 2023 and continuing through the present. In early May 2023, FBI observed a group self-identifying as the Bl00dy Ransomware Gang attempting to exploit vulnerable PaperCut servers against the Education Facilities Subsector. The advisory further…

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