CyberSecurity Updates

Stealthy ‘Beep’ Malware Discovered

Although Beep’s functionality is currently limited, it’s clear that the developers have high ambitions for a variety of functionality. While the evasion tactics used in Beep are plentiful, they generally center around avoiding anti-virus, and being difficult to reverse engineer. Behavioral analysis can still provide great value in detecting threats such as this. It’s important to have a defense-in-depth program which includes proactive threat hunting of post compromise activities in order to combat emerging threats…

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EnterpriseDB adds Transparent Data Encryption to PostgreSQL

Relational database provider EnterpriseDB on Tuesday said that it was adding Transparent Data Encryption (TDE) to its databases, which are based on open-source PostgreSQL.   TDE, which is used by Oracle and Microsoft, is a method of encrypting database files in order to ensure security of data while at rest and in motion. It helps ensure that  data on the hard drive as well as files on backup are encrypted, the company said in a…

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We are less than a year away from a cyber attack credited to ChatGPT

Jonathan Jackson, director of sales engineering APJ at BlackBerry Cybersecurity, writes about why cyber attacks linked to artificial intelligence are inevitable. ChatGPT has answers for almost everything, but there is one answer we may not know for a while: will its unintended consequences for cyber security turn this tool into a genie that its creators regret taking out of the bottle? BlackBerry surveyed 1,500 IT decision makers across North America, the UK and Australia and…

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Open Systems launches Ontinue MDR division, new MXDR service Ontinue ION

Managed security services provider Open Systems has announced the launch of Ontinue, a new managed detection and response (MDR) division. It has also unveiled a new managed extended detection and response (MXDR) service, Ontinue ION, along with a new add-on service called Managed Vulnerability Mitigation (MVM). Ontinue ION offers advanced capabilities that enable faster detection and response, a deeper understanding of a customer’s environment and the ability to maximize Microsoft security investments for greater efficiency,…

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Expel announces MDR for Kubernetes with MITRE ATT&CK framework alignment

Security operations provider Expel has announced the general availability of Expel managed detection and response (MDR) for Kubernetes. The firm said the product enables customers to secure their business across their Kubernetes environment and adopt new technologies at scale without being hindered by security concerns. It has also been designed to align with the MITRE ATT&CK framework to help teams remediate threats and improve resilience, Expel added. Kubernetes is an open-source orchestration system that relies…

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Measuring cybersecurity: The what, why, and how

A core pillar of a mature cyber risk program is the ability to measure, analyze, and report cybersecurity threats and performance. That said, measuring cybersecurity is not easy. On one hand business leaders struggle to understand information risk (because they usually are from a non-cyber background), while on the other, security practitioners get caught up in too much technical detail which ends up confusing, misinforming, or misleading stakeholders. In an ideal scenario, security practitioners must…

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Serious Security: GnuTLS follows OpenSSL, fixes timing attack bug

by Paul Ducklin Last week, we wrote about a bunch of memory management bugs that were fixed in the latest security update of the popular OpenSSL encryption library. Along with those memory bugs, we also reported on a bug dubbed CVE-2022-4304: Timing Oracle in RSA Decryption. In this bug, firing the same encrypted message over and over again at a server, but modifying the padding at the end of the data to make the data…

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PLC vulnerabilities can enable deep lateral movement inside OT networks

Threat groups who target operational technology (OT) networks have so far focused their efforts on defeating segmentation layers to reach field controllers such as programmable logic controllers (PLCs) and alter the programs (ladder logic) running on them. However, researchers warn that these controllers should themselves be treated as perimeter devices and flaws in their firmware could enable deep lateral movement through the point-to-point and other non-routable connections they maintain to other low-level devices. To exemplify…

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Play Ransomware Claims A10 Networks as Latest Victim

The full scope of this attack is not yet known, but it is always important to be reminded of some ways to protect against ransomware in the future. Some measures that can be used to reduce the impact or likelihood of an attack include: • Regularly back up data, air gap, and password-protect backup copies offline.• Ensure copies of critical data are not accessible for modification or deletion from the system where the data resides.•…

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Ransomware Hits Technion Israel Institute of Technology

The previously unknown DarkBit gang appeared only this week, and its location is unknown. However, the attackers gave some indicators about their intentions in the ransom note and on their Telegram and Twitter channels. At first look, DarkBit’s operations appear to be hacktivism because of their opposition to “racism, fascism, and apartheid,” but the group’s goals are more complex. Hackers seek to hold Israel accountable for “war crimes against humanity” and “firing high-skilled experts” while…

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