Alaska Cybersecurity Blog
The Week in Ransomware – December 1st 2023 – Police hits affiliates
An international law enforcement operation claims to have dismantled a ransomware affiliate operation in Ukraine, which was responsible for attacks on organizations in 71 countries. The threat actors are said to be affiliates of numerous ransomware operations,...
TrickBot malware dev pleads guilty, faces 35 years in prison
On Thursday, a Russian national pleaded guilty to charges related to his involvement in developing and deploying the Trickbot malware, which was used in attacks against hospitals, companies, and individuals in the United States and worldwide. According to court...
Hackers use new Agent Raccoon malware to backdoor US targets
A novel malware named 'Agent Raccoon' (or Agent Racoon) is being used in cyberattacks against organizations in the United States, the Middle East, and Africa. The attackers are believed to be nation-state threat actors discovered by Palo Alto Network's Unit 42, which...
French government recommends against using foreign chat apps
Prime Minister of France Élisabeth Borne signed a circular last week requesting all government employees to uninstall foreign communication apps such as Signal, WhatsApp, and Telegram by December 8, 2023, in favor of a French messaging app named 'Olvid.' The guideline...
VMware fixes critical Cloud Director auth bypass unpatched for 2 weeks
VMware has fixed a critical authentication bypass vulnerability in Cloud Director appliance deployments, a bug that was left unpatched for over two weeks since it was disclosed on November 14th. Cloud Director is a VMware platform that enables admins to manage data...
LogoFAIL attack can install UEFI bootkits through bootup logos
Multiple security vulnerabilities collectively named LogoFAIL affect image-parsing components in the UEFI code from various vendors. Researchers warn that they could be exploited to hijack the execution flow of the booting process and to deliver bootkits. Because the...
US govt sanctions North Korea’s Kimsuky hacking group
The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has sanctioned the North Korean-backed Kimsuky hacking group for stealing intelligence in support of the country's strategic goals. OFAC has also sanctioned eight North Korean agents for facilitating...
WhatsApp’s new Secret Code feature hides your locked chats
WhatsApp has introduced a new Secret Code feature that allows users to hide their locked chats by setting a custom password. After it reaches your device, you can set a code (which can also contain emojis) specifically for securing locked chats independent from the...
Get 20% off Emsisoft’s Enterprise Security EDR solution for the holidays
Emsisoft is having a holiday deal where you can get 20% off 1-year licenses of the Emsisoft Enterprise Security EDR solution through December 17th, 2023, with no license limits. Emsisoft's Enterprise Security provides a cloud-based management console where you can see...