Breach affecting 1 million was caught only after hacker maxed out target’s storage
The US Federal Trade Commission has sued an IT provider for failing to detect 20 hacking intrusions over a 22-month period, allowing the hacker to access the data for 1 million consumers. The provider only discovered the breach when the hacker maxed out the provider’s storage system. Utah-based InfoTrax Systems was first breached in May 2014, when a hacker exploited vulnerabilities in the company’s network that gave remote control over its server, FTC lawyers alleged in a complaint.
5,183 breaches from the first nine months of 2019 exposed 7.9 billion records
According to Risk Based Security’s Q3 2019 Data Breach QuickView Report, the total number of breaches was up 33.3% compared to Q3 2018, with 5,183 breaches reported in the first nine months of 2019. Breach activity in 2019 is living up to being “the worst year on record”. Although the total number of breaches is on track to break previous year records, the total number of records exposed has already surpassed the 2017 year end total.
Spanish Ryuk ransomware attack hints at new WannaCry
A spate of cyber attacks on Spanish companies has raised fears of a repeat of the 2016 WannaCry attacks, according to experts. Spain's National Security Department, a radio station and a data centre have all reportedly been hit by the Ryuk ransomware, which has been heavily linked to a number of UK attacks. Everis, which is a Spanish data centre, sent its workforce home following the attack, instructing staff not to use its mobile devices, according to Xataka.
Orcus RAT Author Charged in Malware Scheme
In July 2016, KrebsOnSecurity published a story identifying a Toronto man as the author of the Orcus RAT, a software product that’s been marketed on underground forums and used in countless malware attacks since its creation in 2015. This week, Canadian authorities criminally charged him with orchestrating an international malware scheme.
Strange AnteFrigus Ransomware Only Targets Specific Drives
A new and strange ransomware called AnteFrigus is now being distributed through malvertising that redirects users to the the RIG exploit kit. Unlike other ransomware, AnteFrigus does not target the C: drive, but only other drives commonly associated with removable devices and mapped network drives. The RIG exploit kit uses malicious scripts hosted on attacker-owned or compromised sites that exploit vulnerabilities in Internet Explorer.
Threat Actor Impersonates USPS to Deliver Backdoor Malware
A new threat actor has been found impersonating the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) and other government agencies to deliver and install backdoor malware to various organizations in Germany, Italy and the United States, according to new research. The campaigns, which researchers from cybersecurity firm Proofpoint observed between Oct. 16 and Nov. 12, are consistent with emerging tactics from bad actors to use increasingly sophisticated social engineering and spoofing to deliver malware, researchers said.
Facebook Nixes Billions of Fake Accounts
Facebook on Wednesday said it has taken down some 5.4 billion fake accounts this year in a sign of the persistent battle on social media against manipulation and misinformation. Amid growing efforts to create fraudulent accounts, Facebook said it has stepped up its defenses and often removes the accounts within minutes of being created. "We have improved our ability to detect and block attempts to create fake, abusive accounts," the internet firm said in its latest transparency report.
