Cybercrime & Digital Threats

The total amount cybercriminals attempted to steal via business email compromise (BEC) scams rose to an alarming average of US$301 million per month — a substantial increase from the US$110 million monthly average that was tracked in 2016.

The GandCrab gang might be back to their old tricks. Various security researchers reported that the group might be responsible for releasing a more advanced ransomware variant called Sodinokibi.

New mobile malware Agent Smith targets Android devices to install malicious versions of popular apps. The malware displays fraudulent ads for the attackers' financial gain but can be further used for bigger attacks. Google has removed the malicious apps.

As ransomware becomes a bigger problem for local governments and other organizations, US mayors take a firm stand against paying ransom to hackers.

The government of the City of Griffin, Georgia, lost over US$800,000 to a business email compromise (BEC) scam last month.

A newly uncovered ransomware family was found targeting QNAP network-attached storage (NAS) devices. Named eCh0raix, the malware was reportedly designed for targeted ransomware attacks.

Microsoft found a malware campaign pushing the Astaroth info stealer into the memory of infected computers. This particular campaign was notable in its fileless distribution method and complex attack chain.

A newly discovered backdoor malware dubbed Godlua was discovered conducting DDoS attacks. Unique to this Lua-based malware is its abuse of the DNS over HTTPS (DoH) protocol to secure its communication channels.

A malicious spam campaign conducted in April used ISO image files to deliver the notorious LokiBot and NanoCore trojans.