This week, why businesses need layered cybersecurity, the “most dangerous hacking group” are eyeing up the US power grid, and inside the online leak of hours of sought-after Radiohead rehearsals.

SonicWall Spotlight

Technology Enablement Demands Layered Cyber-Security – SC Magazine

• Writing in SC Magazine, SonicWall CEO Bill Conner explains why organizations need layered cybersecurity to keep up with modern cyberthreats. He warns that businesses cannot take their cyberdefenses for granted when criminals will use every available vector to launch an attack.

SonicWall Identifies TrickBot Malware, That Steals Customer’s Online Banking Information – CRN India

• The SonicWall Capture Labs Threat Research Team recently released an update detailing a variant of the Trickbot malware family actively spreading across the internet. CRN India investigate the update.

Cyber Security News

This “Most Dangerous” Hacking Group Is Now Probing Power Grids – ZDNet

• A hacking group described as “the most dangerous threat” to industrial control systems has been has been detected probing US power grid cybersecurity. Known as Xenotime, the hackers previously launched a successful cyberattack on a petrochemical plant in Saudi Arabia.

House Passes Bill to Establish DHS Cyber “First Responder” Teams – The Hill

• New legislation has been passed in the US that aims to create “cyber incident response teams” – providing fast assistance to public or private organizations suffering from a breach or cyberattack.

Dark Web Becomes a Haven for Targeted Hits – Dark Reading

• Almost half of Dark Web vendors sell targeted hacking services aimed at FTSE 100 and Fortune 500 businesses. Dark Reading investigates what is available to would-be cybercriminals and finds that access to corporate networks is sold openly and that malware prices range from $150 to $1500 depending on how sophisticated the request.

These are the worst hacks, cyberattacks, and data breaches of 2019 (so far) – ZDNet

• As we reach the halfway point in the year, ZDNet take a look at what they consider the biggest cybercrime events of the year so far, including multiple medical breaches and a university that had 19 years of data stolen.

Lawmakers Demand Answers on Border Patrol Data Breach – The Hill

• After hackers broke into a third-party border patrol database, lawmakers have been pushing hard to find out both what happened and how to prevent it from happening again. The breach resulted in the exposure of images of as many as 100,000 people entering and exiting the U.S. over the period of a month and a half.

This data-stealing malware has returned with new attacks and nasty upgraded features – ZDNet

• The malware known as Scranos has upped its game after operators had their previous plans interrupted. Having updated their methods they have also taken time to add on a trojan and cryptojacker on top of their previous payload.

For Sale: Have I Been Pwned – Gizmodo

• The owner behind the popular security website that lets people know if their details have been compromised is selling up. In a blog post he explained that the website has gone as far as it possibly can when only run by one person.

Radiohead Fans vs. Black-Market Sellers: The Battle to Leak the OK Computer Tapes – Pitchfork

• After initial reports that minidiscs were being held to ransom, Pitchfork investigates the full story behind the leak of over 16 hours of rehearsals and demos, going deep into the world of online fandom.

In Case You Missed It

• SonicWall, ADT Ink Partnership to Offer Managed Cybersecurity Solutions to SMBs – David Chamberlin
• The E-rate ‘Fear Less’ Solution – SonicWall Staff
• Navigating the E-rate Program: Forms, Filling Cycles & Rules – SonicWall Staff
• An Explanation of E-rate: How to Cost-Effectively Protect K12 Networks – SonicWall Staff
• Inside the Modern Phishing Campaigns of 2019 – Ganesh Umapathy
• 4 Ways the WhatsApp Exploit Could Use Employees to Infiltrate Your Network – Rob Krug

This week, Baltimore battles ransomware, IoT attacks are increasing, and the potential vulnerabilities in a driverless car are investigated.

SonicWall Spotlight

5 Steps to Robust Network Security – Business World (India)

• IT security teams around the world are dealing with an ever-increasing level of complexity in the threat landscape. SonicWall’s Debasish Mukherjee argues that the best way to overcome these challenges is with a comprehensive approach to cybersecurity, he then recommends five steps to take in order to get there.

How to Mitigate the IoT Attacks That Are Increasing at 217.5% – IoT Agenda

• Internet of Things (IoT) devices are expected to increase in number to 75.44 billion worldwide by 2025. Using the 2019 SonicWall Cyber Threat Report IoT Agenda explains why preventative measures need to be developed sooner rather than later.

Cyber Security News

Baltimore Ransomware Attack: NSA Faces Questions – BBC

• After a ransomware attack currently estimated to cost at least $18M Baltimore officials are questioning why the hacking vulnerability known as EternalBlue was not disclosed when discovered by the NSA years ago. The NSA are declining to comment on the issue.

New Zealand Budget Leak: ‘Hackers’ Had Simply Searched Treasury Website – The Guardian

• After the embargoed New Zealand budget was leaked to the opposition National Party days before it was due to be released, officials were quick to call it a hack. However, it has now been found that the documents were searchable on the New Zealand treasury website.

HawkEye Malware Campaign Upticks on Business Users – SC Magazine

• Hawkeye, a keylogger than has been around for six years, has seen a major increase in a campaign targeting business users worldwide.

Startups: Embrace Cybersecurity Priorities From Day One – Forbes

• Forbes argues that cybersecurity in startups should not be considered an add-on or a luxury product and provide four cybersecurity priorities that a startup needs to think about from day one.

Emotet Made up 61% of Malicious Payloads in Q1 – Dark Reading

• A new study has found that 61% of all malware payloads in the first quarter of 2019 contained the Emotet botnet.

Security Expert: Here’s How Driverless Cars Could Be Hacked – Yahoo! Finance

• As cars modernize and driverless cars are becoming a reality it is fair to say that they are becoming more and more like a series of interconnected computers. Yahoo! Finance looks at where the security weakpoint in these computers might be found, how it could be targeted by hackers, and how the car industry is struggling to keep up with security requirements.

Nation-State Security: Private Sector Necessity – SecurityWeek

• Attackers with the funding and technical support of nation-states are now targeting commercial entities and the obvious split between commercial and political cyberattacks is disappearing. SecurityWeek examine the current threat landscape, including the increasing number of organizations embracing “Zero Trust” security models where all environments are considered untrusted until proven otherwise. They then offer some advice on how to ensure your organization is ready for cyberattacks.

Microsoft Issues Second Warning About Patching BlueKeep as PoC Code Goes Public – ZDNet

• Microsoft again warned users to ensure their patches are up to date to protect against the Bluekeep vulnerability – described as similar to the EternalBlue exploit – after a proof-of-concept attack appeared online. SonicWall provides protection against this threat.

In Case You Missed It

• Inside the Modern Phishing Campaigns of 2019 – Ganesh Umapathy
• An Explanation of E-rate: How to Cost-Effectively Protect K12 Networks – SonicWall Staff
• 4 Ways the WhatsApp Exploit Could Use Employees to Infiltrate Your Network – Rob Krug
• Non-Standard Ports Are Under Cyberattack – Brook Chelmo
• Cryptojacking Apocalypse: Defeating the Four Horsemen of Cryptomining – Brook Chelmo

This week, SonicWall CEO Bill Conner is interviewed by SC Magazine, a Zero-Day vulnerability travelled around the world without ever being disclosed publicly, and Facebook are working to prevent election meddling in Europe.

SonicWall Spotlight

In Focus: SonicWall CEO Bill Conner – SC Magazine

• SonicWall CEO Bill Conner joins Illena Armstrong of SC Magazine in an exclusive video interview. They discuss what companies are missing in the global cyber arms race, the non-traditional points of entry where the threats are emerging and what steps an organization can take to secure its infrastructure.

Cyber Security News

The Strange Journey of an NSA Zero-Day into Multiple Enemies’ Hands – Wired

• Wired tell the story of an NSA-discovered zero-day vulnerability that made its way around the globe over several years; first intercepted by China, then stolen by hackers before being picked up by North Korea and Russia, all without being publicly disclosed.

Facebook Opens a Command Post to Thwart Election Meddling in Europe – New York Times

• After the harsh criticism it faced following the 2016 US election Facebook has opened a “command post” in Ireland charged with preventing any meddling in the upcoming European election.

Hackers Steal Over $40 Million Worth of Bitcoin From One of the World’s Largest Cryptocurrency Exchanges – CNBC

• Over $40 million worth of bitcoin has been stolen from Binance, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, in a “large scale security breach.” The well-organized attack managed to bypass the security checks and exited over 7,000 bitcoin, about 2% of total holdings.

Cybersecurity Jobs Abound. No Experience Required. – Wall Street Journal

• Large tech companies are scrambling to hire hundreds of thousands of corporate hackers to defend their networks and data, pursuing workers without traditional four-year degrees or formal experience.

How to Close the Critical Cybersecurity Talent Gap – Dark Reading

• “If we don’t change our ways, the gap will keep getting worse.” Dark Reading commentator Thomas Weithman calls for “outside-the-box thinking” to bridge the cybersecurity talent gap, suggesting introducing cybersecurity curriculum in K-12 courses and setting up programs to allow people in a similar industry to retrain.

Russian Cyberspies Are Using One Hell of a Clever Microsoft Exchange Backdoor – ZDNet

• An email backdoor named LightNeuron that integrates directly with Microsoft Exchange is being called “one of the most complex backdoors ever spotted.” Despite being in use since 2014 it has avoided detection until very recently.

Amazon Hit by Extensive Fraud With Hackers Siphoning Merchant Funds – Bloomberg

• A court filing has revealed that Amazon believes it was the victim of a “serious” online attack between May and October 2018. Hackers accessed around 100 seller accounts and funneled cash from loans or sales into their own bank accounts.

TRON Critical Security Flaw Could Break the Entire Blockchain – ZDNet

• A critical vulnerability with a “high” severity rate has been found in the TRON network’s TRX cryptocurrency. If exploited the vulnerability could render the entire network unusable.

Without Strong Cybersecurity, Backdoors Will Remain Open – Silicon Republic

• Former Europol Executive Director John O’Mahony is warning that not enough companies and individuals have “even adequate cybersecurity” in place to prevent bad actors exploiting backdoors in their networks.

In Case You Missed It

• Cryptojacking Apocalypse: Defeating the Four Horsemen of Cryptomining – Brook Chelmo
• ‘Federal Tech Talk’ Hosts SonicWall CEO Bill Conner to Examine Cybercriminal Strategies that Threaten Federal Agencies – Geoff Blaine
• Dragonblood Vulnerability: Is your WiFi secure? – Srudi Dineshan
• What to Look for in a CASB Solution – Ganesh Umapathy
• New PDF Fraud Campaign Spotlights Shifting Cybercriminal Phishing Tactics – Dmitriy Ayrapetov
• Stopping PDF Attacks: 5 Ways Users & Organizations Can Work Together – Brook Chelmo

This week, SonicWall’s recent PDF and Office cyberattack findings back up investigative reporting, a “secure” WhatsApp replacement is anything but, and vulnerabilities in the Internet of Things continue to create headlines.

SonicWall Spotlight

The Growing Partnership Between Russia’s Government and Cybercriminals – 60 Minutes

• In a new investigative report, CBS examines evidence of increasingly blurred lines between Russia intelligence agencies and the criminal exploits of notorious cybercriminals like Evgeniy Bogachev, better known as the hacker “slavik” and “lucky12345”. The report further supports SonicWall’s recent findings of escalating PDF and Office document-based attacks likely originating from Russia.

Cyber Threat Report: Over 10 Billion Attacks of Various Types Recorded in 2018 – Business Review

• Business Review reflect on the figures from the 2019 SonicWall Cyber Threat Report and the recently revealed data on the rise of dangerous PDF files.

PDF: The Vehicle of Choice for Malware and Fraud – HelpNet Security

• Help Net Security reports on the rise in PDF cybercrime campaigns. Additional coverage this week can found in OODA Loop, MeriTalk, Ciso Magazine and NextGov.

Cyber Security News

How Nest, Designed to Keep Intruders out of People’s Homes, Effectively Allowed Hackers to Get In – Washington Post

• Internet connected devices, like Google’s Nest family, struggle striking the right balance between making devices very secure and making them easy to use. If too much friction is put in place for security reasons, then brands risks turning potential users off.

FBI: Cybercriminals Set New Record in 2018 by Causing More Than $2.7 Billion in Reported Losses – Washington Times

• The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center have released their annual report, detailing an almost doubling of financial losses caused by cybercrime in 2018.

Bug in French Government’s WhatsApp Replacement Let Anyone Join ÉLysée Chats – Ars Technica

• A “secure” messaging app launched by the French government was hacked almost immediately upon release.

An Inside Look at How Credential Stuffing Operations Work – ZDNet

• ZDNet dig deep into the world of cybercrime to explain how credential stuffing works, detailing both the tools and methods used, but also its place in the criminal economy.

Unauthorized Party Muscles Its Way Into Bodybuilding.Com’s Systems – SC Magazine

• Bodybuilding.com revealed that it suffered a data breach in February 2019 leaving exposed a trove of data, including the real names, email addresses, physical addresses and phone numbers. Stored financial information beyond partial card numbers was not exposed.

Hacker Finds He Can Remotely Kill Car Engines After Breaking Into GPS Tracking Apps – Motherboard

• A hacker broke into the accounts of thousands of GPS trackers and claims that “with one touch, I can stop these vehicles engines.” He says that he has carried out this hack to raise awareness of the poor security on the GPS apps.

Cybersecurity: UK Could Build an Automatic National Defence System, Says GCHQ Chief – ZDNet

• Following a recent UK cybersecurity survey suggesting that only 15% of people say they know how to protect themselves online, the head of the GCHQ in the UK has called for cybersecurity responsibility not to be dependent on individuals but shared by governments, ISPs and businesses.

In Case You Missed It

• What to Look for in a CASB Solution – Ganesh Umapathy
• New PDF Fraud Campaign Spotlights Shifting Cybercriminal Phishing Tactics – Dmitriy Ayrapetov
• Stopping PDF Attacks: 5 Ways Users & Organizations Can Work Together – Brook Chelmo
• ‘Chase & Capture’: The Chertoff Group Hosts SonicWall CEO Bill Conner on Latest Podcast – Geoff Blaine
• RTDMI Evolving with Machine Learning to Stop ‘Never-Before-Seen’ Cyberattacks – Brook Chelmo

This week, SonicWall named one of the 10 coolest IoT security vendors, Health Care has a huge cybersecurity problem, and LockerGoga is spreading fast.

SonicWall Spotlight

2019 Internet of Things 50: 10 Coolest IoT Security Vendors – CRN

• CRN name SonicWall as one of the 10 coolest IoT security vendors of 2019.

A Closer Look at LockerGoga, the Ransomware Crippling Industrial Giants – Verdict (UK)

• Verdict magazine, using data from the 2019 SonicWall Cyber Threat Report, examines the rise and spread of LockerGoga ransomware.

How K–12 Schools Can Use Next-Generation Content Filtering to Keep Students Safe – EdTech Magazine

• EdTech magazine looks at the evolving content filtering services available for K-12 schools. With older services no longer supplying adequate security and often over-blocking content, they recommend modern granular tools like SonicWall’s Content Filtering Services (CFS) which allows multiple, customized policies and categories.

Cyber Security News

Health Care’s Huge Cybersecurity Problem – The Verge

• With health care increasingly relying on internet connected devices many hospitals simply do not have adequate cybersecurity plans in place. The Verge investigates the risks to the healthcare system posed by cyberattacks, including already successful implementations of WannaCry and NotPetya.

Yahoo Strikes $117.5 Million Data Breach Settlement After Earlier Accord Rejected – Reuters

• Yahoo strikes a revised settlement with millions of people whose email addresses and other personal information were stolen in the largest data breach in history. The new settlement includes at least $55 million for victims’ out-of-pocket expenses and other costs, $24 million for two years of credit monitoring, up to $30 million for legal fees, and up to $8.5 million for other expenses.

Cybersecurity Testing Exercise for EU Elections – Government Europa

• The European Parliament has deployed a series of cybersecurity tests in anticipation of the European elections in May aiming to test the efficacy of crisis response protocols and explore new ways of detecting and preventing online cyberattacks.

Largest Leak in History: Email Data Breach Exposes Over Two Billion Personal Records – CPO Magazine

• Estimates for the volume of records exposed in the recent Verifications.io data breach have climbed from initial reports of 763 million records to a little over two billion records, setting a new world record.

Norsk Hydro Repairs Systems and Investigates After Ransomware Attack – Wall Street Journal

• Norwegian aluminum and energy company Norsk Hydro confirmed a LockerGoga ransomware attack in March crippled the company’s global operations.

Dragonblood Vulnerabilities Disclosed in WiFi WPA3 Standard – ZDNet

• The security researchers who previously disclosed the 2017 KRACK attack on the WiFi WPA2 standard have now released details on a group of vulnerabilities on WiFi WPA3, dubbing them “Dragonblood”.

In Case You Missed It

• RTDMI Evolving with Machine Learning to Stop ‘Never-Before-Seen’ Cyberattacks – Brook Chelmo
• Webinar: The State of the Cyber Arms Race – Geoff Blaine
• Don’t Have a Risk(y) Defense Against Malware, Ransomware – Scott Grebe
• Advanced Security Training: New SonicWall Network Security Professional (SNSP) Course & Certification – Bob VanKirk
• 2019 SonicWall Cyber Threat Report: Unmasking Threats That Target Enterprises, Governments & SMBs – Dmitriy Ayrapetov
• Wireless Security, Wi-Fi Management Hot Topics at RSA Conference 2019 – Srudi Dineshan