Vulnerabilities and exploits

In the second quarter of 2015 Kaspersky Lab solutions detected and repelled a total of 379,972,834 malicious attacks from online resources. There were 5,903,377 registered notifications about attempted malware infections aiming at stealing money via online access to bank accounts. Were detected 291,887 new malicious mobile programs.

On November 14, 2014, security researchers from Kaspersky Lab warned LinkedIn about a security issue that could pose a major threat to its 360+ million users.

The day before yesterday was an important day for the information security industry. Investigators announced exploitation of the first ever 0-day vulnerability for cars. The wireless attack was demonstrated on a Jeep Cherokee.

Microsoft releases a long list of updates to multiple technologies today with 14 Security Bulletins (MS15-058, MS15-065 – MS15-077) patching 58 vulnerabilities, and at least 47 of them reported through a a responsible disclosure channel.

A powerful threat actor known as “Wild Neutron” has been active since at least 2011, infecting high profile companies for several years by using a combination of exploits, watering holes and multi-platform malware.

The past Saturday we had the privilege of participating in this year’s edition of “Nuit du Hack”, a French security conference.

Microsoft releases eight security bulletins today, updating a set of forty five software vulnerabilities. This month’s updates touch a smaller set of Microsoft software, but two of the Bulletins address kernel-level vulnerabilities and require a restart.

Police departments have been surveilling citizens for years with the help of security cameras set up throughout various cities. For hackers, being able to launch man-in-the-middle attacks on the video data is a short step away from replacing real video feeds with pre-recorded footage.

The security flaws of the OAuth protocol have been known for quite a while. However, this is the first time we have come across a phishing email used by fraudsters to put these techniques into practice.

For over half a decade, the Naikon APT waged multiple attack campaigns on sensitive targets throughout South-eastern Asia and around the South China Sea.

The Naikon APT was one of the most active APTs in Asia. The attackers targeted mainly top-level government agencies and civil and military organizations in countries such as the Philippines, Malaysia, Cambodia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Myanmar, Singapore, Nepal, Thailand, Laos and China. For years they have mined victims, apparently in search of geo-political intelligence.

Microsoft released a set of thirteen Security Bulletins (MS015-043 through MS015-055) to start off May 2015, addressing 46 vulnerabilities in a wide set of Microsoft software technologies.

In the first quarter of 2015 Kaspersky Lab products detected a total of 2,2 bln malicious attacks and more than 93 mln unique malicious URLs. The story of the powerful Equation cyberespionage group was perhaps the most talked-about news story of Q1.

The main role in performing a hidden attack is played by exploits to software vulnerabilities that can be used to secretly download malicious code on the victim machine. Recently, we have come across a new technique used to hide exploit-based attacks: fraudsters packed the exploit pack in the Flash file.

One of the most active APT groups in Asia, and especially around the South China Sea area is “Naikon”. Naikon plays a key part in our story, but the focus of this report is on another threat actor entirely; one who came to our attention when they hit back at a Naikon attack.