Cybersecurity Weekly: Amazon implements Ring 2FA, WordPress trojan-infected themes, AdSense email extortion
Amazon enables mandatory 2-factor authentication following recent Ring hacks. 20,000 WordPress websites were infected through trojan-infected themes. A new email extortion scheme threatens to ban Google AdSense ads. All this, and more, in this week’s edition of Cybersecurity Weekly.
Top Security Awareness Posters
1. Ring makes 2-factor authentication mandatory following recent hacks
Following several recent incidents involving hackers gaining access to people's Ring doorbell and security cameras, Amazon announced to make two-factor authentication mandatory for all Ring users. The company also added a notification for Ring accounts that alerts users anytime someone successfully logs into their account from a new device or browser.
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2. Like of the year phishing scam found in the wild
Cybersecurity researchers discovered a large-scale ongoing fraud scheme that lures unsuspecting internet users with promises of financial rewards to steal their payment card information. In addition to sending emails, the attackers also delivered the phishing messages by sending cash prize alerts as Google Calendar events.
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3. WhatsApp phishing URLs skyrocket with over 13,000% surge
WhatsApp's 5,020 detected unique phishing URLs made it the 5th most impersonated brand in phishing attacks in 2019. The other two social media brands in the top 25 brands used as bait in phishing attacks are Facebook, which took the second spot at the top, and Instagram, which rose up to the 13th spot.
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4. 20,000 WordPress websites infected through trojanized themes
An active supply chain campaign infected 20,000 websites since late 2017 via malicious WordPress themes and plugins. Security researchers believe that the number of infected sites is much higher, “potentially in the hundreds of thousands.” Once a victim uploads a trojanized theme, the attackers gain full control over the server.
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5. New Joker clicker found in Google Play Store
Security researchers discovered four new samples of the Joker malware in the Google Play Store recently, in apps with a cumulative installation count higher than 130,000. The malware was hidden in camera, wallpaper, SMS, and photo editing software. Joker's developer frequently adapts the code to remain undetected.
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6. Email extortion scheme threatens to ban Google AdSense ads
A new email-based extortion scheme is currently making the rounds, targeting website owners serving banner ads through Google’s AdSense program. In this scam, the fraudsters demand bitcoin in exchange for a promise not to send junk traffic to trip Google’s automated anti-fraud systems and suspend the user’s account.
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7. Hackers share stolen MGM Resorts guest database with over 10 million records
An archive containing over 10 million guest records at the MGM Resorts hotels is currently available for free on a hacking forum. The data comes from a security breach in July 2019 on one of MGM cloud services. The database contains details of high-profile guests, such as Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, Justin Bieber, and some U.S. government officials.
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8. U.S. Government warns critical industries after ransomware hits gas pipeline facility
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security issued a warning to all industries operating critical infrastructures about a new ransomware threat that could have severe consequences. This comes in response to a cyberattack that employed a spearphishing campaign to deliver ransomware to the company's internal network.
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9. Google bans 600 Android apps from Play Store for serving disruptive ads
Google banned 600 Android apps from the Play Store for bombarding users with disruptive ads and violating its advertising guidelines. The removed apps had racked up a cumulative 4.5 billion installations. Google also forged an App Defense Alliance partnership with cybersecurity firms to more effectively police the Play Store.
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See Infosec IQ in action
10. New Mexico sues Google for mining children's data
In a lawsuit filed last week, New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas stated that Google is allegedly attempting to bypass the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act through Google Education to mine the data of the students who use it. Google argues that the schools must obtain parental consent before allowing students to create an account on the platform.
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In this Series
- Cybersecurity Weekly: Amazon implements Ring 2FA, WordPress trojan-infected themes, AdSense email extortion
- Canada Flipper Zero ban and new RustDoor macOS malware
- AnyDesk hack and iPhone patched kernel flaw
- Tesla Pwn2Own hacks and iOS push alerts abuse
- TeamViewer breach and Atlassian Jira outage
- Moscow ISP revenge hack and Microsoft Sharepoint bug warning
- X verified accounts hack and SpectralBlur macOS malware
- CISA default password alert and SOHO KV-botnet campaign
- New 5G modem flaws and Apple’s data breach report
- Staples cyberattack, Agent Racoon backdoor and other news
- British Library ransomware attack, Windows fingerprint authentication bypass
- Samsung UK data breach and ransomware actor’s SEC complaint
- ICBC ransomware attack and ChatGPT outage
- Boeing Lockbit ransomware attack, Apple’s vulnerability and WhatsApp mods spyware
- Octo Tempest hacking group and new iLeakage attack
- Okta support system breach and Google Ads fake KeePass campaign
- Skype DarkGate malware, Shadow PC breach and AvosLocker ransomware warning
- 23andMe data theft, MGM’s $100M ransomware loss and the Azure VM breach
- Malicious Bing Chat ads and FBI’s dual ransomware warning
- T-Mobile app glitch and fake Booking.com pages
- Airbus data leak, Cisco Webex ad malware and €345 million TikTok fine
- New Apple iMessage exploit and CISA’s Apache RocketMQ warning
- Forever 21 data breach and Android BadBazaar espionage
- Duolingo data leak and the Met Police IT hack
- Discord.io data breach and Ivanti Avalanche vulnerabilities
- UK Electoral Commission hack and Microsoft’s role in China email breach
- Salesforce email zero-day exploit and Microsoft Power Platform criticism
- Airlines disclose pilot data breach and the Microsoft Teams bug
- GravityRAT Android Trojan and new MOVEit Transfer flaw
- University of Manchester hack and Honda API flaws
- MOVEit zero-day exploit and the U.S. iPhone hack accusation
- Daam Android virus and Barracuda zero-day flaw
- TP-Link router exploit and 18-year-old charged with hacking DraftKings accounts
- Discord support hack and Toyota location data leak
- Twitter private tweets bug and Cisco phone router vulnerabilities
- Cisco XSS zero-day flaw and PaperCut vulnerabilities
- 3CX hackers hit critical infrastructure and secondhand routers cause security concerns
- Hyundai data breach and Microsoft’s warning to accountants
- Western Digital cloud breach and the MSI ransomware hack
- TMX loan data breach, Italy bans ChatGPT and WordPress Elementor Pro exploit
- ChatGPT data leak and Gmail message theft by North Korean hackers
- U.S. federal agency hack and the return of FakeCalls Android malware
- Massive AT&T data breach and fake jobs targeting security researchers
- U.S. Marshals service breach and TPM 2.0 security flaws
- Dangerous ChatGPT apps and food giant Dole ransomware attack
- GoDaddy malware installations, record-breaking DDoS attack and the new WhiskerSpy malware
- Reddit’s employees phished, healthcare firms targeted and the new Screenshotter malware
- JD Sports data breached, VMware ESXi servers attacked and the HeadCrab malware
- Yandex source code leaked, 4500+ WordPress sites hacked and the new SwiftSlicer malware
- PayPal accounts breached, Fortinet VPN flaw exploited, and the new Hook malware
- Twitter users’ emails leaked, ChatGPT used to write malware and Slack’s repository breach
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