Latest cybersecurity reporting from selected sources.

Researchers Identified Two Undocumented Variants Used Since 2023Eset uncovered two previously undocumented Windows variants of the China-linked SprySocks backdoor tied to FishMonger and iSoon, revealing expanded espionage capabilities, rootkit-based stealth and continued targeting of government organizations across Asia and Central America.

Also, Taiwan Rail Hack, Massive DDoS Attack and Karakurt Jail SentenceThis week, Microsoft Edge exposed passwords, Taiwan police make arrests in high-speed rail hack and a 2.45 billion-request DDoS attack. A Karakurt negotiator jailed, North Korean IT worker scams led to prison terms and France detained a teen over a government data breach. Another Ivanti zero-day.

Properly Configured Mobile Development Management Tools Can't Wipe Personal DataMobile device management software is having a moment of notoriety after Iran-aligned hacking group Handala used Microsoft Intune to wipe the mobile devices of employees at medical device manufacture Stryker. Tens of thousands of personal devices were likely affected.

Also: Spanish Hacker Granted Russian Asylum, Microsoft Patches Zero-DaysThis week, a CISA warning, Nest footage in Nancy Guthrie case, Signal phishing. Spanish hacker, Russian asylum. Spanish ministry services offline. BYOVD ransomware. The Conduent breach hit Volvo. Microsoft patched zero-days. ZeroDayRAT targeted devices. The SmarterMail breach. Another Fortinet flaw.

Also, Microsoft Badly Patches LNK Flaw, Australian Sentenced for 'Evil Twin' HackThis week, the React flaw, a belated Windows fix, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's Signal group posed operational risk, more North Korean npm packages. An Australian jailed for Wi-Fi "evil twin" crimes. The US FTC will send $15.3 million to Avast users. A London council said attackers stole data.

Chinese Hackers Target European Diplomats with LNK File FlawChinese nation-state hackers are exploiting a Windows vulnerability to hack European diplomatic outposts, say security researchers - but operating system giant Microsoft says the flaw doesn't merit a patch. Hackers used a flaw already compromised by North Korea and Russia.

Threat Actor Shifts From Targeting Exchange to DatabasesA Chinese cyberespionage threat actor with a history of hacking Microsoft Exchange to spy on geopolitical events including summits in Africa, the Middle East and Asia, has shifted its attention to targeting databases, say researchers.

Also, Colt Services Outage Persists, Finland Charges Americans in Vastaamo HackThis week, Microsoft hit RaccoonO365, Colt Technology Services, Finland charged a U.S. citizen in Vastaamo hack. RevengeHotels hackers used AI, Meta can't overturn a privacy case verdict. Chinese hackers unleashed spear phishing emails. Prosper confirmed a data breach, as did Kering fashion houses.

Lawmaker Says Microsoft Lapses Led to Ascension Health's Major 2024 HackSen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, is urging the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Microsoft over the software giant's alleged "negligent cybersecurity," which he says contributed to ransomware attacks on critical infrastructure sector organizations, including last year's attack on Ascension Health.

Financially Motivated Actor Storm-0501 Systematically Probed Victim EnvironmentsAs enterprises go with hybrid cloud developments, so follow hackers, even if it means jumping through extra hoops to get to where the data is stored. Microsoft on Wednesday said it spotted a financially-motivated hacking group probing a hybrid on-premise.

Settlement Is Latest Among Scores of Other MOVEit Lawsuits Still PendingNuance Communications, a Microsoft subsidiary, has agreed to pay $8.5 million to settle class action litigation filed after hackers exploited a zero-day flaw in Progress Software's MOVEit file transfer software in 2023, stealing data belonging to more than a dozen of Nuance's healthcare clients.

But Hacking Groups of All Stripes Now Have Access to Exploit Code, Researchers WarnMicrosoft said an attack campaign targeting zero-day vulnerabilities in on-premises SharePoint servers appears to have begun by July 7, tied to three Chinese hack groups. With proof-of-concept exploit code now in the wild, security experts said hackers of all stripes have joined the fray.

CISA Advisory Says Threat Actors Stole App Secrets in Azure-Hosted Backup PlatformA suspected Chinese state hacking group linked to last year’s telecom intrusions breached Commvault’s Microsoft Azure environment, exposing sensitive Microsoft 365 credentials and reigniting fears over U.S. cloud infrastructure vulnerabilities and default security settings.

'Laundry Bear' Has Been Active Since 2024Dutch intelligence agencies and Microsoft say a novel Russian state intelligence hacking group is likely buying stolen credentials from criminal marketplaces to gain entry to North American and European networks. It has "a specific interest in European Union and NATO member states."

Microsoft Researchers Link Turkish Spy Group to Output Messenger Zero-Day HackA Turkish-linked cyberespionage group known as Marbled Dust exploited a zero-day in the Output Messenger Server Manager application to spy on Kurdish military operations in Iraq. Microsoft reported the hack and called for immediate mitigation to block credential theft and malware delivery.

Suspected Hacker, Rami Khaled Ahmed, 36, Thought to Be in YemenA Yemini man faces charges in U.S. federal court for being the mastermind behind a rash of ransomware attacks that took advantage of the 2021 Microsoft Exchange flaw known as ProxyLogon. A Los Angeles federal grand jury indicted Rami Khaled Ahmed, 36.

Also, Oracle Denies Cloud Breach, Blames Hack on Obsolete ServersThis week, Port of Seattle notified victims, Oracle blamed hack on obsolete servers, Google and Microsoft released April patches, WK Kellogg breached, six arrested in Spain for AI-investment scam, Scattered Spider's "King Bob" pleaded guilty, SmokeLoader users busted.

Mustang Panda Uses MAVInject to Evade Antivirus DetectionA Chinese state-sponsored hacking group is abusing a legitimate Microsoft tool to evade security and install backdoors on government systems in the Asia-Pacific region. The threat actor uses MAVInject.exe to inject malware into waitfor.exe.

Also: Intensified Russian Hacking in Ukraine, Spain's Telefónica Confirms BreachThis week, Microsoft laid off security staff and released Patch Tuesday, Russian hackers intensified attacks on Ukraine in 2024, Telefónica confirmed a breach, a Tennessee mortgage leader reported a breach and the Texas AG sued Allstate over driver data collection.

Researcher Demonstrates Bitpixie Attack Tactics to Extract Encryption KeyA previously patched flaw in Windows BitLocker disk encryption feature is susceptible to attacks allowing hackers to decrypt information, new research has found. Security researcher Thomas Lambertz extracted data from the system memory, including the master key.