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.

Researchers Say Nation-State Actors Are Evolving Persistence TechniquesAn apparent Chinese nation-state hacking group gussied up its tooling with new modular functionality, say security researchers who observed a cyberespionage campaign affecting Asia-Pacific governments. The activity resembles attack patterns of the threat actor tracked as Mustang Panda

Website Popular in Korean Ethnic Enclave in China Hosts Apps Laced With a BackdoorA North Korean hacking group has been spying on a Korean ethnic enclave in China by infiltrating the Android apps of a regional gaming platform that hosts digital card and board games. Researchers attributed the supply-chain attack to a threat actor that Eset tracks as ScarCruft.

Alleged Nation-State Hacker Being Held in Houston JailU.S. prosecutors allege 34-year-old Chinese national Xu Zewei operated under China’s Ministry of State Security to hack universities and firms during the pandemic, exploiting VPN and Exchange flaws and exfiltrating research data in a Silk Typhoon campaign.

A Chinese national accused of being a member of the Silk Typhoon hacking group has been extradited to the U.S. from Italy.  Xu Zewei, 34, was arrested in July 2025 by Italian authorities for his alleged links to the Chinese state-sponsored threat group and for orchestrating cyber attacks against American organizations and government agencies between February 2020 and June 2021, including

Researchers at Check Point link ‘Amarath-Dragon’ attacks to prolific Chinese cyber-espionage operation

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.

A pair of German researchers showed how easy it is Black Hat Four countries have now tested anti-satellite missiles (the US, China, Russia, and India), but it's much easier and cheaper just to hack them.…

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.

Cybersecurity researchers have shed light on a mobile forensics tool called Massistant that's used by law enforcement authorities in China to gather information from seized mobile devices

China's Hack-For-Hire Scene Disgorges Another LeakThe Chinese nation-state threat actor tracked as Salt Typhoon is operated by a clutch of private firms whose clients include multiple Chinese government agencies, finds analysis of leaked data by Spy Cloud. Researchers found a spreadsheet listing buyers, sellers and financial transaction details.

Also, Researchers Exploit Tesla Wall Connector Via Charging CableThis week: Chinese Salt Typhoon hackers hit Viasat, researchers hacked a Tesla charger, Sitecore CMS flaws, Krispy Kreme disclosed hacking damage, Archetyp Market taken down. Episource disclosed a ransomware hack and Spain ruled out cyberattack for the April Iberian blackout.

OpenAI has revealed that it banned a set of ChatGPT accounts that were likely operated by Russian-speaking threat actors and two Chinese nation-state hacking groups to assist with malware development, social media automation, and research about U.S. satellite communications technologies, among other things

Malware Hides in Memory, Evades Detection by Endpoint ToolsA Chinese state-backed hacking group tracked as UNC5174 relaunched its operations after a year of silence with a campaign using a memory-only remote access Trojan that evades traditional detection mechanisms, according to new research from cybersecurity firm Sysdig.

Sysdig researchers detailed an ongoing campaign from China-backed threat actor UNC5174, which is using open source hacking tools to stay under the radar.

The Chinese threat actor known as FamousSparrow has been linked to a cyber attack targeting a trade group in the United States and a research institute in Mexico to deliver its flagship backdoor SparrowDoor and ShadowPad

Telecoms Still Falling to Chinese Nation-State Hacking Group, Researchers WarnA Chinese cyber espionage group tracked as Salt Typhoon and tied to the mass hacking of telecommunications networks in the U.S. and dozens of other countries has been continuing to seek and hack unpatched equipment, including exploiting two long-patched vulnerabilities in Cisco gear.

Russia, China, Iran and North Korea Tapping Cybercrime Services, Google SaysThe cybercrime-as-a-service economy continues to power ransomware and other criminal enterprises, as well as serve as "an accelerant for state-sponsored hacking," collectively posing an increasing risk to Western national security, cybersecurity researchers warn.

The Chinese state-sponsored hacking group Volt Typhoon has begun to rebuild its "KV-Botnet" malware botnet after it was disrupted by law enforcement in January, according to researchers from SecurityScorecard. [...]