Latest cybersecurity reporting from selected sources.

Nation-state attackers breach water systems through weak passwords, exposed PLCs, and poor segmentation — not sophisticated malware.

Former DoD CIO Leslie Beavers on Nation-State Attacks and DefenseLeslie Beavers, retired brigadier general and former acting CIO and principal deputy CIO of the Department of Defense, said the United States is already experiencing a "cyber invasion," driven by coordinated activity from adversaries including Iran, China, Russia and North Korea.

Hacktivists use proxy services from Russia, China for 'billions of designed-for-abuse connection attempts' Cybercrime has skyrocketed since the start of the Iran war, according to Akamai, which reports a 245 percent increase in everything from credential harvesting attempts to automated reconnaissance traffic aimed at banks and other critical businesses.…

Several state-sponsored actors, hacktivist entities, and criminal groups from China, Iran, North Korea, and Russia have trained their sights on the defense industrial base (DIB) sector, according to findings from Google Threat Intelligence Group (GTIG)

Berlin Readies Legislation Authorizing More Aggressive Stance in CyberspaceGermany wants to drastically step up defenses against cyberattacks from foes such as Russia, China, Iran and North Korea, and it's looking to key ally Israel for lessons and cooperation.

Iranian OT Hacking Team Has Gone Quiet … Too QuietArmed exchanges between Iran and Israel and the prospect of U.S. armed intervention against Tehran has cyber defenders warning about hacking risks to critical infrastructure. Iran's CyberAv3ngers doesn't possess the sophistication of Chinese or Russian actors but it's still a persistent threat.

Malicious Accounts Linked to Malware, Influence OperationsOpenAI is using its artificial intelligence models to detect and counter abuse and has banned accounts associated with malicious state-linked operations. Hackers aligned with Russia, China, North Korea and Iran have used OpenAI's tools for malware development and social media manipulation.

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

At least 11 state-backed hacking groups from North Korea, Iran, Russia, and China have been exploiting a new Windows vulnerability in data theft and cyber espionage zero-day attacks since 2017. [...]

An unpatched security flaw impacting Microsoft Windows has been exploited by 11 state-sponsored groups from China, Iran, North Korea, and Russia as part of data theft, espionage, and financially motivated campaigns that date back to 2017

Threat Groups Are Mapping OT Networks for Future Targeting, Warns DragosA China-linked threat group called Voltzite is targeting operational technology systems at critical infrastructure organizations worldwide to steal network diagrams, OT operating instructions and information about geographic information systems, said cybersecurity firm Dragos.

Russian, Iranian and Chinese APTs Among Most Active Ransomware CollaboratorsSecurity researchers are increasingly finding it challenging to attribute cyberattacks due to surging cooperation between nation-state hackers and ransomware groups, especially for espionage purposes. They say it reflects the blurring of the lines between state-directed and criminal activities.

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.

And you, China, Russia, North Korea ... Guardrails block malware generation Google says it's spotted Chinese, Russian, Iranian, and North Korean government agents using its Gemini AI for nefarious purposes, with Tehran by far the most frequent naughty user out of the four.…

Over 57 distinct threat actors with ties to China, Iran, North Korea, and Russia have been observed using artificial intelligence (AI) technology powered by Google to further enable their malicious cyber and information operations

A Mirai botnet variant has been found exploiting a newly disclosed security flaw impacting Four-Faith industrial routers since early November 2024 with the goal of conducting distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks

The U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) has issued a final rule carrying out Executive Order (EO) 14117, which prevents mass transfer of citizens' personal data to countries of concern such as China (including Hong Kong and Macau), Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia, and Venezuela

Plus: Iran's IRGC probes election-related websites in swing states Russian, Iranian, and Chinese trolls are all ramping up their US election disinformation efforts ahead of November 5, but – aside from undermining faith in the democratic process and confidence in the election result – with very different objectives, according to Microsoft.…

Russia, Iran and China Investing in Cyber Ops, Warns MI5 Director Ken McCallumNation-state actors are investing aggressively in advanced cyber operations to target government information and technology in a bid to sow "mayhem on British and European streets," warned a top British intelligence official. Russia, Iran and China are using proxies and hacking agencies.

Iran is targeting the US presidential race, China the congressional races, and Russia both