The Malware tag covers malware families, infrastructure analysis, incident impact, disruption efforts, and defensive guidance to reduce cybersecurity risk.
Search across headline titles and summaries.
Background for this topic.
Malware is software intentionally created or modified to perform unauthorized or harmful actions on a computer, device, or network. The term covers distinct families and functions, including viruses, worms, trojans, spyware, botnet clients, and ransomware; a single sample may combine several capabilities. Its behavior—not its label—determines the security concern: it may execute code, persist, alter or encrypt data, steal credentials, or provide unauthorized remote access.
For practitioners, malware reporting is most useful when it identifies the family or tool conservatively and provides evidence such as affected platforms, samples, infrastructure, or observed behavior. Defenses include promptly patching vulnerable software, restricting execution and privileges, monitoring endpoints and networks, maintaining tested backups, and isolating suspected systems for analysis. Detection should use behavior and verified indicators rather than names alone, since variants change. If malware processes personal or regulated data, investigations should also address privacy, evidence preservation, and applicable reporting obligations.
AI is reshaping the fight against digital threats. Learn how attackers are using AI to supercharge malware and social engineering—and how organizations can harness it to predict, detect, and stop cyberattacks in their tracks.
Russian Threat Actor Delivers NetSupport RAT, BurnsRAT via Fake RequestsA malware campaign targeting Russian retailers and service businesses aims to deploy remote access tools and install infostealer malware. Kaspersky dubbed the campaign "Horns&Hooves," after a fake organization set up by fraudsters in the 1931 Soviet satirical novel "The Little Golden Calf."
Theat Actor Uses Trojan as InfostealerA threat actor is targeting Taiwanese companies using phishing emails and long-standing vulnerabilities to deliver SmokeLoader malware. The threat actor uses plugins for the infamous malware to directly attack systems rather than using SmokeLoader as its name suggests, as a loader for other malware.
Linux-Targeting Bootkitty Appears More Proof-of-Concept Than Threat, Researchers SayCybersecurity researchers have discovered the first-ever UEFI bootkit designed to target Linux systems and subvert their boot process for malicious purposes. The "Bootkitty" malware, first uploaded to VirusTotal this month, appears to be more "proof of concept" than full-fledged threat, they said.