Latest cybersecurity reporting from selected sources.

Also, YellowKey Gets CVE, 7-Eleven Breach, Linux Maintainers Warn on AI Bug SpamThis week, more incidents than we can list here. Among them: cloned Shai-Hulud malware, a new maximum CVSS Cisco flaw. Edge to stop loading passwords in plaintext. Tycoon 2FA offers a way around Microsoft multifactor. Convenience, taquitos and data breach: The 7-Eleven story. A MENA crackdown.

A Chinese-language threat actor uses every part of the kill: infecting Web servers with malware, poisoning sites with SEO spam, and stealing organizational data for follow-on attacks.

Cybersecurity researchers have shed light on a novel attack chain that employs phishing emails to deliver an open-source backdoor called VShell

Cybersecurity researchers have disclosed details of a new malware loader called QuirkyLoader that's being used to deliver via email spam campaigns an array of next-stage payloads ranging from information stealers to remote access trojans since November 2024

Authorities in Pakistan have arrested 21 individuals accused of operating "Heartsender," a once popular spam and malware dissemination service that operated for more than a decade. The main clientele for HeartSender were organized crime groups that tried to trick victim companies into making payments to a third party, and its alleged proprietors were publicly identified by KrebsOnSecurity in 2021 after they inadvertently infected their computers with malware.

One of the most notorious providers of abuse-friendly "bulletproof" web hosting for cybercriminals has started routing its operations through networks run by the Russian antivirus and security firm Kaspersky Lab, KrebsOnSecurity has learned.

Google has stepped in to clarify that a newly introduced Android System SafetyCore app does not perform any client-side scanning of content

The FBI and authorities in The Netherlands this week seized a number of servers and domains for a hugely popular spam and malware dissemination service operating out of Pakistan. The proprietors of the service, who use the collective nickname "The Manipulaters," have been the subject of three stories published here since 2015. The FBI said the main clientele are organized crime groups that try to trick victim companies into making payments to a third party.

Threat hunters have detailed an ongoing campaign that leverages a malware loader called MintsLoader to distribute secondary payloads such as the StealC information stealer and a legitimate open-source network computing platform called BOINC

A global network of about 13,000 hijacked Mikrotik routers has been employed as a botnet to propagate malware via spam campaigns, the latest addition to a list of botnets powered by MikroTik devices

A clever disinformation campaign engages several Microsoft Azure and OVH cloud subdomains as well as Google search to promote malware and spam sites. [...]

According to JFrog, approximately 25% of all repositories lack useful functionality and serve as vehicles for spam and malware

Google's new AI-powered 'Search Generative Experience' algorithms recommend scam sites that redirect visitors to unwanted Chrome extensions, fake iPhone giveaways, browser spam subscriptions, and tech support scams. [...]

Researchers Created Worm That Can Exfiltrate Data, Spread Spam and Poison AI ModelsResearchers have created a zero-click, self-spreading worm that can steal personal data through applications that use chatbots powered by generative artificial intelligence. Dubbed Morris II, the malware uses a prompt injection attack vector to trick AI-powered email assistant apps.

Also: FBI Warning About Androxgh0st; eBay Pays a $3 Million Fine for CyberstalkingThis week, Microsoft expanded plans to store EU citizens' data locally, shipping-themed phishing spam is a threat, the British Library overcame a ransomware setback, the FBI warned of Androxgh0st malware, Remcos RAT targeted South Korea, and eBay was fined $3 million for a cyberstalking campaign.

A threat actor called Water Curupira has been observed actively distributing the PikaBot loader malware as part of spam campaigns in 2023

Despite the disruption to its infrastructure, the threat actors behind the QakBot malware have been linked to an ongoing phishing campaign since early August 2023 that led to the delivery of Ransom Knight (aka Cyclops) ransomware and Remcos RAT

Google will introduce new sender guidelines in February to bolster email security against phishing and malware delivery by mandating bulk senders to authenticate their emails and adhere to stricter spam thresholds [...]

AI is beefing up the cyber arsenals of both attackers and defenders Sponsored Feature Email is a popular target for cybercriminals, offering an easy way of launching an attack disguised as an innocent message. One moment of inattention on the part of the recipient and the door is open to malware, spam, phishing, perhaps even a dose of the dreaded ransomware. Entire organisations can suffer, not just individual victims.…

A previously unknown campaign involving the Hotabot botnet malware has targeted Spanish-speaking users in Latin America since at least November 2020, infecting them with a banking trojan and spam tool. [...]