Virtualisation security covers hypervisors, virtual machines, and isolated workloads, where flaws or misconfiguration can expose systems and data.
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Background for this topic.
Virtualisation uses software to divide or simulate computing resources so multiple isolated virtual machines (VMs) can share a physical host. Each VM can run its own operating system and applications; a hypervisor controls access to the host’s processors, memory, storage and devices. The term can also include virtual networks and storage, while containers provide a related but less isolated form of workload virtualisation.
Security depends on the hypervisor and its management plane being securely configured, patched and access-controlled. A hypervisor vulnerability or misconfiguration can expose data across VMs, and a VM escape can allow code running in one guest to reach the host or other guests. Virtual machine images, templates and snapshots may retain credentials or sensitive data and therefore require inventory, integrity checks, encryption and controlled retention. Network segmentation between virtual workloads should be enforced through explicit policies rather than assumed from virtual separation. These controls also support reliable investigation and recovery by preserving trustworthy images and records of administrative changes.
While the week started slowly, it turned into a big ransomware mess, with attacks striking a big blow at businesses running VMware ESXi servers. [...]
Admins, hosting providers, and the French Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-FR) warn that attackers actively target VMware ESXi servers unpatched against a two-year-old remote code execution vulnerability to deploy ransomware. [...]
A relatively new ransomware operation known as Nevada seems to grow its capabilities quickly as security researchers noticed improved functionality for the locker targeting Windows and VMware ESXi systems. [...]
Horizon3 security researchers have released proof-of-concept (PoC) code for a VMware vRealize Log Insight vulnerability chain that allows attackers to gain remote code execution on unpatched appliances. [...]