Malware | Breaking Cybersecurity News | The Hacker News

Cybersecurity researchers have disclosed details of a malicious npm package named "tw-pkgprobe-7731" that masquerades as a security tool targeting developers integrating Twilio into their applications, while stealthily attempting to harvest sensitive data. The package, named "tw-pkgprobe-7731," was first uploaded to the npm registry in mid-August 2026 by an npm account named "twdepprobe7731." In total, 11 versions of the package were published in quick succession on the same day over an approximately 45-minute time period. The npm user account no longer exists as of writing. "The first version of tw-pkgprobe-7731 posed as an authorized security research probe," ReversingLabs researcher Lucija Valentić said in a report published today. "Comments inside the package describe it as an 'Authorized bug-bounty research probe (Twilio HackerOne program)' that 'runs only inside Twilio's serverless packager sandbox' and ...

A malicious npm package named "indexed-btree" has been observed hiding its malicious behavior within application code rather than using lifecycle scripts, indicating that threat actors are likely shifting tactics in response to recent security controls . "Indexed-btree is a malicious npm package mimicking the legit sorted-btree package, an ordinary B-tree/indexing utility," Checkmarx said . "Unlike the common attacks we've seen in the supply chain space, this package does not rely on preinstall / postinstall at all. Instead, it runs entirely from application code at runtime." The package and the associated GitHub repository are no longer available for download from npm. However, statistics show the package was first uploaded to the registry on June 18, 2026, by an npm user named " charlessadler25 ," amassing millions of downloads in a short span of time . To make matters worse, the campaign may have generated illicit profits for the...

The threat actor known as SideCopy has been observed using spear-phishing lures to target academic institutions in India, expanding their strategic focus beyond government entities. "SideCopy campaign operations typically initiate through spear-phishing campaigns that leverage the abuse of mshta.exe to execute malicious scripts and circumvent standard security protocols," Trellix researchers Boggavarapu R S S Srinivas Gupta and Ravishankar N C said in a technical report. "This delivery mechanism facilitates the deployment of a remote access trojan (RAT), which serves as the central pillar of their offensive infrastructure." Active since at least 2019, SideCopy (aka TAG-140) is an advanced persistent threat (APT) group that originates from Pakistan, and shares overlaps with the Transparent Tribe cluster. Historically, the threat actor has primarily targeted Indian defense forces and government officials. In a report published in June 2026, Seqrite Labs a...

A fake LastPass Authenticator installer offered on GitHub installs a Windows kernel driver that shuts off antivirus and other security software before a password stealer runs if a victim downloads and runs it, researchers at LastPass and Delphos Labs said on September 17. Microsoft's own hardware-compatibility program signs the driver, scored zero detections on VirusTotal when researchers checked it in August, and was not on Microsoft's list of blocked drivers. LastPass says none of its own systems, services, or customer vaults were touched, and that the attackers only borrowed its name. The lure is a fake GitHub page (github.com/LastPass-Authenticator) that ranks in search results for terms like "LastPass Authenticator download" and looks like a real LastPass product page. Clicking the download button sends the visitor through several GitHub pages to an attacker server, which serves a large ZIP file. The real LastPass Authenticator comes from lastpass.com and ...

The North Korean threat actors behind the Contagious Interview campaign have compromised at least 30,000 devices located in more than 100 countries and siphoned funds or account credentials from over 7,000 cryptocurrency wallets, according to a new joint cybersecurity advisory . The primary targets of the campaign are individual web designers, engineers, and specialists in cryptocurrency, blockchain, and Web3 technologies. In all, the threat actors are estimated to have plundered at least $10.71 million worth of cryptocurrency from victims. The alert comes courtesy of cybersecurity and intelligence agencies from Japan, the U.S., Australia, and Germany. The activity is tracked by the broader cybersecurity community under the monikers CL-STA-0240, DeceptiveDevelopment, DEV#POPPER, Famous Chollima, Gwisin Gang, PurpleBravo, Tenacious Pungsan, UNC5342, Void Dokkaebi, and WaterPlum. The cyber threat group "conducts cyber attacks by infiltrating unsuspecting job seekers' com...