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Category — botnet
Four Malicious npm Packages Deliver Infostealers and Phantom Bot DDoS Malware

Four Malicious npm Packages Deliver Infostealers and Phantom Bot DDoS Malware

May 18, 2026 Supply Chain Attack / Botnet
Cybersecurity researchers have discovered four new npm packages containing information-stealing malware, one of which is a clone of the Shai-Hulud worm open-sourced by TeamPCP . The list of identified packages is below - chalk-tempalte (825 Downloads) @deadcode09284814/axios-util (284 Downloads) axois-utils (963 Downloads) color-style-utils (934 Downloads) "One of the packages (chalk-tempalte) contains a direct clone of the Shai-Hulud source code that TeamPCP leaked last week, probably inspired as part of the supply chain attack competition that was published in BreachForums not long after," OX Security's Moshe Siman Tov Bustan said. Interestingly, the malicious payloads embedded into the four npm packages are different, despite them being published by the same npm user, " deadcode09284814 ." As of writing, the four libraries are still available for download from npm. An analysis of the packages has revealed that "axois-utils" is designed ...
Turla Turns Kazuar Backdoor Into Modular P2P Botnet for Persistent Access

Turla Turns Kazuar Backdoor Into Modular P2P Botnet for Persistent Access

May 15, 2026 Botnet / Threat Intelligence
The Russian state-sponsored hacking group known as Turla has transformed its custom backdoor Kazuar into a modular peer-to-peer (P2P) botnet that's engineered for stealth and persistent access to compromised hosts. Turla, per the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), is assessed to be affiliated with Center 16 of Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB). It overlaps with activity traced by the broader cybersecurity community under the names ATG26, Blue Python, Iron Hunter, Pensive Ursa, Secret Blizzard (formerly Krypton), Snake, SUMMIT, Uroburos, Venomous Bear, Waterbug, and WRAITH. The hacking group is known for its attacks targeting government, diplomatic, and defense sectors in Europe and Central Asia, as well as endpoints previously breached by Aqua Blizzard (aka Actinium and Gamaredon) to support the Kremlin's strategic objectives. "This upgrade aligns with Secret Blizzard's broader objective of gaini...
cPanel CVE-2026-41940 Under Active Exploitation to Deploy Filemanager Backdoor

cPanel CVE-2026-41940 Under Active Exploitation to Deploy Filemanager Backdoor

May 11, 2026 Vulnerability / Ransomware
A threat actor named Mr_Rot13 has been attributed to the exploitation of a recently disclosed critical cPanel flaw to deploy a backdoor codenamed Filemanager on compromised environments. The attack exploits CVE-2026-41940 , a vulnerability impacting cPanel and WebHost Manager (WHM) that could result in an authentication bypass and allow remote attackers to gain elevated control of the control panel. According to a new report from QiAnXin XLab, the security defect has been exploited by a number of threat actors shortly after its public disclosure late last month, resulting in malicious behaviors like cryptocurrency mining, ransomware, botnet propagation, and backdoor implantation. "Monitoring data shows that more than 2,000 attacker source IPs worldwide are currently involved in automated attacks and cybercrime activities targeting this vulnerability," XLab researchers said. "These IPs are distributed across multiple regions globally, primarily originating from Germ...
cyber security

Agentic AI is already in your org. Here’s how to secure it [Free Guide]

websiteNudge SecuritySaaS Security / AI Security
Your employees are building agents right now. Here's a 4-step framework for getting ahead of the risk.
cyber security

The Validation Gap: What Automated Pentesting Alone Cannot See

websitePicus SecurityAutomated Pentesting / Exposure Validation
This free guide maps the structural blind spots and gives you 3 diagnostic questions for any vendor conversation.
Mirai-Based xlabs_v1 Botnet Exploits ADB to Hijack IoT Devices for DDoS Attacks

Mirai-Based xlabs_v1 Botnet Exploits ADB to Hijack IoT Devices for DDoS Attacks

May 06, 2026 IoT Security / Malware
Cybersecurity researchers have exposed a new Mirai -derived botnet that self-identifies as xlabs_v1 and targets internet-exposed devices running Android Debug Bridge ( ADB ) to enlist them in a network capable of carrying out distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks. Hunt.io, which detailed the malware, said it made the discovery after identifying an exposed directory on a Netherlands-hosted server at the IP address "176.65.139[.]44" without requiring any authentication. The malware supports "21 flood variants across TCP, UDP, and raw protocols, including RakNet and OpenVPN-shaped UDP, capable of bypassing consumer-grade DDoS protection," Hunt.io said, adding it's offered as a DDoS-for-hire service designed for targeting game servers and Minecraft hosts. What makes xlabs_v1 notable is that it seeks out Android devices running an exposed ADB service on TCP port 5555, meaning any gear that comes with the tool enabled by default, such as Android TV boxes,...
Critical cPanel Vulnerability Weaponized to Target Government and MSP Networks

Critical cPanel Vulnerability Weaponized to Target Government and MSP Networks

May 04, 2026 Vulnerability / Network Security
A previously unknown threat actor has been observed targeting government and military entities in Southeast Asia, alongside a smaller cluster of managed service providers (MSPs) and hosting providers in the Philippines, Laos, Canada, South Africa, and the U.S., by exploiting the recently disclosed vulnerability in cPanel. The activity, detected by Ctrl-Alt-Intel on May 2, 2026, involves the abuse of CVE-2026-41940 , a critical vulnerability in cPanel and WebHost Manager (WHM) that could result in an authentication bypass and allow remote attackers to gain elevated control of the control panel. The attack efforts have originated from the IP address "95.111.250[.]175," primarily singling out government and military domains associated with the Philippines (*.mil.ph and (*.ph)) and Laos (*.gov.la), as well as MSPs and hosting providers, using publicly-available   proof-of-concepts (PoCs). In addition, Ctrl-Alt-Intel revealed that the threat actor used a separate custom exp...
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