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Malicious PyPI Packages Exploit Instagram and TikTok APIs to Validate User Accounts

Malicious PyPI Packages Exploit Instagram and TikTok APIs to Validate User Accounts

May 20, 2025 Cybersecurity / Malware
Cybersecurity researchers have uncovered malicious packages uploaded to the Python Package Index (PyPI) repository that act as checker tools to validate stolen email addresses against TikTok and Instagram APIs. All three packages are no longer available on PyPI. The names of the Python packages are below - checker-SaGaF (2,605 downloads) steinlurks (1,049 downloads) sinnercore (3,300 downloads) "True to its name, checker-SaGaF checks if an email is associated with a TikTok account and an Instagram account," Socket researcher Olivia Brown said in an analysis published last week. Specifically, the package is designed to send HTTP POST requests to TikTok's password recovery API and Instagram's account login endpoints to determine if an email address passed as input is valid, meaning there exists an account holder corresponding to that email address. "Once threat actors have this information, just from an email address, they can threaten to dox or spam, c...
RVTools Official Site Hacked to Deliver Bumblebee Malware via Trojanized Installer

RVTools Official Site Hacked to Deliver Bumblebee Malware via Trojanized Installer

May 19, 2025 Malware / Supply Chain Attack
The official site for RVTools has been hacked to serve a compromised installer for the popular VMware environment reporting utility. "Robware.net and RVTools.com are currently offline. We are working expeditiously to restore service and appreciate your patience," the company said in a statement posted on its website. "Robware.net and RVTools.com are the only authorized and supported websites for RVTools software. Do not search for or download purported RVTools software from any other websites or sources." The development comes after security researcher Aidan Leon revealed that an infected version of the installer downloaded from the website was being used to sideload a malicious DLL that turned out to be a known malware loader called Bumblebee . It's currently not known how long the trojanized version of RVTools had been available for download and how many had installed it before the site was taken offline. In the interim, users are recommended to veri...
Ransomware Gangs Use Skitnet Malware for Stealthy Data Theft and Remote Access

Ransomware Gangs Use Skitnet Malware for Stealthy Data Theft and Remote Access

May 19, 2025 Ransomware / Malware
Several ransomware actors are using a malware called Skitnet as part of their post-exploitation efforts to steal sensitive data and establish remote control over compromised hosts. "Skitnet has been sold on underground forums like RAMP since April 2024," Swiss cybersecurity company PRODAFT told The Hacker News. "However, since early 2025, we have observed multiple ransomware operators using it in real-world attacks."  "For example, in April 2025, Black Basta leveraged Skitnet in Teams-themed phishing campaigns targeting enterprise environments. With its stealth features and flexible architecture, Skitnet appears to be gaining traction rapidly within the ransomware ecosystem." Skitnet , also called Bossnet , is a multi-stage malware developed by a threat actor tracked by the company under the name LARVA-306. A notable aspect of the malicious tool is that it uses programming languages like Rust and Nim to launch a reverse shell over DNS and evade detecti...
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GenAI Security Best Practices Cheat Sheet

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Secure your GenAI systems fast with 7 must-know best practices to stop data poisoning, model theft, and more—plus ways AI can boost your defenses.
cyber security

Find the Coverage Gaps in Your Security Tools

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Try Prelude free for 14 days to find gaps in your security tools, maximizing the controls you already have.
Why CTEM is the Winning Bet for CISOs in 2025

Why CTEM is the Winning Bet for CISOs in 2025

May 19, 2025 Risk Management / Threat Detection
Continuous Threat Exposure Management (CTEM) has moved from concept to cornerstone, solidifying its role as a strategic enabler for CISOs. No longer a theoretical framework, CTEM now anchors today's cybersecurity programs by continuously aligning security efforts with real-world risk. At the heart of CTEM is the integration of Adversarial Exposure Validation (AEV), an advanced, offensive methodology powered by proactive security tools including External Attack Surface Management (ASM), autonomous penetration testing and red teaming, and Breach and Attack Simulation (BAS). Together, these AEV tools transform how enterprises proactively identify, validate, and reduce risks, turning threat exposure into a manageable business metric. CTEM reflects a broader evolution in how security leaders measure effectiveness and allocate resources. As board expectations grow and cyber risk becomes inseparable from business risk, CISOs are leveraging CTEM to drive measurable, outcome-based security ...
Firefox Patches 2 Zero-Days Exploited at Pwn2Own Berlin with $100K in Rewards

Firefox Patches 2 Zero-Days Exploited at Pwn2Own Berlin with $100K in Rewards

May 19, 2025 Browser Security / Vulnerability
Mozilla has released security updates to address two critical security flaws in its Firefox browser that could be potentially exploited to access sensitive data or achieve code execution. The vulnerabilities, both of which were exploited as a zero-day at Pwn2Own Berlin, are listed below - CVE-2025-4918 - An out-of-bounds access vulnerability when resolving Promise objects that could allow an attacker to perform read or write on a JavaScript Promise object CVE-2025-4919 - An out-of-bounds access vulnerability when optimizing linear sums that could allow an attacker to perform read or write on a JavaScript object by confusing array index sizes In other words, successful exploitation of either of the flaws could permit an adversary to achieve out-of-bounds read or write , which could then be abused to access otherwise sensitive information or result in memory corruption that could pave the way for code execution. The vulnerabilities affect the following versions of the Firefox b...
⚡ Weekly Recap: Zero-Day Exploits, Insider Threats, APT Targeting, Botnets and More

⚡ Weekly Recap: Zero-Day Exploits, Insider Threats, APT Targeting, Botnets and More

May 19, 2025 Threat Intelligence / Cybersecurity
Cybersecurity leaders aren't just dealing with attacks—they're also protecting trust, keeping systems running, and maintaining their organization's reputation. This week's developments highlight a bigger issue: as we rely more on digital tools, hidden weaknesses can quietly grow.  Just fixing problems isn't enough anymore—resilience needs to be built into everything from the ground up. That means better systems, stronger teams, and clearer visibility across the entire organization. What's showing up now isn't just risk—it's a clear signal that acting fast and making smart decisions matters more than being perfect. Here's what surfaced—and what security teams can't afford to overlook. ⚡ Threat of the Week Microsoft Fixes 5 Actively Exploited 0-Days — Microsoft addressed a total of 78 security flaws in its Patch Tuesday update for May 2025 last week, out of which five of them have come under active exploitation in the wild. The vulnerabilities include CVE-2025-30397, CVE-2025-...
[Webinar] From Code to Cloud to SOC: Learn a Smarter Way to Defend Modern Applications

[Webinar] From Code to Cloud to SOC: Learn a Smarter Way to Defend Modern Applications

May 17, 2025 DevSecOps / Threat Detection
Modern apps move fast—faster than most security teams can keep up. As businesses rush to build in the cloud, security often lags behind. Teams scan code in isolation, react late to cloud threats, and monitor SOC alerts only after damage is done. Attackers don't wait. They exploit vulnerabilities within hours. Yet most organizations take days to respond to critical cloud alerts. That delay isn't just risky—it's an open door. The problem? Security is split across silos. DevSecOps, CloudSec, and SOC teams all work separately. Their tools don't talk. Their data doesn't sync. And in those gaps, 80% of cloud exposures slip through—exploitable, avoidable, and often invisible until it's too late. This free webinar ," Breaking Down Security Silos: Why Application Security Must Span from Code to Cloud to SOC ," shows you how to fix that. Join Ory Segal, Technical Evangelist at Cortex Cloud (Palo Alto Networks), and discover a practical approach to securing your apps from code to cl...
New HTTPBot Botnet Launches 200+ Precision DDoS Attacks on Gaming and Tech Sectors

New HTTPBot Botnet Launches 200+ Precision DDoS Attacks on Gaming and Tech Sectors

May 16, 2025 United States
Cybersecurity researchers are calling attention to a new botnet malware called HTTPBot that has been used to primarily single out the gaming industry, as well as technology companies and educational institutions in China. "Over the past few months, it has expanded aggressively, continuously leveraging infected devices to launch external attacks," NSFOCUS said in a report published this week. "By employing highly simulated HTTP Flood attacks and dynamic feature obfuscation techniques, it circumvents traditional rule-based detection mechanisms." HTTPBot, first spotted in the wild in August 2024, gets its name from the use of HTTP protocols to launch distributed denial-of-service attacks. Written in Golang, it's something of an anomaly given its targeting of Windows systems. The Windows-based botnet trojan is noteworthy for its use in precisely targeted attacks aimed at high-value business interfaces such as game login and payment systems. "This attack ...
Top 10 Best Practices for Effective Data Protection

Top 10 Best Practices for Effective Data Protection

May 16, 2025 Zero Trust / Data Protection
Data is the lifeblood of productivity, and protecting sensitive data is more critical than ever. With cyber threats evolving rapidly and data privacy regulations tightening, organizations must stay vigilant and proactive to safeguard their most valuable assets. But how do you build an effective data protection framework? In this article, we'll explore data protection best practices from meeting compliance requirements to streamlining day-to-day operations. Whether you're securing a small business or a large enterprise, these top strategies will help you build a strong defense against breaches and keep your sensitive data safe. 1. Define your data goals When tackling any data protection project, the first step is always to understand the outcome you want. First, understand what data you need to protect. Identify your crown jewel data, and where you THINK it lives. (It's probably more distributed than you expect, but this is a key step to help you define your protection ...
Researchers Expose New Intel CPU Flaws Enabling Memory Leaks and Spectre v2 Attacks

Researchers Expose New Intel CPU Flaws Enabling Memory Leaks and Spectre v2 Attacks

May 16, 2025 Hardware Security / Vulnerability
Researchers at ETH Zürich have discovered yet another security flaw that they say impacts all modern Intel CPUs and causes them to leak sensitive data from memory, showing that the vulnerability known as Spectre continues to haunt computer systems after more than seven years. The vulnerability, referred to as Branch Privilege Injection (BPI), "can be exploited to misuse the prediction calculations of the CPU (central processing unit) in order to gain unauthorized access to information from other processor users," ETH Zurich said . Kaveh Razavi, head of the Computer Security Group (COMSEC) and one of the authors of the study, said the shortcoming affects all Intel processors, potentially enabling bad actors to read the contents of the processor's cache and the working memory of another user of the same CPU. The attack leverages what's called Branch Predictor Race Conditions ( BPRC ) that emerge when a processor switches between prediction calculations for two use...
Fileless Remcos RAT Delivered via LNK Files and MSHTA in PowerShell-Based Attacks

Fileless Remcos RAT Delivered via LNK Files and MSHTA in PowerShell-Based Attacks

May 16, 2025 Malware / Cyber Attack
Cybersecurity researchers have shed light on a new malware campaign that makes use of a PowerShell-based shellcode loader to deploy a remote access trojan called Remcos RAT. "Threat actors delivered malicious LNK files embedded within ZIP archives, often disguised as Office documents," Qualys security researcher Akshay Thorve said in a technical report. "The attack chain leverages mshta.exe for proxy execution during the initial stage." The latest wave of attacks, as detailed by Qualys, employs tax-related lures to entice users into opening a malicious ZIP archive containing a Windows shortcut (LNK) file, which, in turn, makes use of mshta.exe, a legitimate Microsoft tool used to run HTML Applications (HTA). The binary is used to execute an obfuscated HTA file named "xlab22.hta" hosted on a remote server, which incorporates Visual Basic Script code to download a PowerShell script, a decoy PDF, and another HTA file similar to xlab22.hta called "3...
Meta to Train AI on E.U. User Data From May 27 Without Consent; Noyb Threatens Lawsuit

Meta to Train AI on E.U. User Data From May 27 Without Consent; Noyb Threatens Lawsuit

May 15, 2025 AI Training / Data Protection
Austrian privacy non-profit noyb (none of your business) has sent Meta's Irish headquarters a cease-and-desist letter, threatening the company with a class action lawsuit if it proceeds with its plans to train users' data for training its artificial intelligence (AI) models without an explicit opt-in. The move comes weeks after the social media behemoth announced its plans to train its AI models using public data shared by adults across Facebook and Instagram in the European Union (E.U.) starting May 27, 2025, after it paused the efforts in June 2024 following concerns raised by Irish data protection authorities. "Instead of asking consumers for opt-in consent, Meta relies on an alleged 'legitimate interest' to just suck up all user data," noyb said in a statement. "Meta may face massive legal risks – just because it relies on an 'opt-out' instead of an 'opt-in' system for AI training." The advocacy group further noted that Met...
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