#1 Trusted Cybersecurity News Platform
Followed by 5.20+ million
The Hacker News Logo
Subscribe – Get Latest News
DevSecOps

The Hacker News | #1 Trusted Cybersecurity News Site — Index Page

Cisco Fixes Two Critical Flaws in Smart Licensing Utility to Prevent Remote Attacks

Cisco Fixes Two Critical Flaws in Smart Licensing Utility to Prevent Remote Attacks

Sep 05, 2024
Cisco has released security updates for two critical security flaws impacting its Smart Licensing Utility that could allow unauthenticated, remote attackers to elevate their privileges or access sensitive information. A brief description of the two vulnerabilities is below - CVE-2024-20439 (CVSS score: 9.8) - The presence of an undocumented static user credential for an administrative account that an attacker could exploit to log in to an affected system CVE-2024-20440 (CVSS score: 9.8) - A vulnerability arising due to an excessively verbose debug log file that an attacker could exploit to access such files by means of a crafted HTTP request and obtain credentials that can be used to access the API While these shortcomings are not dependent on each other for them to be successful, Cisco notes in its advisory that they "are not exploitable unless Cisco Smart Licensing Utility was started by a user and is actively running." The flaws, which were discovered during i...
North Korean Hackers Targets Job Seekers with Fake FreeConference App

North Korean Hackers Targets Job Seekers with Fake FreeConference App

Sep 04, 2024 Cryptocurrency / Malware
North Korean threat actors have leveraged a fake Windows video conferencing application impersonating FreeConference.com to backdoor developer systems as part of an ongoing financially-driven campaign dubbed Contagious Interview. The new attack wave, spotted by Singaporean company Group-IB in mid-August 2024, is yet another indication that the activity is also leveraging native installers for Windows and Apple macOS to deliver malware. Contagious Interview, also tracked as DEV#POPPER, is a malicious campaign orchestrated by a North Korean threat actor tracked by CrowdStrike under the moniker Famous Chollima. The attack chains begin with a fictitious job interview, tricking job seekers into downloading and running a Node.js project that contains the BeaverTail downloader malware, which in turn delivers InvisibleFerret, a cross-platform Python backdoor that's equipped with remote control, keylogging, and browser stealing capabilities. Some iterations of BeaverTail, which also...
The Evolving Role of PAM in Cybersecurity Leadership Agendas for 2025

The Evolving Role of PAM in Cybersecurity Leadership Agendas for 2025

Feb 06, 2025AI Security / Cybersecurity
Privileged Access Management (PAM) has emerged as a cornerstone of modern cybersecurity strategies, shifting from a technical necessity to a critical pillar in leadership agendas. With the PAM market projected to reach $42.96 billion by 2037 (according to Research Nester), organizations invest heavily in PAM solutions. Why is PAM climbing the ranks of leadership priorities? While Gartner highlights key reasons such as enhanced security, regulatory compliance readiness, and insurance requirements, the impact of PAM extends across multiple strategic areas. PAM can help organizations enhance their overall operational efficiency and tackle many challenges they face today. To explore more about PAM's transformative impact on businesses, read The Cyber Guardian: PAM's Role in Shaping Leadership Agendas for 2025 by a renowned cybersecurity expert and former Gartner lead analyst Jonathan Care.  What cybersecurity challenges may organizations face in 2025? The cybersecurity landsca...
Android Users Urged to Install Latest Security Updates to Fix Actively Exploited Flaw

Android Users Urged to Install Latest Security Updates to Fix Actively Exploited Flaw

Sep 04, 2024 Vulnerability / Mobile Security
Google has released its monthly security updates for the Android operating system to address a known security flaw that it said has come under active exploitation in the wild. The high-severity vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2024-32896 (CVSS score: 7.8), relates to a case of privilege escalation in the Android Framework component. According to the description of the bug in the NIST National Vulnerability Database (NVD), it concerns a logic error that could lead to local escalation of privileges without requiring any additional execution privileges. "There are indications that CVE-2024-32896 may be under limited, targeted exploitation," Google said in its Android Security Bulletin for September 2024. It's worth noting that CVE-2024-32896 was first disclosed in June 2024 as impacting only the Google-owned Pixel lineup. There are currently no details on how the vulnerability is being exploited in the wild, although GrapheneOS maintainers revealed that CVE-2024-32896...
cyber security

Webinar: 5 Ways New AI Agents Can Automate Identity Attacks | Register Now

websitePush SecurityAI Agents / Identity Security
Learn how CUAs like OpenAI Operator can be used by attackers to automate account takeover and exploitation.
Researchers Find Over 22,000 Removed PyPI Packages at Risk of Revival Hijack

Researchers Find Over 22,000 Removed PyPI Packages at Risk of Revival Hijack

Sep 04, 2024
A new supply chain attack technique targeting the Python Package Index (PyPI) registry has been exploited in the wild in an attempt to infiltrate downstream organizations. It has been codenamed Revival Hijack by software supply chain security firm JFrog, which said the attack method could be used to hijack 22,000 existing PyPI packages and result in "hundreds of thousands" of malicious package downloads. These susceptible packages have more than 100,000 downloads or have been active for over six months. "This attack technique involves hijacking PyPI software packages by manipulating the option to re-register them once they're removed from PyPI's index by the original owner," JFrog security researchers Andrey Polkovnychenko and Brian Moussalli said in a report shared with The Hacker News. At its core, the attack hinges on the fact that Python packages published in the PyPI repository may get removed, making available the names of those deleted projects ...
Zyxel Patches Critical OS Command Injection Flaw in Access Points and Routers

Zyxel Patches Critical OS Command Injection Flaw in Access Points and Routers

Sep 04, 2024 Vulnerability / Network Security
Zyxel has released software updates to address a critical security flaw impacting certain access point (AP) and security router versions that could result in the execution of unauthorized commands. Tracked as CVE-2024-7261 (CVSS score: 9.8), the vulnerability has been described as a case of operating system (OS) command injection. "The improper neutralization of special elements in the parameter 'host' in the CGI program of some AP and security router versions could allow an unauthenticated attacker to execute OS commands by sending a crafted cookie to a vulnerable device," Zyxel said in an advisory. Chengchao Ai from the ROIS team of Fuzhou University has been credited with discovering and reporting the flaw. Zyxel has also shipped updates for eight vulnerabilities in its routers and firewalls, including few that are high in severity, that could result in OS command execution, a denial-of-service (DoS), or access browser-based information - CVE-2024...
The New Effective Way to Prevent Account Takeovers

The New Effective Way to Prevent Account Takeovers

Sep 04, 2024 SaaS Security / Browser Security
Account takeover attacks have emerged as one of the most persistent and damaging threats to cloud-based SaaS environments. Yet despite significant investments in traditional security measures, many organizations continue to struggle with preventing these attacks. A new report, " Why Account Takeover Attacks Still Succeed, and Why the Browser is Your Secret Weapon in Stopping Them " argues that the browser is the primary battleground where account takeover attacks unfold and, thus, where they should be neutralized. The report also provides effective guidance for mitigating the account takeover risk.  Below are some of the key points raised in the report: The Role of the Browser in Account Takeovers According to the report, the SaaS kill chain takes advantage of the fundamental components that are contained within the browser. For account takeover, these include: Executed Web Pages - Attackers can create phishing login pages or use MiTM over legitimate web pages to harve...
Clearview AI Faces €30.5M Fine for Building Illegal Facial Recognition Database

Clearview AI Faces €30.5M Fine for Building Illegal Facial Recognition Database

Sep 04, 2024 GDPR / Privacy
The Dutch Data Protection Authority (Dutch DPA) has imposed a fine of €30.5 million ($33.7 million) against facial recognition firm Clearview AI for violating the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in the European Union (E.U.) by building an "illegal database with billions of photos of faces," including those of Dutch citizens. "Facial recognition is a highly intrusive technology that you cannot simply unleash on anyone in the world," Dutch DPA chairman Aleid Wolfsen said in a press statement. "If there is a photo of you on the Internet – and doesn't that apply to all of us? – then you can end up in the database of Clearview and be tracked. This is not a doom scenario from a scary film. Nor is it something that could only be done in China." Clearview AI has been in regulatory hot water across several countries, such as the U.K., Australia, France, and Italy, over its practice of scraping publicly available information on the internet to ...
Hackers Use Fake GlobalProtect VPN Software in New WikiLoader Malware Attack

Hackers Use Fake GlobalProtect VPN Software in New WikiLoader Malware Attack

Sep 04, 2024 Malware / Network Security
A new malware campaign is spoofing Palo Alto Networks' GlobalProtect VPN software to deliver a variant of the WikiLoader (aka WailingCrab) loader by means of a search engine optimization (SEO) campaign. The malvertising activity, observed in June 2024, is a departure from previously observed tactics wherein the malware has been propagated via traditional phishing emails, Unit 42 researchers Mark Lim and Tom Marsden said . WikiLoader, first documented by Proofpoint in August 2023, has been attributed to a threat actor known as TA544, with the email attacks leveraging the malware to deploy Danabot and Ursnif. Then earlier this April, South Korean cybersecurity company AhnLab detailed an attack campaign that leveraged a trojanized version of a Notepad++ plugin as the distribution vector. That said, the loader for rent is suspected to be used by at least two initial access brokers (IABs), per Unit 42, stating the attack chains are characterized by tactics that allow it to e...
Hacktivists Exploits WinRAR Vulnerability in Attacks Against Russia and Belarus

Hacktivists Exploits WinRAR Vulnerability in Attacks Against Russia and Belarus

Sep 03, 2024 Ransomware / Malware
A hacktivist group known as Head Mare has been linked to cyber attacks that exclusively target organizations located in Russia and Belarus. "Head Mare uses more up-to-date methods for obtaining initial access," Kaspersky said in a Monday analysis of the group's tactics and tools. "For instance, the attackers took advantage of the relatively recent CVE-2023-38831 vulnerability in WinRAR, which allows the attacker to execute arbitrary code on the system via a specially prepared archive. This approach allows the group to deliver and disguise the malicious payload more effectively." Head Mare, active since 2023, is one of the hacktivist groups attacking Russian organizations in the context of the Russo-Ukrainian conflict that began a year before. It also maintains a presence on X , where it has leaked sensitive information and internal documentation from victims. Targets of the group's attacks include governments, transportation, energy, manufacturing, ...
Expert Insights / Articles Videos
Cybersecurity Resources