Easily accessible plug-and-play malware and ransomware attacks in dark web markets have enabled even the least-skilled cybercriminals to launch sophisticated operations, VentureBeat reports.
HP Wolf Security researchers examined more than 35 million cybercrime marketplace and forum postings and found that malware is often bundled with malware-as-a-service, mentoring services, and tutorials, with 76% of malware and 91% of exploits being sold for lower than $10. The study also showed that darknet Tor websites only had an average lifespan of 55 days, with cybercriminals establishing methods that would make them recognizable on other sites.
Easier access to malware may prompt more sophisticated and efficient attacks, with threat actors poised to conduct more severed data-denial attacks and increasingly target IoT, according to HP Senior Malware Analyst Alex Holland.
Such threats should prompt organizations to implement patch management and multi-factor authentication, attack surface mitigation, and incident response planning, as well as engage in increased real-time intelligence with other organizations, Holland added.
Hamas spokesperson Hudhayfa Samir Abdallah al-Kahlut, also known as "Abu Ubaida," has been sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department for his leadership of the group's cyber influence operations, reports The Record, a news site by cybersecurity firm Recorded Future.
TechCrunch reports that U.S. conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation was working on addressing a cyberattack against its systems last week, but investigation into whether any of its data was compromised is still underway.
Iranian state-backed threat operation MuddyWater, also known as TA450, Mango Sandstorm, and Boggy Sandstorm, has leveraged the novel DarkBeatC2 command-and-control infrastructure tool as part of its latest attack campaign, The Hacker News reports.