Tag: group
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Chinese Money Laundering Jargon via Google’s Gemini
After having a short discussion with Gemini about Chinese Money Laundering, I could tell we weren’t quite connecting on my Mandarin-assistance requests, so I shared an example post from a Telegram “Crime-as-a-Service” group that was part of a Chinese Guarantee Syndicate. For context, these posts were made in the Tudou Guarantee Syndicate’s group dedicated to…
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HoneyMyte Hacker Group Expands CoolClient Malware With New Advanced Toolset
The HoneyMyte APT group, also known as Mustang Panda and Bronze President, continues expanding its cyber-espionage operations across Asia and Europe, with Southeast Asia being the most heavily targeted region. Recent investigations reveal that the group has significantly enhanced its malware arsenal during 2025, introducing new capabilities to the CoolClient backdoor and deploying multiple browser…
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Frequently Asked Questions About Notepad++ Supply Chain Compromise
Tags: advisory, attack, backdoor, china, credentials, cve, cyber, cybercrime, defense, espionage, government, group, Hardware, infrastructure, malware, ransomware, security-incident, service, software, supply-chain, threat, update, vulnerability, windowsThreat actors compromised the update infrastructure for Notepad++, redirecting traffic to an attacker controlled site for targeted espionage purposes. Key takeaways: Beginning in June 2025, threat actors compromised the infrastructure Notepad++ uses to distribute software updates. The issue has been addressed and Notepad++ have released 8.9.1 which now includes XML signature validation (XMLDSig) for security…
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Op Neusploit: Russian APT28 Uses Microsoft Office Flaw in Malware Attacks
A new campaign by the Russian-linked group APT28, called Op Neusploit, exploits a Microsoft Office flaw to steal emails for remote control of devices in Ukraine, Slovakia, and Romania. First seen on hackread.com Jump to article: hackread.com/op-neusploit-russia-apt28-microsoft-office-malware/
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Compromise of Notepad++ Equals Software Supply Chain Fallout
Tags: attack, backdoor, china, exploit, group, infrastructure, open-source, software, supply-chain, vulnerability, windowsHacked Infrastructure Delivered Chinese Nation-State Group’s Backdoor, Experts Warn. The widely used, open source text-editing software Notepad++ for Windows said attackers exploited a vulnerability to redirect some users to sites that pushed a backdoor onto their system. Security experts have tied the attack to a broader campaign perpetrated by Chinese nation-state actors. First seen on…
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From credentials to cloud admin in 8 minutes: AI supercharges AWS attack chain
Tags: access, ai, attack, ciso, cloud, credentials, detection, framework, group, iam, least-privilege, LLM, monitoring, trainingLateral movement, LLMjacking, and GPU abuse: Once administrative access was obtained, the attacker moved laterally across 19 distinct AWS principals, assuming multiple roles and creating new users to spread activity across identities. This approach enabled persistence and complicated detection, the researchers noted.The attackers then shifted focus to Amazon Bedrock, enumerating available models and confirming that…
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Notepad++ supply chain attack: Researchers reveal details, IoCs, targets
Rapid7 researchers have attributed the recent hijacking of the Notepad++ update mechanism to Lotus Blossom (aka Billbug), a Chinese state-sponsored group known for targeting … First seen on helpnetsecurity.com Jump to article: www.helpnetsecurity.com/2026/02/03/notepad-supply-chain-attack-iocs-targets/
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APT28 exploits Microsoft Office flaw in Operation Neusploit
Russia-linked APT28 is behind Operation Neusploit, exploiting a newly disclosed Microsoft Office vulnerability in targeted attacks. Russia-linked group APT28 (aka UAC-0001, aka Fancy Bear, Pawn Storm, Sofacy Group, Sednit, BlueDelta, and STRONTIUM) is behind Operation Neusploit, a campaign that exploits a newly disclosed Microsoft Office vulnerability. The APT28 group has been active since at least 2007 and it has targeted governments, militaries, and security organizations…
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Notepad++ infrastructure hijacked by Chinese APT in sophisticated supply chain attack
Rapid7 identifies custom malware: Cybersecurity firm Rapid7 also published a detailed technical analysis corroborating Ho’s disclosure and identifying the attack as part of a broader campaign deploying previously undocumented malware. Rapid7’s investigation uncovered a custom backdoor the firm dubbed “Chrysalis,” alongside Cobalt Strike and Metasploit frameworks.”Forensic analysis conducted by the MDR team suggests that the…
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Chollima APT Hackers Weaponize LNK Files to Deploy Sophisticated Malware
In March 2025, the Ricochet Chollima APT group, widely recognized as APT37 and linked to North Korean state-sponsored operations, launched a targeted spear-phishing campaign against activists focused on North Korean affairs. The threat actors initiated the attack chain via spear-phishing emails impersonating a North Korea-focused security expert based in South Korea. The emails referenced legitimate…
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APT28 Exploits Active Microsoft Office Zero-Day to Deliver Malware
The Russia-linked advanced persistent threat group APT28 has been observed actively exploiting a zero-day vulnerability in Microsoft Office to deliver malware through a sophisticated multi-stage attack campaign. Security researchers from Zscaler ThreatLabz identified this new operation, dubbed Operation Neusploit, targeting users across Central and Eastern Europe with weaponized RTF documents. The campaign specifically targeted Ukraine,…
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Notepad++ Attack Breakdown Reveals Sophisticated Malware and Actionable IoCs
A complex espionage campaign attributed to Chinese APT group Lotus Blossom, active since 2009. The investigation uncovered a sophisticated compromise of Notepad++ distribution infrastructure that delivered Chrysalis, a previously undocumented custom backdoor with extensive remote access capabilities. The attack chain began at IP address 95.179.213.0, where execution of notepad++.exe and GUP.exe preceded download of a…
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APT28 Uses Microsoft Office CVE-2026-21509 in Espionage-Focused Malware Attacks
The Russia-linked state-sponsored threat actor known as APT28 (aka UAC-0001) has been attributed to attacks exploiting a newly disclosed security flaw in Microsoft Office as part of a campaign codenamed Operation Neusploit.Zscaler ThreatLabz said it observed the hacking group weaponizing the shortcoming on January 29, 2026, in attacks targeting users in Ukraine, Slovakia, and Romania,…
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APT28 Leverages CVE-2026-21509 in Operation Neusploit
IntroductionIn January 2026, Zscaler ThreatLabz identified a new campaign in-the-wild, tracked as Operation Neusploit, targeting countries in the Central and Eastern European region. In this campaign, the threat actor leveraged specially crafted Microsoft RTF files to exploit CVE-2026-21509 and deliver malicious backdoors in a multi-stage infection chain. Due to significant overlaps in tools, techniques, and procedures (TTPs)…
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Notepad++ Hosting Breach Attributed to China-Linked Lotus Blossom Hacking Group
A China-linked threat actor known as Lotus Blossom has been attributed with medium confidence to the recently discovered compromise of the infrastructure hosting Notepad++.The attack enabled the state-sponsored hacking group to deliver a previously undocumented backdoor codenamed Chrysalis to users of the open-source editor, according to new findings from Rapid7.The development comes shortly First seen…
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Notepad++ hijacking blamed on Chinese Lotus Blossom crew behind Chrysalis backdoor
The group targets telecoms, critical infrastructure – all the usual high-value orgs First seen on theregister.com Jump to article: www.theregister.com/2026/02/02/notepad_hijacking_lotus_blossom/
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Panera Bread breach affected 5.1 Million accounts, HIBP Confirms
Have I Been Pwned says Panera Bread ‘s breach affected 5.1 million accounts, far fewer than the 14 million customers first reported. Have I Been Pwned followed claims by the ShinyHunters gang, which said it stole data from over 14 million Panera Bread accounts. After Panera refused to pay, the group leaked a 760MB archive…
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New “Punishing Owl” Hacker Group Targets Networks Linked to Russian Security Agency
A previously unknown threat actor calling itself Punishing Owl has claimed responsibility for breaching a Russian government security agency, marking the emergence of what cybersecurity researchers believe is a new politically motivated hacktivist collective. The attack demonstrated sophisticated operational security capabilities beyond typical data exfiltration campaigns. On the same day as the breach announcement, Punishing…
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Cybercrime Enters a New Era as Autonomous AI Agents Take Center Stage
As of February 2026, enterprise defenders are no longer just battling human-operated ransomware groups or credential thieves. The frontline has shifted to a new class of threat: autonomous AI agents that plan, execute, adapt, and even reinvest their own criminal profits without direct human oversight. The convergence of OpenClaw (local runtime), Moltbook (agent collaboration network),…
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China-based espionage group compromised Notepad++ for six months
The Chinese APT group Lotus Blossom intruded the tool’s internal systems to snoop on a limited set of users’ activities, according to researchers. First seen on cyberscoop.com Jump to article: cyberscoop.com/china-espionage-group-lotus-blossom-attacks-notepad/
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ShinyHunters Leads Surge in Vishing Attacks to Steal SaaS Data
Several threat clusters are using vishing in extortion campaigns that include tactics that are consistent with those used by high-profile threat group ShinyHunters. They are stealing SSO and MFA credentials to access companies’ environments and steal data from cloud applications, according to Mandiant researchers. First seen on securityboulevard.com Jump to article: securityboulevard.com/2026/02/shinyhunters-leads-surge-in-vishing-attacks-to-steal-saas-data/
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ShinyHunters Expands Scope of SaaS Extortion Attacks
Following its attacks on Salesforce instances last year, members of the cybercrime group have broadened their targeting and gotten more aggressive with extortion tactics. First seen on darkreading.com Jump to article: www.darkreading.com/cyberattacks-data-breaches/shinyhunters-expands-scope-saas-extortion-attacks
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NSFOCUS Monthly APT Insights December 2025
Regional APT Threat Situation In December 2025, the global threat hunting system of Fuying Lab detected a total of 24 APT attack activities. These activities were primarily concentrated in regions including South Asia, East Asia, with a smaller portion also found in Eastern Europe and South America. Some organizations remain unattributed to known APT groups,…The…
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Spyware maker is hijacking diplomatic efforts to limit commercial hacking, civil society warns
Spyware maker NSO Group trumpeted the company’s participation in the Pall Mall Process, which drew criticism from civil society leaders and government officials who called out human rights abuses. First seen on therecord.media Jump to article: therecord.media/spyware-maker-pall-mall-process-reputation
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Fancy Bear Exploits Microsoft Office Flaw in Ukraine, EU Cyber-Attacks
Russia-linked hacking group Fancy Bear is exploiting a brand-new vulnerability in Microsoft Office, CERT-UA says First seen on infosecurity-magazine.com Jump to article: www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/fancy-bear-exploits-office-flaw/
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Notepad++ Users Targeted After State-Backed Attackers Hijack Update Servers
Notepad++ fell victim to a sophisticated supply chain attack orchestrated by state-sponsored threat actors who compromised its update infrastructure over a six-month campaign. Security experts have attributed the attack to a Chinese state-backed group based on the highly selective targeting and technical sophistication demonstrated throughout the incident. Attack Timeline and Scope The compromise began in…
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State CIO Group Seeks Federal Support for AI, Cybersecurity
NASCIO Agenda Focuses on AI Policy, Cyber Investment and Critical Infrastructure. State CIOs have lots on their plates, juggling multiple priorities from AI to cybersecurity. But the state IT programs don’t have to go it alone. The National Association of State CIOs’ 2026 agenda focuses on federal legislation – and federal funds – that could…
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Groups Warn $32B Google-Wiz Deal Threatens Cloud Competition
Civil Society Orgs Concerned Deal Could Tilt Cloud Security Space in Google’s Favor. A coalition of European civil society organizations is urging regulators to launch a detailed antitrust investigation into Google’s proposed $32 billion purchase of Wiz. They argue the acquisition would strengthen Google’s dominance in cloud security and undermine multi-cloud neutrality. First seen on…