Tag: middle-east
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Nvidia-backed Open Secure AI Alliance puts AI security and sovereignty in focus for Middle East
Tags: ai, control, cyber, data, government, infrastructure, intelligence, middle-east, nvidia, risk, toolIndustry coalition aims to develop open tools for securing artificial intelligence systems, a model that could resonate strongly in the UAE and Saudi Arabia as governments and enterprises seek greater control over AI infrastructure, data and cyber risk First seen on computerweekly.com Jump to article: www.computerweekly.com/news/366646515/Nvidia-backed-open-secure-AI-alliance-puts-AI-security-and-sovereignty-in-focus-for-Middle-East
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OctLurk-Linked Hackers Deploy BINDCLOAK Backdoor Against Middle East Governments
The published Part 2 of a two-part technical analysis exposing BINDCLOAK, a previously undocumented modular backdoor deployed against government entities in the Middle East by an East Asia-linked threat actor tracked as OctLurk. The disclosure follows Part 1, which detailed the TELESHIM backdoor and the MIXEDKEY loader used earlier in the same multi-stage intrusion chain.…
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Nimbus Manticore Deploys NightLedger and Turns Victim Systems Into Covert Relays
The Iranian state-backed hacking group tracked as Nimbus Manticore (aka GalaxyGato, Mirage Kitten, Smoke Sandstorm, Subtle Snail, and UNC1549) has been attributed to a fresh set of attacks targeting entities across the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia.The intrusions involve the use of a previously undocumented Windows backdoor called NightLedger and two custom WebSocket tunnelers,…
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TELESHIM Abuses Telegram for C2 in Attacks Against Middle East Governments
Cybersecurity researchers have flagged fresh malicious cyber activity by a threat actor with ties to East Asia targeting government entities in the Middle East.The intrusions have resulted in the deployment of previously unreported malware families dubbed TELESHIM, MIXEDKEY, and BINDCLOAK, according to Zscaler ThreatLabz. The cybersecurity firm said it detected the campaign earlier this month.…
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How the Gentlemen Ransomware Group Built a Multi-Region Attack Machine in H1 2026
Ransomware’s biggest story in the first half of 2026 was not only about established names maintaining dominance. A newer player, The Gentlemen ransomware group, emerged as one of the most geographically active operators, expanding its reach across Europe, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East & Africa, and the Americas. First seen on thecyberexpress.com Jump to article: thecyberexpress.com/the-gentlemen-ransomware-group/
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Middle East faces new cyber reality: attackers logging in, not breaking in
Geopolitical tensions, stolen credentials and increasingly rapid attacker movement are reshaping the Middle East’s cyber threat landscape, putting pressure on organisations to look beyond traditional, alert-driven security models First seen on computerweekly.com Jump to article: www.computerweekly.com/news/366646049/Middle-East-faces-new-cyber-reality-attackers-logging-in-not-breaking-in
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Hackers Hide C2 Traffic Inside Telegram While Targeting Middle East Governments
Hackers are increasingly blending malicious traffic with legitimate services, and a newly uncovered campaign shows how far this tactic has evolved. The activity has been attributed to a threat actor with links to East Asia, with researchers uncovering a previously undocumented malware suite comprising TELESHIM, MIXEDKEY, and a final-stage implant dubbed BINDCLOAK. The campaign demonstrates…
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Hackers Hide C2 Traffic Inside Telegram While Targeting Middle East Governments
Hackers are increasingly blending malicious traffic with legitimate services, and a newly uncovered campaign shows how far this tactic has evolved. The activity has been attributed to a threat actor with links to East Asia, with researchers uncovering a previously undocumented malware suite comprising TELESHIM, MIXEDKEY, and a final-stage implant dubbed BINDCLOAK. The campaign demonstrates…
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Iran abused mobile networks’ vulnerabilities to locate US military in the Middle East, report says
The Iranian government exploited well-known flaws in cellphone networks to locate and then strike U.S. military personnel in the build-up and beginning of the war. First seen on techcrunch.com Jump to article: techcrunch.com/2026/07/14/iran-abused-mobile-networks-vulnerabilities-to-locate-u-s-military-in-the-middle-east-report-says/
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Iran abused mobile networks’ vulnerabilities to locate U.S. military in the Middle East, report says
The Iranian government exploited well-known flaws in cellphone networks to locate and then strike U.S. military personnel in the build-up and beginning of the war. First seen on techcrunch.com Jump to article: techcrunch.com/2026/07/14/iran-abused-mobile-networks-vulnerabilities-to-locate-u-s-military-in-the-middle-east-report-says/
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Middle East urged to prioritise prevention as cyber workforce gap hits 300,000
As cyber attacks accelerate and organisations expand their digital footprints, security leaders are being urged to prioritise prevention and zero-trust architectures over expectations that AI will close the region’s growing skills gap First seen on computerweekly.com Jump to article: www.computerweekly.com/news/366645533/Middle-East-urged-to-prioritize-prevention-as-cyber-workforce-gap-hits-300000
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Sniper Dz Scams Target MENA Users via Fake Facebook Offers and Browser Alerts
Cybersecurity researchers have disclosed details of fraudulent activity targeting users across the Middle East and North Africa by employing various fraudulent Facebook accounts impersonating politicians, public figures, and trusted organizations.”These accounts promoted fake offers, including free mobile internet packages, financial compensation, and government subsidy programs,” Group-IB First seen on thehackernews.com Jump to article: thehackernews.com/2026/06/sniper-dz-scams-target-mena-users-via.html
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INTERPOL Operation Takes Down Sniper Dz Phishing Platform, Arrests Administrator
An INTERPOL-led operation last month resulted in the disruption of Sniper Dz, a decade-long phishing-as-a-service (PhaaS) platform, Group-IB said Thursday.The effort, codenamed Operation Ramz, took place between October 2025 and February 2026, and saw authorities from 13 countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region making 201 arrests.Included among them was Guedz, the…
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Cyber resilience and female leadership: The new pillars of Middle East banking security
As banks accelerate digital services, open banking strategies and AI adoption, cyber security leaders across the region are calling for stronger resilience, ecosystem collaboration and greater female representation to secure the future of financial services First seen on computerweekly.com Jump to article: www.computerweekly.com/news/366644042/Cyber-resilience-and-female-leadership-The-new-pillars-of-Middle-East-banking-security
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Hackers Exploit SniperDz PhaaS for Brand Spoofing and Browser Hijacking
A wave of phishing campaigns across the Middle East and North Africa exposes a sophisticated, centralized fraud ecosystem operating under the SniperDz banner. What initially appeared as isolated Facebook and Instagram scams fake offers for free mobile data, government subsidies, and compensation are linked to a turnkey Push-Notification-as-a-Service (PNaaS) and Phishing-as-a-Service (PhaaS) affiliate platform that…
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Iran-Linked Hackers Wipe IT and Recovery Systems in Middle East Cyberattack
Iran-linked hackers have launched a destructive cyber campaign that wipes IT, backup, and recovery systems at multiple organizations in the Middle East and beyond, severely undermining victims’ ability to restore operations after an attack. Evidence ties the operation to the long-running Iranian threat group Black Shadow, believed to work on behalf of Iran’s Ministry of…
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Iranian Hackers Deploy MiniFast and MiniJunk V2 via Phishing and SEO Poisoning
The Iranian state-sponsored threat actor known as Nimbus Manticore (aka Screening Serpens and UNC1549) has been attributed to a fresh campaign using lures impersonating organizations in the aviation and software sectors across the U.S., Europe, and the Middle East following the joint U.S.-Israeli military campaign against the country in late February 2026.The activity, besides embracing…
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Middle East malicious infrastructure report highlights concentration of C2 servers
First seen on scworld.com Jump to article: www.scworld.com/brief/middle-east-malicious-infrastructure-report-highlights-concentration-of-c2-servers
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New Linux malware ‘Showboat’ targets Middle East telecom provider
First seen on scworld.com Jump to article: www.scworld.com/brief/new-linux-malware-showboat-targets-middle-east-telecom-provider
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New Telecom Espionage Campaign Tied to China
Researchers Trace Linux and Windows Toolsets to Suspected PRC Espionage Activity. Newly discovered malware tied to China-linked actors breached telecom providers across Asia and the Middle East, highlighting growing efforts to gain persistent access into interconnected communications infrastructure. First seen on govinfosecurity.com Jump to article: www.govinfosecurity.com/new-telecom-espionage-campaign-tied-to-china-a-31763
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Fast and Furious Nimbus Manticore Operations During the Iranian Conflict
ey Findings Introduction During the recent geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, wereportedon multiple Iran-nexus threat actors advancing Iran’s strategic objectives through cyber operations. These activities includedtargeting internet-connected cameras, conductingdestructive attacksagainst US and Israeli entities, andexfiltrating datafrom cloud environments to support broader kinetic and intelligence-gathering efforts. Nimbus Manticore (also tracked asUNC1549) is an IRGC-affiliated threat…
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Hackers Exploit Middle East Telecoms for Massive C2 Operations
Hackers are increasingly abusing Middle East telecommunications networks and hosting providers to operate large-scale command-and-control (C2) infrastructure. The findings highlight a strategic shift away from disposable indicators toward infrastructure-level tracking, allowing defenders to identify persistent patterns behind cyber operations rather than reacting to constantly changing indicators of compromise. The dataset reveals that C2 infrastructure dominates…
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One Telecom Provider Hosted Most of the Middle East ‘s Active C2 Infrastructure
Hunt.io mapped 1,350+ C2 servers across the Middle East, revealing how a small group of providers quietly supports major malware activity. For years, threat intelligence focused mostly on malware families, phishing domains, and individual indicators. But a new report from Hunt.io shows why defenders may need to pay closer attention to something more boring, hosting…
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Showboat Linux Malware Hits Middle East Telecom with SOCKS5 Proxy Backdoor
Cybersecurity researchers have disclosed details of a new Linux malware dubbed Showboat that has been put to use in a campaign targeting a telecommunications provider in the Middle East since at least mid-2022.”Showboat is a modular post-exploitation framework designed for Linux systems, capable of spawning a remote shell, transferring files, and functioning as a SOCKS5…
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Interpol’s ‘Operation Ramz’ Pioneers Cross-Region Collabs in Middle East
While the numbers are modest, the crackdown on cybercrime involved 13 countries in the MENA region, the largest law enforcement collaboration to date. First seen on darkreading.com Jump to article: www.darkreading.com/cybersecurity-operations/interpol-operation-ramz-cross-region-middle-east
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Operation Ramz Dismantles 53 Servers Used in Scam and Malware Campaigns
Tags: cyber, cybercrime, international, interpol, law, malicious, malware, middle-east, phishing, scamA large-scale international cybercrime operation led by INTERPOL has resulted in 201 arrests and the takedown of 53 malicious servers linked to phishing, malware, and online scam campaigns across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. DubbedOperation Ramz, the initiative ran from October 2025 to February 2026 and involved law enforcement agencies from 13…
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Massive MENA cybercrime Operation Ramz disrupts infrastructure and arrests 201 suspects
INTERPOL led Operation Ramz in MENA, resulting in 201 arrests and 382 suspects tied to cybercrime networks. INTERPOL coordinated Operation Ramz across the Middle East and North Africa, leading to 201 arrests and identifying 382 additional suspects. << A first-of-its-kind cybercrime operation in the MENA region has led to the arrest of 201 individuals, with a…
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INTERPOL ‘Operation Ramz’ seizes 53 malware, phishing servers
More than 200 individuals were arrested for cybercrime activities during INTERPOL’s Operation Ramz, which focused on the Middle East and North Africa. First seen on bleepingcomputer.com Jump to article: www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/interpol-operation-ramz-seizes-53-malware-phishing-servers/
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More than 200 arrested in cyber raids aimed at Middle East scam networks
Investigators found hundreds of compromised devices that were used as part of the cybercriminal operation and notified device owners as part of the raids. First seen on therecord.media Jump to article: therecord.media/more-than-200-arrested-interpol-middle-east-scams