Security News > 2023 > June > NSA shares tips on blocking BlackLotus UEFI malware attacks

NSA shares tips on blocking BlackLotus UEFI malware attacks
2023-06-22 20:50

The U.S. National Security Agency released today guidance on how to defend against BlackLotus UEFI bootkit malware attacks.

In May, Microsoft released security updates to address a Secure Boot zero-day vulnerability that was used to bypass patches released for CVE-2022-21894, the Secure Boot bug initially abused in BlackLotus attacks last year.

"NSA recommends system administrators within DoD and other networks take action. BlackLotus is not a firmware threat, but instead targets the earliest software stage of boot," the NSA said.

Customize UEFI Secure Boot to block older, signed Windows boot loaders.

BlackLotus has been used in attacks targeting Windows 10 and 11 to exploit a vulnerability found in older boot loaders which helps bypass Secure Boot protection and trigger a series of malicious actions designed to compromise system security.

"However, patches were not issued to revoke trust in unpatched boot loaders via the Secure Boot Deny List Database. Administrators should not consider the threat fully remediated as boot loaders vulnerable to Baton Drop are still trusted by Secure Boot," the NSA said.


News URL

https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/nsa-shares-tips-on-blocking-blacklotus-uefi-malware-attacks/

Related Vulnerability

DATE CVE VULNERABILITY TITLE RISK
2022-01-11 CVE-2022-21894 Unspecified vulnerability in Microsoft products
Secure Boot Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability
local
low complexity
microsoft
4.4

Related vendor

VENDOR LAST 12M #/PRODUCTS LOW MEDIUM HIGH CRITICAL TOTAL VULNS
NSA 2 0 2 7 5 14