Security News
An international law enforcement operation has resulted in the arrest of 288 vendors who are believed to be involved in drug trafficking on the dark web, adding to a long list of criminal enterprises that have been shuttered in recent years. "This represents the most funds seized and the highest number of arrests in any coordinated international action," U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said.
An international law enforcement operation codenamed 'SpecTor' has arrested 288 dark web vendors and customers worldwide, with police seizing €50.8 million in cash and cryptocurrency. "The vendors arrested as a result of the police action against Monopoly Market were also active on other illicit marketplaces, further impeding the trade of drugs and illicit goods on the dark web."
A new "All-in-one" stealer malware named EvilExtractor is being marketed for sale for other threat actors to steal data and files from Windows systems. The network security company said it has observed a surge in attacks spreading the malware in the wild in March 2023, with a majority of the victims located in Europe and the U.S. While marketed as an educational tool, EvilExtractor has been adopted by threat actors for use as an information stealer.
The Deep, Dark Web - The Underground - is a haven for cybercriminals, teeming with tools and resources to launch attacks for financial gain, political motives, and other causes. Did you know that the underground also offers a goldmine of threat intelligence and information that can be harnessed to bolster your cyber defense strategies? The challenge lies in continuously monitoring the right dark web sources and gathering actionable intelligence through manual methods, which can lead to analyst fatigue and delayed action.
The study is built upon 10 million posts on encrypted platforms and other kinds of data dredged up from the deep, dark and clear web. Across the dark web onion sites, the total number of forum posts and replies decreased by 13% between 2021 and 2022, dropping from over 91.7 million to around 79.1 million.
The security researchers found that Google Play threats and Android phone infections are big business. A Google Play developer account can be bought for around $60-$200 USD depending on account characteristics such as the number of developed apps or the number of downloads.
"The most popular application categories to hide malware and unwanted software include cryptocurrency trackers, financial apps, QR-code scanners, and even dating apps," Kaspersky said in a new report based on messages posted on online forums between 2019 and 2023. Dropper apps are the primary means for threat actors looking to sneak malware via the Google Play Store.
A new dark web marketplace called STYX launched earlier this year and appears to be on its way to becoming a thriving hub for buying and selling illegal services or stolen data. However analysts at threat intelligence company Resecurity noticed mentions of STYX on the dark web since early 2022, when the founders were still building the escrow module.
93 percent of CISOs are concerned about dark web threats, and almost 72 percent of CISOs believe that intelligence on cybercriminals is "Critical" to defend their organization and increase cybersecurity, according to Searchlight Cyber. The report findings show that most CISOs use threat intelligence to address security concerns, and 79 percent of CISOs are currently gathering data from the dark web.
Even though your company may not have suffered a direct breach, your data may already be on the Dark Web. Breaches end up being marketed by hackers with data descriptions and auction demands, often in Bitcoin.