Attackers used a fake Google Gemini installer to deliver the Vidar infostealer onto a company network in the EMEA region, leveraging Google Colab—a legitimate cloud-based development platform—as part of the distribution chain. Darktrace researchers discovered the campaign, which exploited search results pointing to malicious files hosted on Google's own infrastructure to enhance credibility and evade detection.
Read full article at Help Net Security ↗Plus: Apple sends out an “unprecedented” number of spyware warnings, Ukraine hits a Russian ecommerce giant with cyber and drone attacks, and more.
Three banking trojans are currently active threats: Manic, which incorporates spyware capabilities; Grandoreiro, which maintains persistent campaigns targeting victims in Latin America and Europe; and ToxicPanda 2.0, an expanded variant of the ToxicPanda malware. Security professionals should monitor these banking trojans as they demonstrate ongoing development and geographic targeting sophistication.
Researchers at KnowBe4 have identified a new variant of Agent Tesla malware employing innovative emoji-based code obfuscation techniques to bypass security detection systems. This v4 iteration represents an advancement in the malware's evasion capabilities, demonstrating attackers' ongoing efforts to stay ahead of traditional threat detection methods.
Threat actors are leveraging the popularity of AI tools by impersonating well-known brands like Perplexity, Claude, ChatGPT, and Copilot to distribute malware including information stealers, backdoors, and malicious browser extensions. According to Sophs' analysis of 12 months of managed detection and response cases, 34 confirmed instances of malicious AI-related activity were identified, demonstrating the effectiveness of AI brand impersonation as a social engineering vector.