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Malware

3 Malware Trends to Watch Out for in 2020

Malware closed out 2019 on a strong note. According to AV-TEST, malware authors’ efforts throughout the year helped push the total number of known malware above one billion samples. This development wouldn’t have been possible without the vigor exhibited by malware authors in the fall of 2019. Indeed, after detecting 8.5 million new samples in June and 9.56 million specimens the following month, AV-TEST saw the monthly totals jump up above 13 million in August.

What Is Email Security? And What Are Best Practices?

Email security refers to various cybersecurity measures to secure the access and content of an email account or service. Proper email security can protect sensitive information in email communications, prevent phishing attacks, spear phishing and email spoofing and protect against unauthorized access, loss or compromise of one or more email addresses.

The NHS has suffered only six ransomware attacks since the WannaCry worm, investigation reveals

An investigation claims that the UK’s National Health Service, which was hit hard by the notorious WannaCry worm in 2017, has seen a marked fall in ransomware attacks since. A report published by Comparitech, based upon Freedom of Information requests, reveals the somewhat surprising news that since WannaCry there have only been six recorded ransomware attacks against the NHS.

Ransomware: The average ransom payment doubled in just three months

A new report into the state of ransomware at the tail end of 2019 has revealed that things aren’t getting any better. In Q4 of 2019, according to the new study published by security firm Coveware, the average ransom payment more than doubled – reaching $84,116, up from $41,198 in Q3 of 2019.

Alien Labs 2019 Analysis of Threat Groups Molerats and APT-C-37

In 2019, several industry analyst reports confused the threat groups Molerats and APT-C-37 due to their similarity, and this has led to some confusion and inaccuracy of attribution. For example, both groups target the Middle East and North Africa region (with a special emphasis on Palestine territories). And, they both approach victims through the use of phishing emails that contain decoy documents (mostly in Arabic) and contain themes concerning the political situation in the area.

Travelex Still Offline Following Ransomware Attack

Not only have Global banks stopped customers transacting or ordering currency from Travelex, many have stopped transactions with third party currency providers altogether. Lloyd’s, Royal Bank of Scotland, Tesco and Sainsbury’s all receive their currency from Travelex. It has been reported by Travelex that no customer data has been compromised although no report has been publicly provided to explain how this has been determined.

AT&T Alien Labs analysis of an active cryptomining worm

This blog post provides an overview of the AT&T Alien Labs™ technical analysis of the common malicious implants used by threat actors targeting vulnerable Exim, Confluence, and WebLogic servers. Upon exploitation, malicious implants are deployed on the compromised machine. While most of the attacks described below are historical, we at Alien Labs are continuing to see new attacks, which can be further researched on the Alien Labs Open Threat Exchange™ (OTX).

Importance of Malware Analysis Tools for Timely Malware Detection

Businesses today need to stay armed with robust mechanisms to ensure complete enterprise security. It is extremely essential for organizations to stay informed about cybersecurity trends. This calls for enterprises to be equipped with malware analysis tools to defend their work ecosystem in a cognitive fashion. It is known that diverse malware variants are being developed every day with the sole purpose of attacking the healthy workflow of an organization.

New Jersey Hospital Hackensack Meridian Health Pays Attackers Ransom

The largest hospital system in New Jersey said it paid an extortion fee to hackers who had disrupted medical facilities with a ransomware attack. A spokesperson for Hackensack Meridian Health, based in Edison, New Jersey said it was working to restore its computer systems following a Dec. 2 ransomware attack that forced administrators to cancel roughly 100 elective medical procedures.

What is Spyware?

Spyware is unwanted software, a type of malicious software or malware, designed to expose sensitive information, steal internet usage data, gain access to or damage your computing device. Any software downloaded to a user's device without authorization can be classified as spyware. Even spyware programs installed for innocuous reasons often violate end user privacy agreements and have the potential for abuse.