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Phishing attacks are increasingly using open redirects to evade detection by security filters, according to researchers at Trustwave. Open redirects are URLs hosted on trusted domains that take users to separate, potentially malicious domains. The researchers explain the process using the example URL “hxxps://goodsitecom.” Trustwave has observed a “significant rise” in phishing attacks using open redirects over the past several months.

In this ever-evolving landscape of cyberthreats, email has become a prime target for phishing attacks. Cybercriminals continue to adapt and employ more sophisticated methods to effectively deceive users and bypass detection measures. One of the most prevalent tactics nowadays involves exploiting legitimate platforms for redirection through deceptive links.

Researchers at Menlo Security observed a 198% increase in browser-based phishing attacks over the past six months. “Attackers have developed tools to craft high quality large scale attacks that target the browser,” the researchers write. “Cybercrime tools, such as phish kits (PhaaS) and ransomware-as-a-service kits (RaaS), have simplified the process of launching sophisticated attacks.

Trustwave SpiderLabs is tracking a spike in usage of the Greatness phishing kit to attack Microsoft 365 users to distribute malicious HTML attachments that steal login credentials. Greatness is a phishing-as-a-service platform developed by a threat actor known as "fisherstell," and has been available since mid-2022 that provides a ready-made infrastructure and tools for anyone to launch phishing campaigns charging $120 per month in Bitcoin.

The Russian state-sponsored threat actor “COLDRIVER” is launching phishing campaigns against “high profile individuals in NGOs, former intelligence and military officers, and NATO governments,” according to researchers at Google’s Threat Analysis Group (TAG). “COLDRIVER continues its focus on credential phishing against Ukraine, NATO countries, academic institutions and NGOs,” TAG says.

BleepingComputer describes a phishing scam that’s been running rampant on Facebook for the past several months, in which threat actors use hacked accounts to post links to phony articles implying that someone has been killed in an accident. The Facebook posts have captions like “I can't believe he is gone,” accompanied by thumbnails of news articles involving car accidents or crime scenes.

In a Friday regulatory filing, Microsoft has reported that its corporate email accounts were compromised by a Russian state-sponsored hacking group known as Midnight Blizzard, also identified as Nobelium or APT29. Microsoft's disclosure aligns with new U.S. requirements for reporting cybersecurity incidents. The attack was detected on January 12th, 2024, but it appears to have started in November 2023.

A survey by Egress has found that 94% of organizations were hit by phishing attacks in 2023, Infosecurity Magazine reports. Additionally, 91% of firms experienced data loss and exfiltration. The three most common causes of data loss were reckless behavior, human error and malicious exfiltration.

Egress Software is a cybersecurity firm specializing in digital communications. They analyze security risks within emails, messaging, documents, file-sharing gateways, and more. In their line of work, humans are the most significant cybersecurity risk to any organization.

A phishing campaign is targeting Chinese users in an attempt to distribute malicious apps, according to researchers at Palo Alto Networks’s Unit 42. "The threat actor masquerades as a law enforcement official and says the target's phone number or bank account is suspected of being involved in financial fraud,” the researchers write. “They then guide the person to download an app that will allow the attacker to investigate their bank transactions.