WEST PALM BEACH, FL - I've been writing about scam emails and phishing attempts for a number of years now and although I don't have as much time at my disposal as I used to, I still like to detail their processes when I can so people can learn how to avoid these scams while seeing and understanding how clever these little sneaks are when plotting to steal your information (and money). Past features have includes similar scams targeting customers of Facebook, GoDaddy, FedEx, … [Read more...]
Investigation Uncovers 40,000 Phishing Domains Linked To LabHost Scam Operation
UNITED KINGDOM - The LabHost phishing-as-a-service (PhaaS) platform, which had tens of thousands of phishing domains linked to it and thousands of users worldwide, has had its infrastructure completely disrupted and 37 suspects have been arrested – including the original developer – following a year-long global law enforcement operation. Originally launched in 2021, LabHost was a resource for cybercriminals that – for a monthly subscription fee – provided them … [Read more...]
Omni Hotels & Resorts Suffers Breach, Potentially Impacting Millions
DALLAS, TX - Last month, Omni Hotels & Resorts, a prominent hotel chain, experienced a cybersecurity breach that resulted in the theft of customer information. In an update on their website, Omni confirmed that the stolen data includes customer names, email addresses, postal addresses, and guest loyalty program information. However, financial information and Social Security numbers were not compromised. The breach was detected on March 29, prompting Omni to shut down … [Read more...]
Thousands of Domain Names Owned by Legitimate Brands Hijacked to Send Spam
TEL AVIV - As part of a sophisticated scheme involving spam proliferation and click monetization, over 8,000 domains and 13,000 sub-domains once owned by major, legitimate brands and institutions have been hijacked to allow millions of spam emails to bypass standard security blocks for nefarious gain. This coordinated malicious activity – dubbed “SubdoMailing” – has been going on since at least September 2022, according to Guardio Labs, the Israeli security … [Read more...]
World’s Biggest Ransomware Group Shut Down, Domains Seized in Global Operation
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The operations of infamous ransomware group LockBit have been shut down, their domains seized, and several high-ranking members placed under arrest as the result of a recent digital takedown carried out by an international law enforcement operation. Operation Cronos, the code name of a joint effort made up by agencies representing 11 countries – Australia, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, the United … [Read more...]
ACE Enforcement Action Reaches Record Levels, Over 3,000 Pirate Domains Seized
LOS ANGELES, CA - The Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment (ACE) has stepped up their enforcement actions recently, having seized over 3,000 pirate site domains over the past few weeks. But despite this impressive effort, the number of new and illegal domains constantly taking the place of the ones that have been taken down are never-ending. The domains in question – which revolve around pirating copyrighted video entertainment such as movies and television … [Read more...]
10 Billion Connections to Malicious Domains Blocked by NSA in 2023 via “PDNS”
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The National Security Agency (NSA) noted that 10 billion user connections to known malicious or suspicious domains were blocked over the course of the past year as part of the agency’s efforts, according to its 2023 Cybersecurity Year in Review report released on Tuesday. The NSA‘s annual report is a public account of the agency’s work with government partners, defense industrial base (DIB) entities, and foreign partners to help keep the nation secure, … [Read more...]
Hackers Take Control of Computer Network At Missouri Hospital; Demand Ransom
KANSAS CITY, MO - Liberty Hospital in Missouri fell victim to a grim cyber assault Tuesday when a menacing blackmail message from a hacker resulted in a disruption of its computer systems. A message from an anonymous source targeting the hospital warned, “We have hacked you and downloaded all confidential data of your company. Your reputation will be ruined. Save your business. Contact us within 72 hours.” This message itself was uncovered exclusively by KMBC-TV, an ABC … [Read more...]
Recently Discovered October 2023 Xfinity Hack Affects Nearly 36 Million Customers
PHILADELPHIA, PA - Leading internet service provider, Xfinity, recently released information regarding a major data breach that is expected to have affected millions of customers. The offenders exploited a vulnerability left by a patch, causing unauthorized access to software provider Citrix, a system used by Xfinity. It is important for Xfinity users to amend their usernames and passwords in response to this breach, even if their data has not been directly exposed. While … [Read more...]
Experts: 23andMe Hack Is DNA Catastrophe; Leaked Millions of Genetic Profiles
SAN FRANCISCO, CA - Earlier this week, in a startling revelation, 23andMe conceded that a hack in October was significantly worse than initially reported. Affecting nearly 6.9 million people, the scale of this data breach was shockingly larger than the initially stated figure of 14,000 users. Regrettably, the stolen data contained not only sensitive information such as full names, but genetic profiles. Yet, the severity of the situation was met with indifference by some … [Read more...]
Report: Domain Squatting, Brand Hijacking Presenting Increased Threat Across Internet
PALM BEACH, FL - “Domain squatting” – AKA cybersquatting – and “brand hijacking” are two internet-based threats that present unique dangers to both businesses and end users, opening up some to cybersecurity threats and brand/trademark damage including potential phishing and malware attacks. Domain squatting is registering or using a domain name to profit from a trademark belonging to a well-known brand, typically by registering a misspelled version of their URL to … [Read more...]
“Prolific Puma” Created 75k Unique Domain Names Since April 2022 Used for Scams
SANTA CLARA, CA - Researchers from security vendor Infoblox have uncovered an actor known as “Prolific Puma” that has been revealed as having provided link shortening services for countless cyber criminals for a span of time of at least four years or longer, an act that has likely been responsible for an immense number of scams targeting innocent people. As an example of how Prolific Puma lives up to the "prolific” part of their name, the actor reportedly … [Read more...]
FEDs Seize 17 Domains Suspected of Being Used for Fraud in U.S. by North Korea
WASHINGTON, D.C. - On Wednesday, the United States Justice Department announced it has seized 17 website domains utilized by North Korean information technology (IT) workers to purportedly evade government sanctions, conduct cyberattacks and defraud U.S. businesses, with the millions of dollars in illicit proceeds generated from such activities being used to fund North Korea's weapon development program. The Justice Department confirmed in a statement that the … [Read more...]
Scammers Sending Emails from Spoofed Authoritative Domains Via Forwarding Flaws
LA JOLLA, CA - According to research conducted by the University of California San Diego, due to flaws inherent in the process of forwarding emails, the ability for scammers and attackers to send unsuspecting victims e-mails from the spoofed addresses of top-level government or corporate domains is actually much easier than many experts were initially suspecting, opening up disturbingly new and effective avenues for online fraud. The integrity of emails sent from … [Read more...]
Threat Intelligence Firm Recommends Blocking All .ZIP Domains Due to Phishing
SUNNYVALE, CA - FortiGuard Labs reports that they have discovered many .ZIP domains are responsible for phishing attacks on users by automatically downloading a malicious executable titled “file.exe” to their computers. Phishing attacks have been a thorn in the side of computer users for years due to the fact that they often are able to camouflage themselves as innocuous programs or prompts that seemingly pose no threat, but in reality can cause a great deal of … [Read more...]