VB Blog

VB2021 localhost call for papers: a great opportunity

Posted by   Virus Bulletin on   Mar 17, 2021

VB2021 localhost presents an exciting opportunity to share your research with an even wider cross section of the IT security community around the world than usual, without having to take time out of your work schedule (or budget) to travel.

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New article: Excel Formula/Macro in .xlsb?

Posted by   Virus Bulletin on   Mar 2, 2021

In a follow-up to an article published last week, Kurt Natvig takes us through the analysis of a new malicious sample using the .xlsb file format.

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New article: Decompiling Excel Formula (XF) 4.0 malware

Posted by   Virus Bulletin on   Feb 23, 2021

In a new article, researcher Kurt Natvig takes a close look at XF 4.0 malware.

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The Bagsu banker case - presentation

Posted by   Virus Bulletin on   Jan 29, 2021

At VB2019, CSIS researcher Benoît Ancel spoke about a quiet banking trojan actor that has been targeting German users since at least 2014.

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VB2021 call for papers - now open, to all!

Posted by   Virus Bulletin on   Jan 19, 2021

The call for papers for VB2021 is now open and we want to hear from you - we're planning for flexible presentation formats, so everyone is encouraged to submit, regardless of whether or not you know at this stage whether you'll be able to travel to Prague!

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In memoriam: Yonathan Klijnsma

Posted by   Virus Bulletin on   Jan 11, 2021

We were very sorry to learn of the passing of researcher Yonathan Klijnsma last week. Here, former VB Editor Martijn Grooten shares his memories of a talented researcher and a very kind person: this month, infosec lost a really good one.

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VB2020 localhost videos available on YouTube

Posted by   Virus Bulletin on   Jan 8, 2021

VB has made all VB2020 localhost presentations available on the VB YouTube channel, so you can now watch - and share - any part of the conference freely and without registration.

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VB2020 presentation & paper: 2030: backcasting the potential rise and fall of cyber threat intelligence

Posted by   Virus Bulletin on   Dec 8, 2020

At VB2020 localhost, threat intelligence consultant Jamie Collier used the analytical technique of backcasting to look at the rise and fall of the cyber threat intelligence industry.

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VB2020 presentation: Behind the Black Mirror: simulating attacks with mock C2 servers

Posted by   Virus Bulletin on   Dec 4, 2020

At VB2020 localhost, Carbon Black's Scott Knight presented an approach he and his colleagues have taken to more realistically simulate malware attacks.

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VB2020 presentation & paper: Advanced Pasta Threat: mapping threat actor usage of open-source offensive security tools

Posted by   Virus Bulletin on   Dec 2, 2020

At VB2020, researcher Paul Litvak revealed how he put together a comprehensive map of threat actor use of open-source offensive security tools.

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Virus Bulletin announces programme of the first International Threat Intelligence Summit

VB is thrilled to announce the programme of the first International Threat Intelligence Summit that will form an integral part of the VB2018 conference programme.
Today, we are excited to announce the programme of the first International Threat Intelligence Summit, which will form an integral part of the VB2018 conference programme. Most… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2018/08/virus-bulletin-announces-programme-first-international-threat-intelligence-summit/

VB2018 preview: Explain Ethereum smart contract hacking like I am five

Designing smart contracts is hard: we preview a VB2018 paper on the blockchain-based platform Ethereum, that describes both how the technology works and how a number of security issues inherent to the platform have led to various high-profile and often ve…
Shout 'blockchain' in a group of security experts and everyone will start to laugh. It is fair to say that the security community tends to be rather sceptical about… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2018/08/vb2018-preview-explain-ethereum-smart-contract-hacking-i-am-five/

VB2018 preview: Unpacking the packed unpacker: reversing an Android anti-analysis library

At VB2018, Google researcher Maddie Stone will present an analysis of the multi-layered 'WeddingCake' anti-analysis library used by many Android malware families.
Seven years ago, the first VB conference paper on Android malware looked at what was then a new, but growing trend. Since then both the threat and the research community have… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2018/08/vb2018-preview-unpacking-packed-unpacker-reversing-android-anti-analysis-library/

VB2018 preview: From drive-by download to drive-by mining

At VB2018, Malwarebytes researcher Jérôme Segura will discuss the rise of drive-by cryptocurrency mining, explaining how it works and putting it in the broader context of changes in the cybercrime landscape.
"Understanding the new paradigm", Malwarebytes researcher Jérôme Segura writes in the title of his upcoming VB2018 presentation on drive-by mining. He could hardly have put it… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2018/08/vb2018-preview-drive-download-drive-mining/

VB announces Threat Intelligence Summit to take place during VB2018

We are very excited to announce a special summit, as part of VB2018, that will be dedicated to all aspects of threat intelligence.
The very first edition of Virus Bulletin magazine, published in July 1989, contained lists of "[all] known IBM PC viruses" and "[all] known Apple Macintosh viruses". In the… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2018/08/vb-announces-threat-intelligence-summit-take-place-during-vb2018/

VB2018 Small Talk: An industry approach for unwanted software criteria and clean requirements

An industry approach for defining and detecting unwanted software to be presented and discussed at the Virus Bulletin conference.
The constantly evolving threat landscape poses challenges for security vendors. But an equally big, if less reported, challenge is that posed by the kind of software that lives on… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2018/08/vb2018-small-talk-industry-approach-unwanted-software-criteria-and-clean-requirements/

VB2018 call for last-minute papers opened

The call for last-minute papers for VB2018 is now open. Submit before 2 September to have your abstract considered for one of the nine slots reserved for 'hot' research.
Virus Bulletin has opened the call for last-minute papers for VB2018. The VB2018 programme already boasts some 40 talks, with a few more exciting things to be added very soon… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2018/07/vb2018-call-last-minute-papers-opened/

Save the dates: VB2019 to take place 2-4 October 2019

Though the location will remain under wraps for a few more months, we are pleased to announce the dates for VB2019, the 29th Virus Bulletin International Conference.
While we hope that you have already circled the dates of 3-5 October 2018 in your agendas, and that you will join us and security experts from around the world for VB2018 in… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2018/07/save-dates-vb2019-take-place-2-4-october-2019/

Benefit now from early bird discount tickets for VB2018

If you want to come to VB2018 in Montreal this year (and why wouldn't you?) and want to save a bit on the ticket price (and why wouldn't you?), remember that early bird discounts will be available until 30 June.
In a little over three months, security experts from around the world will gather in Montreal for VB2018, the 28th Virus Bulletin International Conference. We have an exciting… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2018/06/last-week-buy-early-bird-discount-ticket-vb2018/

'North Korea' a hot subject among VB2018 talks

Several VB2018 papers deal explicitly or implicitly with threats that have been attributed to North Korean actors.
A few years ago, I somehow got involved in the discussion of a run-of-the-mill malicious spam campaign and ended up speaking to a journalist from the Daily Telegraph. "Is it true… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2018/06/north-korea-hot-subject-among-vb2018-talks/

Registration for VB2018 now open!

Registration for VB2018, the 28th International Virus Bulletin conference, is now open, with an early bird rate available until 1 July.
Registration for VB2018, the 28th Virus Bulletin Conference, which will take place in Montreal 3-5 October this year, is now open. Last month, we announced an exciting and… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2018/05/registration-vb2018-now-open/

RSA 2018: the good, the bad, the ugly, the great and the fantastic

In April, VB's Martijn Grooten attended the RSA Expo in San Francisco. He shares his views on the expo and the industry.
Two weeks ago, I was one of the more than 50,000 people who attended the RSA expo in San Francisco. I deliberately say 'expo', for while I spoke at the event two years ago, this… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2018/05/rsa-2018-good-bad-ugly-great-and-fantastic/

VB2017 paper: Android reverse engineering tools: not the usual suspects

Within a few years, Android malware has grown from a relatively small threat to a huge problem involving more than three million new malware samples a year. Axelle Apvrille, one of the world's leading Android malware researchers, will deliver a workshop o…
Within a few years, Android malware has grown from a relatively small threat – the first VB conference talk on Android, in 2011, mentioned fewer than 100 malware families – to a… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2018/04/vb2017-paper-android-reverse-engineering-tools-not-usual-suspects/

Virus Bulletin at RSA

Next week, VB Editor Martijn Grooten will be at the RSA Conference in San Francisco.
Next week, I will be joining the international security community to attend the RSA Conference in San Francisco. Though it lacks the intimate atmosphere of so many smaller… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2018/04/virus-bulletin-rsa/

Broad-ranging and international VB2018 programme announced

VB is excited to reveal the details of an interesting and diverse programme for VB2018, the 28th Virus Bulletin International Conference, which takes place 3-5 October in Montreal, Canada.
Today, we are very excited to announce the programme for VB2018, the 28th Virus Bulletin International Conference, which is to take place in Montreal, 3-5 October 2018. Putting… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2018/04/broad-and-international-vb2018-programme-announced/

VB2017 paper: Exploring the virtual worlds of advergaming

At VB2017 in Madrid, Malwarebytes' Chris Boyd presented a paper in which he looked at various aspects of advergaming, from unreadable EULAs to fake programs that promise to block ads. Today, we publish both the paper and the recording of Chris's presentat…
At VB2016 in Denver, Malwarebytes researchers Jérôme Segura and Chris Boyd presented a paper on malicious advertising, or malvertising. At the end of the paper, as they looked at… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2018/04/vb2017-paper-exploring-virtual-worlds-advergaming/

VB2016 paper: Wild Android collusions

At VB2016 in Denver, Jorge Blasco presented a paper (co-written with Thomas M. Chen, Igor Muttik and Markus Roggenbach), in which he discussed the concept of app collusion - where two (or more) apps installed on the same device work together to collect an…
Playing out in the sidelines of the Cambridge Analytica scandal was the discovery that Facebook had been collecting metadata on the calls and SMS conversations of many of the… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2018/03/vb2016-paper-wild-android-collusions/

VB2017 paper: The life story of an IPT - Inept Persistent Threat actor

At VB2017 in Madrid, Polish security researcher and journalist Adam Haertlé presented a paper about a very inept persistent threat. Today, we publish both the paper and the recording of Adam's presentation.
Last Wednesday, Belgium-based Polish hacker Thomasz T. was arrested during a visit to his home country. Thomasz is believed to be the author of the Polski, Vortex, and Flotera… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2018/03/vb2017-paper-life-story-ipt-inept-persistent-threat-actor/

Five reasons to submit a VB2018 paper this weekend

The call for papers for VB2018 closes on 18 March, and while we've already received many great submissions, we still want more! Here are five reasons why you should submit a paper this weekend.
The call for papers for VB2018 will close this Sunday, 18 March (in fact, to ensure we cover the entirety of the deadline day across all time zones, we'll close submissions first… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2018/03/five-reasons-submit-vb2018-paper-weekend/

First partners of VB2018 announced

We are excited to announce the first six companies to partner with VB2018.
We are excited to announce that all four Platinum partnerships of VB2018, the 28th Virus Bulletin International Conference, have been filled. Both ESET and Tencent have… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2018/03/first-partners-vb2018-announced/

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