VB Blog

VB2018 presentation: Levelling up: why sharing threat intelligence makes you more competitive

Posted by   Helen Martin on   Mar 1, 2019

In a presentation at VB2018, Michael Daniel, President and CEO of the Cyber Threat Alliance, outlined exactly how threat sharing strengthens a company's competitive advantage. Today we release the recording of his presentation.

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The malspam security products miss: Emotet, Ursnif, and a spammer's blunder

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Feb 25, 2019

The set-up of the VBSpam test lab gives us a unique insight into the kinds of emails that are more likely to bypass email filters. This week we look at the malspam that was missed: a very international email with a link serving Emotet, an Italian Ursnif campaign with a password-protected ZIP and an email to which a clumsy spammer had attached a list of email addresses rather than a payload.

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VB2018 paper: The modality of mortality in domain names

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Feb 22, 2019

Domains play a crucial role in most cyber attacks, from the very advanced to the very mundane. Today, we publish a VB2018 paper by Paul Vixie (Farsight Security) who undertook the first systematic study into the lifetimes of newly registered domains.

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VB2018 paper: Analysing compiled binaries using logic

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Feb 20, 2019

Constraint programming is a lesser-known technique that is becoming increasingly popular among malware analysts. In a paper presented at VB2018 Thaís Moreira Hamasaki presented an overview of the technique and explained how it can be applied to the analysis of (potentially) malicious binaries. Today, we publish both Thaís' paper and the video of her presentation.

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Virus Bulletin encourages experienced speakers and newcomers alike to submit proposals for VB2019

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Feb 19, 2019

With a little less than a month before the deadline of the call for papers for VB2019, Virus Bulletin encourages submissions from experienced speakers and newcomers alike.

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VB2018 paper: Internet balkanization: why are we raising borders online?

Posted by   Helen Martin on   Feb 13, 2019

At VB2018 in Montreal, Ixia researcher Stefan Tanase presented a thought-provoking paper on the current state of the Internet and the worrying tendency towards raising borders and restricting the flow of information. Today we publish both his paper and the recording of his presentation.

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The malspam security products miss: banking and email phishing, Emotet and Bushaloader

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Feb 11, 2019

The set-up of the VBSpam test lab gives us a unique insight into the kinds of emails that are more likely to bypass email filters. This week we look at the malspam that was missed: banking and email phishing, Emotet and Bushaloader.

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VB2018 paper: Where have all the good hires gone?

Posted by   Helen Martin on   Feb 8, 2019

The cybersecurity skills gap has been described as one of the biggest challenges facing IT leaders today. At VB2018 in Montreal, ESET's Lysa Myers outlined some of the things the industry can do to help address the problem. Today we publish Lysa's paper and the recording of her presentation.

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Preview: Nullcon 2019

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Feb 5, 2019

We look forward the Nullcon 2019 conference in Goa, India, at which VB Editor Martijn Grooten will give a talk on the state of malware.

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From Amazon to Emotet: a look at those phishing and malware emails that bypassed email security products

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Feb 3, 2019

We see a lot of spam in the VBSpam test lab, and we also see how well such emails are being blocked by email security products. Recently some of the emails that bypassed security products included a broken Amazon phishing campaign, a large fake UPS campaign and malicious emails carrying Emotet and Lokibot.

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Search blog

TJX hack thought biggest ever

Over 45 million card numbers gathered in massive breach.
Over 45 million card numbers gathered in massive breach. A report into a security breach at major US retailer TJX has revealed a lengthy and sophisticated attack which scooped vast… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/03/tjx-hack-thought-biggest-ever/

Fujacks writer's removal tool slated

Virus creator's anti-virus not up to scratch, says Symantec.
Virus creator's anti-virus not up to scratch, says Symantec. A cleanup tool created by the writer of the Fujacks virus, also known as the 'Panda burning incense' virus in reference… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/03/fujacks-writer-s-removal-tool-slated/

Another Windows zero-day exploit seen in wild

Trojans sneaking in through animated cursor flaw.
Trojans sneaking in through animated cursor flaw. A vulnerability has been discovered in the handling of .ani files, used for animated cursors on web pages and in HTML emails, and… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/03/another-windows-zero-day-exploit-seen-wild/

Woolworths to join UK AV market

Retail chain set to issue own-label software range.
Retail chain set to issue own-label software range. Major UK high street retailer Woolworths is set to follow supermarket giant Tesco in releasing its own-brand range of software… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/03/woolworths-join-uk-av-market/

Malware danger and profitability rising

Symantec, FBI reports show general increases in money-driven threats.
Symantec, FBI reports show general increases in money-driven threats. Two major new reports on computer security issues have shown a steady rise in just about every aspect of… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/03/malware-danger-and-profitability-rising/

Huge haul of ID data stolen by trojan

Smart Russian spyware gathered info 'unnoticed' for 54 days.
Smart Russian spyware gathered info 'unnoticed' for 54 days. According to researchers at SecureWorks, a sophisticated trojan which spread through browser exploits, harvested… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/03/huge-haul-id-data-stolen-trojan/

Search, link and trackback spam flooding web

Blogs, social sites and search results rivaling email for junk ads.
Blogs, social sites and search results rivaling email for junk ads. Email, long the most popular and lucrative means of getting advertising in front of computer users, is being… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/03/search-link-and-trackback-spam-flooding-web/

RSA to provide trojan removal services

Anti-fraud system provides avenue for reporting and stopping targeted attacks.
Anti-fraud system provides avenue for reporting and stopping targeted attacks. Security firm RSA has announced a new system to block spyware and phishing fraud, by taking down… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/03/rsa-provide-trojan-removal-services/

MS admits serious problems with OneCare

Detection failures and other issues confirmed, improvements promised.
Detection failures and other issues confirmed, improvements promised.Microsoft's Windows Live OneCare, hit by a series of public relations difficulties recently with failures in… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/03/ms-admits-serious-problems-onecare/

No fanfare for Windows Server 2003 SP2

Major update release emerges in mysterious silence.
Major update release emerges in mysterious silence.Microsoft has released a new service pack for its Windows Server 2003 platform, almost entirely without warning or promotion. The… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/03/no-fanfare-windows-server-2003-sp2/

Yet more vulnerabilities in major security products

Serious McAfee buffer overflow flaws join yet another Trend UPX issue.
Serious McAfee buffer overflow flaws join yet another Trend UPX issue. Several vulnerabilities have been found in McAfee's ePolicy Orchestrator management tool, which could be… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/03/yet-more-vulnerabilities-major-security-products/

UK bankers show 44% rise in online theft

APACS study records major increase in phishing fraud earnings.
APACS study records major increase in phishing fraud earnings. UK banking payments body APACS has released its latest figures for credit card and other types of banking fraud,… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/03/uk-bankers-show-44-rise-online-theft/

Trend takes over HijackThis

Popular free spyware-spotting tool acquired by security giant.
Popular free spyware-spotting tool acquired by security giant.Trend Micro has announced the acquisition of HijackThis, the popular freely available tool designed to reveal hidden… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/03/trend-takes-over-hijackthis/

OneCare causing Outlook havoc

Old mailbox deletion bug resurfaces, upsets users
Old mailbox deletion bug resurfaces, upsets usersMicrosoft's Windows Live OneCare has been the cause of considerable frustration to its users recently, with an issue with the… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/03/onecare-causing-outlook-havoc/

March Patch Tuesday cancelled

MS announces no security patches this month.
MS announces no security patches this month. With several known vulnerabilities still affecting Windows and other products, Microsoft has announced that there will be no security… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/03/march-patch-tuesday-cancelled/

Report on TLD DNS DDoS attack released

Fact sheet on web root server bombardment published by ICANN.
Fact sheet on web root server bombardment published by ICANN. The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), the body responsible for controlling the DNS system… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/03/report-tld-dns-ddos-attack-released/

SEC halts trading in spammed stocks

Share trading in 35 pumped and dumped companies suspended.
Share trading in 35 pumped and dumped companies suspended. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced yesterday that it had suspended trading in the stocks of 35… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/03/sec-halts-trading-spammed-stocks/

New Zealand passes anti-spam law

As bulk emailing is regulated in NZ, Canada hears calls for similar laws.
As bulk emailing is regulated in NZ, Canada hears calls for similar laws. The New Zealand government announced last week the final passing of a law to control spam originating in… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/03/new-zealand-passes-anti-spam-law/

Gromozon hijacks Italian MSN searches

Link bombing pushes blended spyware attack to top of popular search results.
Link bombing pushes blended spyware attack to top of popular search results. The gang behind the sophisticated Gromozon blended threat, also known as LinkOptimizer, is thought to… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/03/gromozon-hijacks-italian-msn-searches/

OneCare fails another detection test

Microsoft product found not up to scratch in AV-Comparatives review.
Microsoft product found not up to scratch in AV-Comparatives review. Respected testing organisation AV-Comparatives has released the results of its latest in-depth test of… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/03/onecare-fails-another-detection-test/

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