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Palo Alto Networks

24 mentions in 7 days · 89 in 30 days · 170 total · first seen · last

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Understanding Angler Exploit Kit

Unit 42 examines Angler EK operations, including rapid zero-day adoption, fileless Bedep infections, and ransomware payloads like TeslaCrypt and CryptXXX.

Unit 42 published the second part of its Angler EK analysis, covering the kit's history since 2013, its SaaS rental model, and its focus on Flash, Internet Explorer, and Silverlight exploits. Angler integrated the CVE-2015-5119 Flash zero-day from the Hacking Team leak within hours and later added exploits for CVE-2015-2419 and CVE-2016-0034 roughly a month after Microsoft patched them. Campaigns use Angler to deliver ransomware such as CryptoWall, TeslaCrypt, and CryptXXX, plus banking trojans and stealers via EITest. Since August 2014, Angler has used fileless, in-memory execution, most often for Bedep, which later downloads CryptXXX and click-fraud malware.

Palo Alto Unit 42 · Aug 17, 2026Research in the wildCVE-2015-5119CVE-2015-2419CVE-2016-0034

CryptoBit: Another Ransomware Family Gets an Update

Palo Alto Unit 42 analyzes updated CryptoBit ransomware distributed via the Rig exploit kit, documenting IOCs, eight sample hashes, and disguise tactics from June 2016.

Unit 42 observed an updated CryptoBit ransomware variant (also tracked as CriptoBit or Mobef) delivered through the Rig exploit kit via the gate domain realstatistics.info between June 17-27, 2016. Infections targeted Windows hosts with out-of-date Flash plugins, and post-infection callbacks used fake user-agents and referrers to disguise traffic to laoismacau.com. At least eight samples were collected, and by June 27 the campaign had begun distributing other malware.

Palo Alto Unit 42 · Aug 17, 2026Ransomware in the wild

Afraidgate: Major Exploit Kit Campaign Switches from CryptXXX Ransomware Back to Locky

The Afraidgate exploit kit campaign stopped distributing CryptXXX and now delivers the .zepto Locky variant exclusively through Neutrino EK since July 2016.

By mid-July 2016, the Afraidgate campaign switched from CryptXXX ransomware to consistently delivering the .zepto (Zepto) variant of Locky, using the Neutrino exploit kit after Angler EK disappeared in early June 2016. The campaign starts from compromised websites with injected scripts that redirect to Afraidgate domains and then Neutrino EK landing pages on .top domains. Zepto emerged after the Necurs botnet returned from a three-week outage, bringing new anti-sandboxing and evasion techniques.

Palo Alto Unit 42 · Aug 17, 2026Ransomware in the wild

Malspam Targeting Brazil Continues to Evolve

Brazilian malspam campaigns continue evolving, abusing Google URL shortener and Dropbox and using Squiblydoo plus DLL side-loading to deploy likely infostealing botnet malware.

A June 2017 Brazilian malspam campaign spoofed IPTU tax notification emails, using the recipient's address as the sender, and abused Google's URL shortener and Dropbox to deliver a zip containing a malicious Windows shortcut (.lnk) file. The LNK used the Squiblydoo technique (regsvr32.exe) to download and execute a scriptlet with elevated privileges, retrieving a signed G-Buster Browser Defense executable alongside a malicious fltLib.dll loaded via side-loading, likely an information-stealing botnet. Post-infection HTTP traffic exposed over 400 infected Windows hosts, mostly in Brazil, with 2,132 Banload-tagged samples observed in the first half of 2017.

Palo Alto Unit 42 · Aug 17, 2026Malware in the wild

Kimwolf v7 Hides DDoS Traffic Behind Chrome Fingerprints and Ethereum

Unit 42 details Kimwolf v7, an Android TV botnet upgrade using HTTP/2 Chrome-fingerprint DDoS floods and Ethereum ENS-based C2 across 1.8M+ infected devices.

Palo Alto Networks Unit 42 identified Kimwolf v7 on February 3, 2026, an upgrade to an Android TV botnet active since August 2025 and linked to the AISURU botnet, which has infected over 1.8 million devices. The new version adds an HTTP/2-based DDoS flood that mimics full Chrome browser fingerprints, consolidates 43 attack commands into 15 methods covering layers 3-7, and resolves C2 addresses via Ethereum Name Service using five hard-coded public blockchain RPC endpoints, backed by a Tor hidden service and a local proxy on 127.0.0.1:23075. It spreads through residential proxies to Android TV boxes with ADB enabled on port 5555 and masquerades as netd_service. The botnet is associated with the record 31.4 Tbps DDoS attack in November 2025.

Security Affairs · Aug 12, 2026Malware in the wild

Kimwolf botnet rebuilt to survive takedowns, researchers say

Palo Alto Unit 42 reports the Kimwolf/Aisuru botnet now uses HTTP/2 Chrome-impersonation floods and Ethereum blockchain-based command resolution to survive takedowns.

Palo Alto Networks' Unit 42 says a new Kimwolf/Aisuru botnet version active since February conducts DDoS floods over HTTP/2 with full Chrome browser fingerprints, making attack traffic hard to distinguish from real users. The malware resolves command servers via the Ethereum Name Service using five shuffled Ethereum endpoints, with a Tor hidden service fallback, so authorities cannot seize a domain or serve a takedown order. The botnet, powered mostly by hijacked Android TV boxes and IoT devices, previously had servers seized and an alleged operator arrested; new C2 infrastructure traces to a single network in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It is unclear whether the same developers built the new version.

CyberScoop · Aug 12, 2026Malware in the wild1

Google Password Manager Attacks Could Let Malware Hijack Passkey

Unit 42 details three attack paths letting Windows malware silently sign into passkey-protected accounts via Chrome's Google Password Manager without user verification.

Palo Alto Networks Unit 42 described three post-compromise attack paths—Pass-ta-key, Silver Pass-ta-key and Golden Pass-ta-key—against Chrome's Google Password Manager cloud authenticator on TPM-equipped Windows systems. The attacks can silently obtain valid authentication assertions, install attacker-controlled user-verification keys, or extract the 32-byte Security Domain Secret used to decrypt synced passkey private keys, enabling reusable access from the attacker's own environment. No CVE was assigned and no exploitation in the wild was reported; demonstrations were validated against Chrome 142 and parts of the architecture are corroborated by Chromium source. GitHub enforced the User Verified flag check, while eBay accepted a test assertion lacking it before fixing its validation gap after disclosure.

The Hacker News · Aug 11, 2026Research

OpenAI Launches GPT-5.6-Cyber with Reduced Safeguards for Exploit Development

OpenAI released GPT-5.6-Cyber for vulnerability research and pentesting via Daybreak Red, completing 95% of advanced cyber task evaluations.

GPT-5.6-Cyber, built on GPT-5.6 Sol, targets zero-day discovery, exploit chain development and incident response with reduced refusals, scoring 95.0% on OpenAI's Advanced Cybersecurity Completion Rate versus 1.5% for GPT-5.6 Sol and 57.3% for GPT-5.5-Cyber. The model found CVE-2026-15903 (CVSS 8.8), an out-of-bounds read/write in Chrome's V8 JavaScript engine that Google patched in mid-July 2026. It is available to trusted partners including CrowdStrike, Palo Alto Networks and Cloudflare through the Daybreak Red access tier.

The Hacker News · Aug 11, 2026Model releaseCVE-2026-15903

New Passkey Attacks Can Recover Synced Private Keys or Bypass Phishing

Three research teams showed passkey bypasses: WebAuthn assertion replay in Microsoft Entra ID, synced-passkey key recovery in Google Password Manager, and Windows Hello key reuse.

SpecterOps' Pass-the-Passkey research showed Windows stored past YubiKey signatures in cleartext and chained this with Microsoft Entra ID passkey validation weaknesses to impersonate privileged users despite phishing-resistant MFA; the Windows Event Logging Service issue is tracked as CVE-2026-34348 (CVSS 6.5) and fixed in July 2026 updates. Unit 42's Golden Pass-ta-key attack recovered the 32-byte Security Domain Secret protecting Google Password Manager synced passkeys from Chrome on Windows via pre-existing malware. Dirk-jan Mollema showed in-session malware can use a hardware-bound Windows Hello for Business key without a fresh PIN or biometric check. Microsoft applied Entra-side mitigations for the relay assertion issue; no real-world exploitation has been reported.

The Hacker News · Aug 11, 2026VulnerabilityCVE-2026-34348

2026-006: Critical Vulnerability in PAN-OS

Palo Alto Networks PAN-OS User-ID Authentication Portal flaw allows unauthenticated root RCE; limited exploitation observed and patches still pending.

Palo Alto Networks disclosed CVE-2026-0300 (CVSS 9.3), a buffer overflow in the PAN-OS User-ID Authentication Portal (Captive Portal) that enables unauthenticated arbitrary code execution with root privileges on PA-Series and VM-Series firewalls. Only appliances configured to use the Authentication Portal are affected. Palo Alto observed limited exploitation; at publication patches were not yet available, so restricting portal access to trusted zones or disabling it was recommended as mitigation.

CERT-EU Advisories · Jun 5, 2026Vulnerability in the wildCVE-2026-0300

Related CVEs

  • Buffer Overflow in PAN-OS XML Processing Enables Root RCE on PA-Series Firewalls
    Palo Alto Networks PAN-OS contains a buffer overflow (CWE-787, out-of-bounds write) in its XML processing functionality. An unauthenticated attacker with network access to the management web interface or the dataplane interface can send malicious XML input to trigger the flaw. On PA-Series hardware firewalls this allows arbitrary code execution with root privileges, while on VM-Series virtual firewalls the impact is limited to a denial-of-service condition. Panorama centralized management is also affected, and exposure is greatly reduced when the management interface is restricted to trusted internal IP addresses per vendor best practice. As of this analysis there is no known public proof-of-concept, no CISA KEV listing, and no confirmed exploitation in the wild (CVSS 4.0 marks exploitability as unproven).
    · Palo Alto Networks PAN-OS on PA-Series firewalls · Palo Alto Networks PAN-OS on VM-Series firewallslarge
  • A BOLA vulnerability in POST /admins allows a low privileged user to create a high privileged user (admin) in the system.
    A BOLA vulnerability in POST /admins allows a low privileged user to create a high privileged user (admin) in the system. This results in privilege escalation.
    · easyappointments easyappointments
  • A BOLA vulnerability in POST /providers allows a low privileged user to create a privileged user (provider) in the system.
    A BOLA vulnerability in POST /providers allows a low privileged user to create a privileged user (provider) in the system. This results in privilege escalation.
    · easyappointments easyappointments
  • A BOLA vulnerability in GET, PUT, DELETE /secretaries/{secretaryId} allows a low privileged user to fetch, modify or delete a low privileged user (secretary).
    A BOLA vulnerability in GET, PUT, DELETE /secretaries/{secretaryId} allows a low privileged user to fetch, modify or delete a low privileged user (secretary). This results in unauthorized access and unauthorized data manipulation.
    · easyappointments easyappointments
  • A BOLA vulnerability in GET, PUT, DELETE /customers/{customerId} allows a low privileged user to fetch, modify or delete a low privileged user (customer).
    A BOLA vulnerability in GET, PUT, DELETE /customers/{customerId} allows a low privileged user to fetch, modify or delete a low privileged user (customer). This results in unauthorized access and unauthorized data manipulation.
    · easyappointments easyappointments
  • A BOLA vulnerability in GET, PUT, DELETE /webhooks/{webhookId} allows a low privileged user to fetch, modify or delete a webhook of any user (including admin).
    A BOLA vulnerability in GET, PUT, DELETE /webhooks/{webhookId} allows a low privileged user to fetch, modify or delete a webhook of any user (including admin). This results in unauthorized access and unauthorized data manipulation.
    · easyappointments easyappointments
  • Incorrect Default Permissions vulnerability in GenBroker32, which is included in the installers for Mitsubishi Electric GENESIS64 versions 10.97.3 and prior, Mi
    Incorrect Default Permissions vulnerability in GenBroker32, which is included in the installers for Mitsubishi Electric GENESIS64 versions 10.97.3 and prior, Mitsubishi Electric Iconics Digital Solutions GENESIS64 versions 10.97.3 and prior, Mitsubishi Electric ICONICS Suite versions 10.97.3 and prior, Mitsubishi Electric Iconics Digital Solutions ICONICS Suite versions 10.97.3 and prior, Mitsubishi Electric GENESIS32 versions 9.70.300.23 and prior, Mitsubishi Electric Iconics Digital Solutions GENESIS32 versions 9.70.300.23 and prior, and Mitsubishi Electric MC Works64 all versions allows a…
    · iconics genesis64 · iconics mc works64
  • A BOLA vulnerability in POST /services allows a low privileged user to create a service for any user in the system (including admin).
    A BOLA vulnerability in POST /services allows a low privileged user to create a service for any user in the system (including admin). This results in unauthorized data manipulation.
    · easyappointments easyappointments
  • It is possible for a user in a different organization from the owner of a snapshot to bypass authorization and delete a snapshot by issuing a DELETE request to
    It is possible for a user in a different organization from the owner of a snapshot to bypass authorization and delete a snapshot by issuing a DELETE request to /api/snapshots/ using its view key. This functionality is intended to only be available to individuals with the permission to write/edit to the snapshot in question, but due to a bug in the authorization logic, deletion requests issued by an unprivileged user in a different organization than the snapshot owner are treated as authorized. Grafana Labs would like to thank Ravid Mazon and Jay Chen of Palo Alto Research for discovering and…
  • A BOLA vulnerability in POST /customers allows a low privileged user to create a low privileged user (customer) in the system.
    A BOLA vulnerability in POST /customers allows a low privileged user to create a low privileged user (customer) in the system. This results in unauthorized data manipulation.
    · easyappointments easyappointments

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