Russia-linked APT targets Ukraine by exploiting the Follina RCE
Vulnerabilities mentionedAll →
| CVE | Vulnerability | CVSS | EPSS | Flags | Affected | Exposure | Published |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2022-30190 | MSDT URL Protocol Remote Code Execution in Microsoft Windows (Follina) CVE-2022-30190 (Follina) is a remote code execution flaw in the Microsoft Windows Support Diagnostic Tool (MSDT) when MSDT is invoked through its ms-msdt URL protocol by a calling application such as Microsoft Word. Attackers trigger it by luring a user into opening a malicious document — typically a Word/RTF file whose link or remotely linked template launches the ms-msdt: URI with attacker-supplied commands — and CVSS 3.1 rates it 7.8 with a local attack vector and required user interaction. A successful exploit runs arbitrary code with the privileges of the calling application, allowing the attacker to install programs, view, change or delete data, or create new accounts in the user's context. Per the CISA data, affected platforms are Windows 7, 8.1 and RT 8.1, Windows 10 versions 1507 through 21H2, Windows 11 21H2, and Windows Server 2008 and 2012 — essentially any Windows installation that ships MSDT, with Office/Word as the common delivery vector. Exploitation is confirmed in the wild: Microsoft acknowledged it as an exploited zero-day, CISA added it to the KEV on 2022-06-14 with known ransomware use, EPSS puts the 30-day exploitation probability at 99.2% (99th percentile), and contemporaneous reporting also tied its use to espionage actors including APT28. Do: Apply Microsoft's security updates per vendor instructions (the fix shipped in the June 2022 Patch Tuesday releases for the affected Windows versions), as required by CISA's KEV. If patching must be delayed, follow Microsoft's documented mitigation to disable the MSDT URL protocol (remove or restrict the HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\ms-msdt registry key) and enforce Office Protected View / block Word from fetching remote templates over the network. Hunt for exploitation by checking whether Office processes (WINWORD.exe) launch msdt.exe or sdiagnhost.exe, or whether ms-msdt: URIs are invoked unexpectedly. | 7.8 | 99% | KEV ransomware PoC |
| mass≈1 billion+ Windows devices (effectively the entire supported Windows installed base) |
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Ukraine’s Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) warns that the Russia-linked Sandworm APT group may exploit the Follina RCE vulnerability.
Ukraine’s Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) is warning that the Russia-linked Sandworm APT may be exploiting the recently discovered Follina RCE. The issue, tracked as CVE-2022-30190, impacts the Microsoft Windows Support Diagnostic Tool (MSDT).
Nation-state actors are targeting media organizations in Ukraine, including radio stations, and newspapers. The malspam messages use the topic “LIST of links to interactive maps,” according to the CERT-UA, more malicious emails reached more than 500 recipients.
The malspam messages used the weaponized document “LIST_of_links_in_interactive_maps.docx.” Upon opening the document it will load the HTML-file and execute JavaScript code, which, in turn, will download and execute the EXE-file “2.txt”, which is detected as malicious CrescentImp.
“Attackers continue to exploit vulnerability CVE-2022-30190 and are increasingly resorting to emails from compromised government emails.” reads the alert published by the Ukraine CERT.
The government experts tracked the activity as UAC-0113, which is a threat actor that with a medium level of confidence is associated with the Sandworm APT group.
Targeting media orgs
CERT-UA also shared indicators of compromise for these attacks.
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