Search: “kuwait”

xHunt Campaign: Attacks on Kuwait Shipping and Transportation Organizations

xHunt deployed custom backdoors Hisoka, Killua, Gon, and EYE against Kuwait shipping and transportation organizations, using DNS tunneling and email-draft C2 channels.

Unit 42 observed the xHunt campaign targeting Kuwait transportation and shipping organizations between May and June 2019, installing backdoors named after characters from the anime Hunter x Hunter, including Hisoka, Killua, Sakabota, and Netero. The tools use HTTP and DNS tunneling for C2, and Hisoka v0.9 added an unusual email-based C2 channel that abuses Exchange Web Services with stolen credentials to exchange email drafts. The Gon tool provides port scanning, file transfer, screenshots, remote command execution, and RDP session creation, while EYE acts as a cleanup failsafe if a legitimate user logs in. Related activity targeting Kuwait between July and December 2018 was reported by IBM X-Force IRIS, suggesting the campaigns are likely related.

Palo Alto Unit 42·Aug 17, 13:21 UTC · Aug 17, 2026Threat actor1

xHunt Campaign: New Watering Hole Identified for Credential Harvesting

Unit 42 tied the xHunt campaign to a watering hole on a Kuwait government website used to passively harvest visitors' NTLM credential hashes.

Palo Alto Unit 42 identified a Kuwait government organization's webpage injected with hidden HTML referencing image paths on domains (microsofte-update.com, learn-service.com) tied to xHunt/Hisoka C2 infrastructure. When visitors loaded the page, Windows would attempt SMB/NetBIOS authentication to the remote share, allowing the operators to capture NTLM hashes that could be cracked or relayed. Related DNS redirect activity on xHunt infrastructure in 2019 pointed to additional credential-harvesting interest against Kuwaiti government email servers.

Palo Alto Unit 42·Aug 17, 13:18 UTC · Aug 17, 2026Threat actor in the wild

xHunt Campaign: New PowerShell Backdoor Blocked Through DNS Tunnel Detection

xHunt's new CASHY200 PowerShell backdoor used DNS tunneling for C2; DNS security blocked beaconing at a Kuwait organization in September 2019.

Unit 42 describes CASHY200, a new PowerShell-based backdoor tied to the xHunt campaign that communicates with its C2 server windows64x[.]com via DNS tunneling, parsing commands from DNS answers. In September 2019, a Kuwait-based organization's DNS security service blocked the beaconing minutes after detection, cutting off adversary access. Samples dating to May and June 2018 and open source collection suggest the tool was used against Kuwait government organizations from spring 2018 through 2019, with malicious Word documents observed installing CASHY200 payloads configured with C2 domains such as firewallsupports[.]com and winx64-microsoft[.]com. The tool's name derives from identifiers stored under the registry key HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Cashe and the command value 200.

Palo Alto Unit 42·Aug 17, 13:19 UTC · Aug 17, 2026Threat actor

U.K. Supreme Court Opens Door for Spyware Victims to Sue Foreign States

UK Supreme Court ruled Bahrain not immune from spyware litigation, letting two dissidents pursue claims over FinSpy hacking; case returns to the High Court.

The UK Supreme Court ruled in The Kingdom of Bahrain v. Shehabi that Bahrain is not immune from litigation over its alleged use of FinSpy spyware against two Bahraini dissidents living in the UK. Citizen Lab researchers Siena Anstis, Natalia Krapiva, and Kate Pundyk, writing in Lawfare, called the decision a milestone for accountability in transnational repression. The case now returns to the UK High Court, where attribution, causation, and injury must be proven.

Citizen Lab·Sep 2, 14:14 UTC · 14d agoPolicy & legal in the wild

AI-Driven Threat Intelligence for Gulf Enterprises: Why Detection Speed Is Now a Regulatory Requirement

Cyble argues GCC regulators' 6-72 hour breach-notification deadlines make AI-powered detection essential for Gulf enterprises.

Cyble's blog highlights that the UAE Information Assurance Standard v2 requires incident notification within 6 hours of detection, while Saudi Arabia's SAMA cybersecurity framework and NCA Essential Cybersecurity Controls converge on 72-hour reporting. It argues that compliance clocks start at detection, not response, and that IAS v2 mandates 24/7 monitoring with defined SLAs for Tier 1 critical infrastructure entities. The piece promotes Cyble Vision's AI-powered threat intelligence for continuous exposure monitoring and audit-ready detection logs.

Cyble·Sep 4, 13:23 UTC · 12d agoIndustry

Coast Guard, FBI board US-bound foreign ships in order to probe for cyberattacksnew

US Coast Guard and FBI boarded two foreign tankers bound for the US after indications their vessel networks were compromised, investigating possible Iranian involvement.

The Coast Guard and FBI conducted joint offshore security boardings of two commercial ships in the Gulf of Mexico on August 21 and 24 to examine their operational and IT systems following indications both networks were compromised. The vessels reportedly carried oil and natural gas, and one was hacked in the Strait of Gibraltar and lost communications for over 30 hours. No operational disruptions, vessel instability, or environmental impacts have been reported, and authorities are investigating whether Iran or another group exploiting US-Iran tensions was behind the attacks.

CyberScoop·14:48 UTC · 50m agoData breach in the wild

Suspected Iran-linked attack knocked UK power plant offline for days

Suspected Iranian hackers knocked a small UK power plant offline for four days in July 2026, with no noticeable impact on the national grid.

Sources told The Telegraph that a British power plant was offline for four days in July 2026 following a suspected Iranian cyberattack, reported to the National Cyber Security Centre. The UK energy minister said the incident affected a small-scale energy generator with no noticeable effect on the power supply, and energy CEOs were briefed and given further advice afterward. The attack followed warnings about Iranian cyber activity against US energy, water, and government networks, including a coordinated attack on 30+ US community water utilities.

Help Net Security·Aug 24, 00:00 UTC · 23d agoThreat actor

Qatar’s Digital Boom Has a Blind Spot: What the 2025-26 Threat Data Is Telling Us

Cyble's Qatar Threat Landscape Report 2025-26 finds Qilin dominated local ransomware while access brokers concentrated on Qatari BFSI and retail access sales.

Cyble's Qatar Threat Landscape Report 2025-26 describes a concentrated threat environment where Qilin accounted for essentially all observed ransomware activity in the country in 2025, including an October campaign, with The Gentleman, Everest, Crypto24, and Payload sharing the space in 2026. Access brokers are selling compromised access, with BFSI and retail accounting for more than half of underground listings, while the education sector sees the most breach and leak incidents. Exploitation activity surged for enterprise remote-access products from Microsoft, Fortinet, Ivanti, and Citrix. The report was published ahead of the CYSEC Qatar summit and cites Qatar's data privacy law and National Cyber Security Agency initiatives.

Cyble·Sep 7, 13:00 UTC · 9d agoThreat actor in the wild

Iranian banks' SSL certificates are being revoked due to OFAC sanctions

OFAC sanctions are reportedly causing Iranian banks' SSL certificates to be revoked, threatening secure HTTPS access to their services.

A Hacker News discussion highlights a report that Iranian banks' SSL/TLS certificates are being revoked as a consequence of OFAC sanctions. Certificate revocation would degrade or break trusted HTTPS connections to affected banking domains for users in Iran. The item is a headline-only discussion post with limited detail on which certificate authorities or banks are affected.

Hacker News · security·Sep 14, 17:58 UTC · 1d agoPolicy & legalHN 23↑ · 6 comments

Ministry of Justice apologizes after court staff accessed Southport victims' files

UK Ministry of Justice apologized after court staff accessed Southport attack victims' files without authorization, exposing sensitive personal data with no evidence of third-party sharing.

The UK Ministry of Justice apologized after court staff accessed case files related to victims and survivors of the 2024 Southport murders without authorization, including sensitive personal data assessed as high risk for some individuals. There is no evidence the information was shared with third parties. HM Courts and Tribunals Service and HM Prison and Probation Service are investigating, and the Information Commissioner's Office has been informed. The incident follows similar unauthorized record access at North West Ambulance Service and Aintree University Hospital.

The Register · Security·10:42 UTC · 4h agoData breach

Payroll system of mosques, madrasahs hit by ransomware; staff details potentially compromised

Ransomware hit Avelogic's SmartHRMS payroll system serving Singapore mosques and madrasahs under MUIS, potentially exposing staff details.

The SmartHRMS human resources and payroll system used by mosques and madrasahs overseen by Singapore's Islamic Religious Council (MUIS) was hacked and held for ransom. The system is supplied by Singapore-based software vendor Avelogic, which posted a cybersecurity incident notice on its website. Staff details are potentially compromised, according to The Straits Times.

DataBreaches.net·Sep 15, 22:08 UTC · 17h agoRansomware in the wild

North Korea-linked IT Workers Are Getting Hired Inside Western Companies

Huntress documented five DPRK-linked FAMOUS CHOLLIMA workers hired by Western companies in 2026 using fake identities, proxies and laptop farms.

Huntress published an investigation of five confirmed 2026 cases of North Korea-linked IT workers, tracked as FAMOUS CHOLLIMA, obtaining remote jobs at legitimate companies in IT, sales, marketing and healthcare. The workers use stolen or fabricated identity documents, VPNs and proxy services, and some were caught using PiKVM hardware-level control, travel routers and laptop farms to mask their true location. Detection relied on document forensics, behavioral anomalies and indicators like identical typo artifacts in electricity bills rather than network intrusions.

Security Affairs·Sep 1, 11:08 UTC · 15d agoThreat actor in the wild

Aggah Campaign: Bit.ly, BlogSpot, and Pastebin Used for C2 in Large Scale Campaign

Aggah campaign abuses Bit.ly, BlogSpot, and Pastebin as multi-hop C2 to deliver RevengeRAT across the Middle East, US, Europe, and Asia.

Unit 42 details the Aggah campaign, which began with spearphishing emails in March 2019 spoofing a large financial institution and targeting education, media/marketing, and government organizations in the Middle East, later expanding to the US, Europe, and Asia. Delivery documents use Template Injection to load a remote OLE file whose macro runs mshta against a Bit.ly link redirecting to a BlogSpot post, which then uses Pastebin pastes to download RevengeRAT configured with a duckdns[.]org C2 domain. The embedded script also deletes Microsoft Defender signatures and kills Defender and Office processes, and modifies registry keys to enable macros. High-level TTPs resemble the Gorgon Group, but Unit 42 could not confirm attribution.

Palo Alto Unit 42·Aug 17, 13:21 UTC · Aug 17, 2026Threat actor

The EU CRA's Real Question: What Shipped, and When Did You Know?

ActiveState argues the EU CRA's 24-hour ENISA exploit-notification duty, effective September 11, 2026, makes current SBOMs and provenance visibility a legal necessity.

An ActiveState essay warns that the EU Cyber Resilience Act's reporting obligations take effect on September 11, 2026, requiring manufacturers of products with digital elements sold into the EU to notify ENISA within 24 hours of learning a vulnerability is actively exploited, with a fuller report within 72 hours. The law's engineering requirements only apply from December 11, 2027, leaving a visibility-first runway, and Article 13 requires the SBOM to stay current unlike one-time artifacts generated under US Executive Order 14028. The author contrasts the 24-hour notification clock with an industry-average 55 days to remediate high or critical vulnerabilities and recommends automated SBOM regeneration or consuming pre-vetted, attested open source components.

BleepingComputer·Sep 8, 20:24 UTC · 7d agoPolicy & legal

U.S. Defense Manufacturer IEH Hit by Phishing Attack, Exposing Potentially Export

Security Affairs·Aug 9, 16:44 UTC · Aug 9, 2026Phishing & fraud

Unit 42 Researchers Discover Multiple Espionage Operations Targeting Southeast Asian Government

Unit 42 attributes three espionage clusters targeting a Southeast Asian government to Stately Taurus, Alloy Taurus, and Gelsemium APTs.

Unit 42 investigated espionage attacks starting in late 2022 against multiple governmental entities in a Southeast Asian country, including critical infrastructure, public healthcare, financial administrators, and ministries. Analysis revealed three distinct clusters: CL-STA-0044 attributed to Stately Taurus (Mustang Panda), CL-STA-0045 to Alloy Taurus (GALLIUM), and CL-STA-0046 to Gelsemium. The first cluster used a ToneShell backdoor variant, ShadowPad, China Chopper web shells, Impacket, and credential dumping tools across roughly Q1 2021 to Q3 2023. All three operated with distinct tools, infrastructure, and long-term surveillance tradecraft consistent with APTs.

Palo Alto Unit 42·Aug 17, 10:57 UTC · Aug 17, 2026Threat actor in the wild

US Sanctions Mabna Institute Hackers for Iranian Cyber-Attacks

US sanctions individuals tied to Iranian hacking-for-hire group the Mabna Institute over cyber-attacks.

The United States has imposed sanctions on individuals connected to the Mabna Institute, an Iran-based hacking-for-hire group. The move targets the actors behind Iranian cyber-attack operations. Sanctions are a government enforcement action rather than a new technical threat.

Infosecurity Magazine·Aug 25, 09:10 UTC · 22d agoPolicy & legal

17th August – Threat Intelligence Report

Colombia's Ministry of Justice suffered a ransomware attack disrupting drug-monitoring and legal public services, per Check Point's 17 August 2026 threat intelligence report.

Check Point Research's weekly threat intelligence bulletin for 17 August 2026 leads with a ransomware attack on Colombia's Ministry of Justice. The attack affected part of the ministry's technology infrastructure and disrupted public services related to illicit-drug monitoring and legal processes. Officials confirmed that some files were impacted; the bulletin also aggregates other cyber research and attack discoveries from the week.

Check Point Research·Aug 17, 13:37 UTC · Aug 17, 2026Ransomware

Shattering the Dream – When a Job Offer Becomes a Zero-Day Attack

Check Point details an Operation Dream Job wave using trojanized PDF viewers to hit defense, aerospace, and aviation targets since early 2026.

Since early 2026, Check Point Research has tracked a wave of the Operation Dream Job campaign primarily targeting the global defense sector, with emphasis on aerospace and aviation companies. The threat actor distributes modified PDF viewers that execute malicious payloads embedded in specially crafted files, delivered under fake job-offer pretexts. Check Point characterizes the operation as a zero-day attack.

Check Point Research·Aug 11, 17:30 UTC · Aug 11, 2026Threat actor in the wild

US and Canadian Court Records Breached Following Thomson Reuters Incident

Thomson Reuters disclosed a breach of its C-Track court software exposing sensitive case records across Ontario courts and 11 US states.

Thomson Reuters detected unauthorized access to its C-Track case management product on June 30 and disclosed the incident on September 2. Files from three Ontario courts and appellate courts in 11 US states plus the US Virgin Islands were affected, potentially exposing names, Social Security numbers, driver's license numbers, medical information, dates of birth and health insurance data. The company said financial transaction systems were not impacted and found no evidence of misuse; the investigation into exact scope is ongoing.

Infosecurity Magazine·Sep 3, 12:00 UTC · 13d agoData breach 2 sources

Wake-Up Call for CNI After Iranian Attack Shuts Down UK Power Plant

A cyber-attack attributed to Iran shut down a UK power plant, exposing the frailty of critical national infrastructure, security experts warn.

Security experts say an Iranian cyber-attack forced a UK power plant offline, describing the incident as a wake-up call for critical national infrastructure operators. The attack caused physical operational disruption at an energy facility. Technical details about the intrusion path and the affected operator remain limited in initial reporting.

Infosecurity Magazine·Aug 24, 09:01 UTC · 23d agoThreat actor in the wild

The Fractured Block Campaign: CARROTBAT Used to Deliver Malware Targeting Southeast Asia

Unit 42 uncovers the Fractured Block campaign using the CARROTBAT dropper to deliver SYSCON and OceanSalt malware in cryptocurrency-themed attacks across Southeast Asia.

Unit 42 identified 29 CARROTBAT dropper samples used in the Fractured Block campaign, delivering decoy documents on cryptocurrencies, exchanges, and Korean political topics. Early samples delivered the SYSCON RAT, which uses FTP for command and control, while later ones dropped the previously reported OceanSalt malware. CARROTBAT supports 11 decoy file formats and uses certutil to download and execute payloads. Initial discovery stemmed from a December 2017 spear phishing attack on a British government agency, with infrastructure overlap tying the campaign to KONNI activity.

Palo Alto Unit 42·Aug 17, 12:22 UTC · Aug 17, 2026Malware

Insights into Suspected DPRK Workers

Huntress details incidents involving suspected DPRK remote workers (Famous Chollima) in partner environments and shares detection indicators.

Huntress analyzed several incidents involving suspected North Korean remote workers, associated with the activity cluster known as Famous Chollima. The report describes indicators defenders can use to detect and prevent DPRK worker infiltration in customer environments. The scheme centers on operatives obtaining remote jobs at Western companies under assumed identities.

Huntress·Aug 26, 04:00 UTC · 21d agoThreat actor in the wild

Multiple ArtraDownloader Variants Used by BITTER to Target Pakistan

BITTER used three ArtraDownloader variants since 2015 to target Pakistan, China, and Saudi Arabia, deploying BitterRAT and exploiting CVE-2017-11882 in one wave.

Palo Alto Unit 42 documents ArtraDownloader, a previously unreported downloader family used by the suspected South Asian group BITTER, with three variants and roughly 80 unique samples dating back to February 2015. Between September 2018 and January 2019, BITTER used spearphishing documents hosted on compromised Pakistani websites to target Pakistan and, for the first time, Saudi Arabia; one RTF sample exploited the EQNEDT vulnerability CVE-2017-11882. The downloader retrieves BitterRAT over HTTP, uses simple registry keys for persistence, and byte-level string obfuscation. Infrastructure overlap with the previously reported MY24 InPage-exploit payload was also observed.

Palo Alto Unit 42·Aug 17, 13:22 UTC · Aug 17, 2026Threat actor in the wildCVE-2017-11882

Cyber Incident Disrupts Student Services at UT San Antonio

UT San Antonio pulled IT systems offline after a cyber incident, disrupting student registration and tuition payments days before the term begins.

UT San Antonio reported a cyber incident and took IT systems offline as a precaution, disrupting student registration and tuition payment services. The outage comes days before the term is due to resume. The nature of the incident, whether data was accessed, and whether ransomware is involved have not been confirmed.

Infosecurity Magazine·Aug 18, 11:20 UTC · 29d agoData breach