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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.
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U.S. Bank says breach claims related to fourth
LockBit claimed data theft from U.S. Bancorp, but the bank attributes it to a fourth-party breach at a contractor's third party, with no impact on its own systems.
LockBit added U.S. Bancorp to its leak site and threatened to release stolen data within two weeks, but the bank investigated and attributed the claims to a fourth-party incident outside its environment. U.S. Bancorp stated there is no evidence its systems, networks, or data repositories were compromised and reported the matter to law enforcement. The bank is the seventh largest in the United States, and LockBit provided no samples to substantiate the claim. The gang, previously subject to a 2024 law enforcement takedown, earned $252.4 million in ransoms through 353 attacks from 2022 to 2024 according to the U.S. Treasury.
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Mole Ransomware: How One Malicious Spam Campaign Quickly Increased Complexity and Changed Tactics
Unit 42 tracks the new Mole ransomware (CryptoMix family) spread via USPS-themed malspam, with tactics escalating to JavaScript downloaders dropping multiple malware families.
On April 11, 2017, a malspam campaign began distributing Mole ransomware, a CryptoMix-family strain, through USPS-themed emails linking to fake Microsoft Word Online sites offering a bogus Office plugin. By April 13 the campaign added Nemucod JavaScript downloaders installing Mole alongside Kovter and Miuref, and by April 18 it switched to the KINS banking Trojan before moving to speeding-ticket themes and a fake parking services website. Unit 42 notes the rapid tactic changes are likely intended to evade detection, and CryptoMix variants like Mole are typically repackaged within weeks.
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Locky Ransomware Installed Through Nuclear EK
Unit 42 reports Locky ransomware delivered through the Nuclear exploit kit using Flash exploits, adding a drive-by path to existing malspam distribution.
Unit 42 observed Locky ransomware being delivered by the Nuclear exploit kit in March 2016 via Flash exploits, following February reports of Neutrino EK distributing Locky. Infections follow a drive-by chain through a gate to the Nuclear EK, which either installs Locky directly or drops a downloader that retrieves it from another domain. Locky retains two distribution paths: malspam with malicious Office macros or JavaScript attachments and exploit kit traffic triggered by casual web browsing.
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