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In the digital realm, secrets (API keys, private keys, username and password combos, etc.) are the keys to the kingdom. But what if those keys were accidentally left out in the open in the very tools we use to collaborate every day? A Single Secret Can Wreak Havoc Imagine this: It's a typical Tuesday in June 2024. Your dev team is knee-deep in sprints, Jira tickets are flying, and Slack is buzzing with the usual mix of cat memes and code snippets. Little do you know, buried in this digital chatter is a ticking time bomb – a plaintext credential that gives unfettered access to your company's crown jewels. Fast forward a few weeks, and you're in the middle of a CISO's worst nightmare. Terabytes of customer data, including millions of bank account details, have been exfiltrated. Your company is splashed across headlines, and new incidents are surfacing daily. The culprit? A secret inadvertently shared in a Jira comment. This isn't a far-fetched scenario. It happen

Cybersecurity researchers have uncovered a never-before-seen dropper that serves as a conduit to launch next-stage malware with the ultimate goal of infecting Windows systems with information stealers and loaders. "This memory-only dropper decrypts and executes a PowerShell-based downloader," Google-owned Mandiant said . "This PowerShell-based downloader is being tracked as PEAKLIGHT." Some of the malware strains distributed using this technique are Lumma Stealer , Hijack Loader (aka DOILoader, IDAT Loader, or SHADOWLADDER), and CryptBot , all of which are advertised under the malware-as-a-service (SaaS) model. The starting point of the attack chain is a Windows shortcut (LNK) file that's downloaded via drive-by download techniques -- e.g., when users look up a movie on search engines. It's worth pointing out that the LNK files are distributed within ZIP archives that are disguised as pirated movies. The LNK file connects to a content delivery network

Want to know what's the latest and greatest in SecOps for 2024? Gartner's recently released Hype Cycle for Security Operations report takes important steps to organize and mature the domain of Continuous Threat Exposure Management, aka CTEM. Three categories within this domain are included in this year's report: Threat Exposure Management, Exposure Assessment Platforms (EAP), and Adversarial Exposure Validation (AEV). These category definitions are aimed at providing some structure to the evolving landscape of exposure management technologies. Pentera, listed as a sample vendor in the newly defined AEV category, is playing a pivotal role in increasing the adoption of CTEM, with a focus on security validation. Following is our take on the CTEM related product categories and what they mean for enterprise security leaders. The Industry is Maturing CTEM, coined by Gartner in 2022, presents a structural approach for continuously assessing, prioritizing, validating, and remediating expo

Let's be honest. The world of cybersecurity feels like a constant war zone. You're bombarded by threats, scrambling to keep up with patches, and drowning in an endless flood of alerts. It's exhausting, isn't it? But what if there was a better way? Imagine having every essential cybersecurity tool at your fingertips, all within a single, intuitive platform, backed by expert support 24/7. This is the game-changing power of an All-in-One solution. Get ready for a live, no-nonsense demonstration. Join us for the webinar " Step by Step: How to Achieve Total Protection with an All-in-One Platform ," where Cynet's experts—celebrated for their stellar performance in the MITRE ATT&CK Evaluations—will take you inside a live simulation of real-world cyberattacks. Experience firsthand the unparalleled strength of a unified cybersecurity approach and learn how to secure total protection for your organization. Here's what you'll witness: Simulating real-world t

In today's rapidly evolving cyber threat landscape, organizations face increasingly sophisticated attacks targeting their applications. Understanding these threats and the technologies designed to combat them is crucial. This article delves into the mechanics of a common application attack, using the infamous Log4Shell vulnerability as an example, and demonstrates how Application Detection and Response (ADR) technology effectively safeguards against such zero-day threats. View the Contrast ADR white paper The anatomy of a modern application attack: Log4Shell To illustrate the complexity and severity of modern application attacks, let's examine an attack against the infamous Log4Shell vulnerability ( CVE-2021-44228 ) that sent shockwaves through the cybersecurity world in late 2021. This attack is a prime example of attack chaining, leveraging JNDI Injection, Expression Language (EL) Injection and Command Injection. Technology note : The CVE program catalogs, which publicly

Cybersecurity researchers are warning about the discovery of thousands of externally-facing Oracle NetSuite e-commerce sites that have been found susceptible to leaking sensitive customer information. "A potential issue in NetSuite's SuiteCommerce platform could allow attackers to access sensitive data due to misconfigured access controls on custom record types (CRTs)," AppOmni's Aaron Costello said . It's worth emphasizing here that the issue is not a security weakness in the NetSuite product, but rather a customer misconfiguration that can lead to leakage of confidential data. The information exposed includes full addresses and mobile phone numbers of registered customers of the e-commerce sites. The attack scenario detailed by AppOmni exploits CRTs that employ table-level access controls with the "No Permission Required" access type, which grants unauthenticated users access to data by making use of NetSuite's record and search APIs. That sa

Cybersecurity researchers have uncovered a surge in malware infections stemming from malvertising campaigns distributing a loader called FakeBat. "These attacks are opportunistic in nature, targeting users seeking popular business software," the Mandiant Managed Defense team said in a technical report. "The infection utilizes a trojanized MSIX installer, which executes a PowerShell script to download a secondary payload." FakeBat , also called EugenLoader and PaykLoader, is linked to a threat actor named Eugenfest. The Google-owned threat intelligence team is tracking the malware under the name NUMOZYLOD and has attributed the Malware-as-a-Service (MaaS) operation to UNC4536. Attack chains propagating the loader malware make use of drive-by download techniques to push users searching for popular software toward bogus lookalike sites that host booby-trapped MSI installers. Some of the malware families delivered via FakeBat include IcedID, RedLine Stealer, Lumma

SaaS applications have become indispensable for organizations aiming to enhance productivity and streamline operations. However, the convenience and efficiency these applications offer come with inherent security risks, often leaving hidden gaps that can be exploited. Conducting thorough due diligence on SaaS apps is essential to identify and mitigate these risks, ensuring the protection of your organization's sensitive data. Understanding the Importance of Due Diligence Due diligence is a critical step in evaluating the security capabilities of SaaS applications. It involves a comprehensive assessment of the app's audit log events, system and activity audits, and integration capabilities to ensure proper logging and monitoring, helping to prevent costly incidents. Here are a few reasons why due diligence is non-negotiable: Identifying Critical Audit Log Gaps: A thorough review helps ensure that essential events, such as logins, MFA verifications, and user changes, are lo

The Emergence of Identity Threat Detection and Response Identity Threat Detection and Response (ITDR) has emerged as a critical component to effectively detect and respond to identity-based attacks. Threat actors have shown their ability to compromise the identity infrastructure and move laterally into IaaS, Saas, PaaS and CI/CD environments. Identity Threat Detection and Response solutions help organizations better detect suspicious or malicious activity in their environment. ITDR solutions give security teams the ability to help teams answer the question "What's happening right now in my environment - what are my identities doing in my environments." Human and Non-Human Identities As outlined in the ITDR Solution Guide, comprehensive ITDR solutions cover both human and non-human identities. Human identities entail the workforce (employees), guests (contractors), and vendors. Non-human identities include tokens, keys, service accounts, and bots. Multi- environment ITDR solutions c

A cybercrime group with links to the RansomHub ransomware has been observed using a new tool designed to terminate endpoint detection and response (EDR) software on compromised hosts, joining the likes of other similar programs like AuKill (aka AvNeutralizer) and Terminator . The EDR-killing utility has been dubbed EDRKillShifter by cybersecurity company Sophos, which discovered the tool in connection with a failed ransomware attack in May 2024. "The EDRKillShifter tool is a 'loader' executable – a delivery mechanism for a legitimate driver that is vulnerable to abuse (also known as a 'bring your own vulnerable driver,' or BYOVD , tool)," security researcher Andreas Klopsch said . "Depending on the threat actor's requirements, it can deliver a variety of different driver payloads." RansomHub , a suspected rebrand of the Knight ransomware, surfaced in February 2024, leveraging known security flaws to obtain initial access and drop legitimate rem

Everyone loves the double-agent plot twist in a spy movie, but it's a different story when it comes to securing company data. Whether intentional or unintentional, insider threats are a legitimate concern. According to CSA research , 26% of companies who reported a SaaS security incident were struck by an insider.  The challenge for many is detecting those threats before they lead to full breaches. Many security professionals assume there is nothing they can do to protect themselves from a legitimate managed user who logs in with valid credentials using a company MFA method. Insiders can log in during regular business hours, and can easily justify their access within the application.  Cue the plot twist: With the right tools in place, businesses can protect themselves from the enemy from within (and without).  Learn how to secure your entire SaaS stack from both internal and external threats Subduing Identity-Centric Threats with ITDR  In SaaS security, an Identity Threat Detect

Incident response is a structured approach to managing and addressing security breaches or cyber-attacks. Security teams must overcome challenges such as timely detection, comprehensive data collection, and coordinated actions to enhance readiness. Improving these areas ensures a swift and effective response, minimizing damage and restoring normal operations quickly. Challenges in incident response Incident response presents several challenges that must be addressed to ensure a swift and effective recovery from cyber attacks. The following section lists some of these challenges. Timeliness : One of the primary challenges in incident response is addressing incidents quickly enough to minimize damage. Delays in response can lead to more compromises and increased recovery costs. Information correlation : Security teams often struggle to effectively collect and correlate relevant data. Without a comprehensive view, understanding the full scope and impact of the incident becomes difficu