Security News

'Stanley' Toolkit Turns Chrome Into Undetectable Phishing Vector

The malware-as-a-service kit enables malicious extensions to overlay pages on real websites without changing the visible URL, signaling a fresh challenge for enterprise security.

WhatsApp Rolls Out Lockdown-Style Security Mode to Protect Targeted Users From Spyware

Meta on Tuesday announced it's adding Strict Account Settings on WhatsApp to secure certain users against advanced cyber attacks because of who they are and what they do. The feature, similar to Lockdown Mode in Apple iOS and Advanced Protection in Android, aims to protect individuals, such as journalists or public-facing figures, from sophisticated spyware by trading some functionality for

Experts Detect Pakistan-Linked Cyber Campaigns Aimed at Indian Government Entities

Indian government entities have been targeted in two campaigns undertaken by a threat actor that operates in Pakistan using previously undocumented tradecraft. The campaigns have been codenamed Gopher Strike and Sheet Attack by Zscaler ThreatLabz, which identified them in September 2025. "While these campaigns share some similarities with the Pakistan-linked Advanced Persistent Threat (APT)

WorldLeaks Extortion Group Claims It Stole 1.4TB of Nike Data

The sportswear brand is investigating an alleged breach of its network that exposed some 188,347 files of highly sensitive corporate data.

WorldLeaks Extortion Group Claims It Stole 1.4TB of Nike Data

The sportswear brand is investigating an alleged breach of its network that exposed some 188,347 files of highly sensitive corporate data.

ClickFix Attacks Expand Using Fake CAPTCHAs, Microsoft Scripts, and Trusted Web Services

Cybersecurity researchers have disclosed details of a new campaign that combines ClickFix-style fake CAPTCHAs with a signed Microsoft Application Virtualization (App-V) script to distribute an information stealer called Amatera. "Instead of launching PowerShell directly, the attacker uses this script to control how execution begins and to avoid more common, easily recognized execution paths,"

Beauty in Destruction: Exploring Malware's Impact Through Art

Artistic initiatives turn cybersecurity into immersive exhibits at the Museum of Malware Art, transforming digital threats into thought-provoking experiences.

Hand CVE Over to the Private Sector

How MITRE has mismanaged the world's vulnerability database for decades and wasted millions along the way.

CTEM in Practice: Prioritization, Validation, and Outcomes That Matter

Cybersecurity teams increasingly want to move beyond looking at threats and vulnerabilities in isolation. It’s not only about what could go wrong (vulnerabilities) or who might attack (threats), but where they intersect in your actual environment to create real, exploitable exposure. Which exposures truly matter? Can attackers exploit them? Are our defenses effective? Continuous Threat Exposure

Critical Grist-Core Vulnerability Allows RCE Attacks via Spreadsheet Formulas

A critical security flaw has been disclosed in Grist‑Core, an open-source, self-hosted version of the Grist relational spreadsheet-database, that could result in remote code execution. The vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2026-24002 (CVSS score: 9.1), has been codenamed Cellbreak by Cyera Research Labs. "One malicious formula can turn a spreadsheet into a Remote Code Execution (RCE) beachhead,"

China-Linked Hackers Have Used the PeckBirdy JavaScript C2 Framework Since 2023

Cybersecurity researchers have discovered a JScript-based command-and-control (C2) framework called PeckBirdy that has been put to use by China-aligned APT actors since 2023 to target multiple environments. The flexible framework has been put to use against Chinese gambling industries and malicious activities targeting Asian government entities and private organizations, according to Trend Micro

Microsoft Office Zero-Day (CVE-2026-21509) - Emergency Patch Issued for Active Exploitation

Microsoft on Monday issued out-of-band security patches for a high-severity Microsoft Office zero-day vulnerability exploited in attacks. The vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2026-21509, carries a CVSS score of 7.8 out of 10.0. It has been described as a security feature bypass in Microsoft Office. "Reliance on untrusted inputs in a security decision in Microsoft Office allows an unauthorized

Initial Stages of Romance Scams [Guest Diary], (Tue, Jan 27th)

[This is a Guest Diary by Fares Azhari, an ISC intern as part of the SANS.edu BACS program]

ISC Stormcast For Tuesday, January 27th, 2026 https://isc.sans.edu/podcastdetail/9782, (Tue, Jan 27th)

Sandworm Blamed for Wiper Attack on Poland Power Grid

Researchers attributed the failed attempt to the infamous Russian APT Sandworm, which is notorious for wiper attacks on critical infrastructure organizations.

Indian Users Targeted in Tax Phishing Campaign Delivering Blackmoon Malware

Cybersecurity researchers have discovered an ongoing campaign that's targeting Indian users with a multi-stage backdoor as part of a suspected cyber espionage campaign. The activity, per the eSentire Threat Response Unit (TRU), involves using phishing emails impersonating the Income Tax Department of India to trick victims into downloading a malicious archive, ultimately granting the threat

Who Operates the Badbox 2.0 Botnet?

The cybercriminals in control of Kimwolf -- a disruptive botnet that has infected more than 2 million devices -- recently shared a screenshot indicating they'd compromised the control panel for Badbox 2.0, a vast China-based botnet powered by malicious software that comes pre-installed on many Android TV streaming boxes. Both the FBI and Google say they are hunting for the people behind Badbox 2.0, and thanks to bragging by the Kimwolf botmasters we may now have a much clearer idea about that.

DPRK's Konni Targets Blockchain Developers With AI-Generated Backdoor

The North Korean threat group is using a new PowerShell backdoor to compromise development environments and target cryptocurrency holdings, according to researchers.

Malicious VS Code AI Extensions with 1.5 Million Installs Steal Developer Source Code

Cybersecurity researchers have discovered two malicious Microsoft Visual Studio Code (VS Code) extensions that are advertised as artificial intelligence (AI)-powered coding assistants, but also harbor covert functionality to siphon developer data to China-based servers. The extensions, which have 1.5 million combined installs and are still available for download from the official Visual Studio

⚡ Weekly Recap: Firewall Flaws, AI-Built Malware, Browser Traps, Critical CVEs & More

Security failures rarely arrive loudly. They slip in through trusted tools, half-fixed problems, and habits people stop questioning. This week’s recap shows that pattern clearly. Attackers are moving faster than defenses, mixing old tricks with new paths. “Patched” no longer means safe, and every day, software keeps becoming the entry point. What follows is a set of small but telling signals.