SlideShare une entreprise Scribd logo
1  sur  44
Télécharger pour lire hors ligne
Security Threat
Report 2013




         New Platforms and Changing Threats
Table of contents                                                                                                                                                                                                          Graphics
Foreword. .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 1
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Survey: Email education .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 3

2012 in review:                                                                                                                                                                                                            Blackhole.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 7

New platforms and changing threats .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 2                                                                                                                   Countries hosting Blackhole .  .  .  .  .  . 9

      Widening attacks related to Facebook and other                                                                                                                                                                       Survey: Smartphone spam.  .  .  .  .  .  15
      social media platforms.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 3           Survey: Android app consideration. 17
      Emerging risks to cloud services.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 4                            Survey: Web browser.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 19

                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Mac OS X malware snapshot.  .  .  .  .  22
Blackhole: Today’s malware market leader.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 6
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Top 12 spam producing countries.  .  27
      Four stages of the Blackhole life cycle .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 7
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Spam sources by continent.  .  .  .  .  .  27
      What we’re doing about Blackhole, and what you can do.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 9
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Threat exposure rate .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 29

Java attacks reach critical mass .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 10
      So, what can you learn from data loss—beyond that
      you don’t want it to happen to you?.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 12                                    Videos
Android:                                                                                                                                                                                                                   Social engineering explained.  .  .  .  .  . 3
Today’s biggest target.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 13
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Cloud storage and BYOD .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 4
      Unsophisticated, but profitable:
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Introducing SophosLabs. . . . . . . . .8
      Fake software, unauthorized SMS messages.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 14
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Blackhole.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 8
      Joining the botnet. .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 15
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Android malware.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  14
      Capturing your messages and your bank account.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 15
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Ransomware.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 20
      PUAs: Not quite malware, but still risky.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 16
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Mac malware .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  23
      Mitigating the risks while they’re still manageable.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 16
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Long tail .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  30

Diverse platforms and technologies
widen opportunities for attack. .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 18
      Ransomware returns for an encore .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 19




Security Threat Report 2013
OS X and the Mac: More users, emerging risks .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 21
       Fake antivirus and Flashback:
       Learning from Windows malware, gaining agility  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 22
                                                     . .

       Morcut/Crisis: More sophisticated and potentially more dangerous.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 23

       Windows malware hiding quietly on Macs .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 24

       Recent OS X security improvements and their limitations.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 24

       Implementing a comprehensive Mac anti-malware solution.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 25


Authorities make high-profile malware
arrests and takedowns .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 26

Growth of dangerous targeted attacks.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 28

Polymorphic and targeted attacks: The long tail .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 30
       Polymorphism: Not new, but more troublesome.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 31

       Countering server-side polymorphism. .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 31

       Targeted attacks: narrow, focused and dangerous .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 32

       Defense-in-depth against SSP.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 32


Complete security .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 33
       Explore your two paths to complete security with Sophos .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 34


What to expect in 2013 .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 35

The last word. .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 37

Sources.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 38




                                                                                                                                                                        Adware
                                                                                                          Adware is software that displays
                                                                                                         advertisements on your computer



Security Threat Report 2013
Security Threat Report 2013
Foreword
             Reflecting on a very busy year for cyber security, I would like to highlight some key observations
             for 2012. No doubt, the increasing mobility of data in corporate environments is one of the biggest
             challenges we faced in the past year. Users are fully embracing the power to access data from
             anywhere. The rapid adoption of bring your own device (BYOD) and cloud are really accelerating
             this trend, and providing new vectors of attack.

             Another trend we are seeing is the changing nature of the endpoint device, transforming
             organizations from a traditional homogeneous world of Windows systems to an environment of
             diverse platforms. Modern malware is effective at attacking new platforms and we are seeing rapid
             growth of malware targeting mobile devices. While malware for Android was just a lab example a few
             years ago, it has become a serious and growing threat.

             BYOD is a rapidly evolving trend, and many of our customers and users actively embrace this trend.
             Employees are looking to use their smartphone, tablet, or next generation notebook to connect to
             corporate networks. That means IT departments are being asked to secure sensitive data on devices
             they have very little control over. BYOD can be a win-win for users and employers, but the security
             challenges are real while boundaries between business and private use are blurring. It raises
             questions on who owns, manages and secures devices and the data on them.

             Finally, the web remains the dominant source of distribution for malware—in particular, malware
             using social engineering or targeting the browser and associated applications with exploits.
             For example, malware kits like Blackhole are a potent cocktail of a dozen or more exploits that target
             the tiniest security holes and take advantage of missing patches.

             Cybercriminals tend to focus where the weak spots are and use a technique until it becomes less
             effective, and then move on to the next frontier. Security is at the heart of this revolution of BYOD
             and cloud. Protecting data in a world where systems are changing rapidly, and information flows
             freely, requires a coordinated ecosystem of security technologies at the endpoint, gateway, mobile
             devices and in the cloud.

             IT security is evolving from a device-centric to a user-centric view, and the security requirements
             are many. A modern security strategy must focus on all the key components—enforcement of use
             policies, data encryption, secure access to corporate networks, productivity and content filtering,
             vulnerability and patch management, and of course threat and malware protection.

             Best wishes,




                   Gerhard Eschelbeck       CTO, Sophos



Security Threat Report 2013                                                                                           1
2012 in review:
New platforms and
changing threats
In 2012, we saw attackers extend their reach to more
platforms, from social networks and cloud services to
Android mobile devices. We saw them respond to new
security research findings more rapidly, and leverage
zero-day exploits more effectively.

In the past year the most sophisticated malware authors upped the stakes with new
business models and software paradigms to build more dangerous and sustained attacks.
For instance, the creators of Blackhole, an underground malware toolkit delivered through
Software-as-a-Service rental arrangements (aka crime packs), announced a new version.
They acknowledged the success of antivirus companies in thwarting their activities, and
promised to raise their game in 2012.
Private cybercriminals were apparently joined by state-based actors and allies capable of
delivering advanced attacks against strategic targets. We saw reports of malware attacks
against energy sector infrastructure throughout the Middle East, major distributed
denial-of-service attacks against global banks, and targeted spearphishing attacks against
key facilities.
More conventionally, attackers continued to target thousands of badly-configured websites
and databases to expose passwords and deliver malware—yet again demonstrating the need
for increased vigilance in applying security updates and reducing attack surfaces. Meanwhile,
a new generation of victims found themselves on the wrong end of payment demands from
cybercriminals, as social engineering attacks such as fake antivirus and ransomware
continued unabated.




Security Threat Report 2013                                                                     2
In the wake of these growing risks, 2012 also    Widening attacks related to
saw good news. This year, IT organizations                                                       Learn more about
and other defenders increasingly recognized
                                                 Facebook and other                              attacks related to
the importance of layered defenses. Many         social media platforms                          social media platforms
organizations began to address the security
                                                                                                 	
challenges of smartphones, tablets, and
                                                 Throughout 2012, hundreds of millions of
bring your own device (BYOD) programs.                                                           	   Four Data Threats in a
                                                 users flocked to social networks—and so
Enterprises moved to reduce their exposure                                                       Post-PC World
                                                 did attackers. They built creative new social
to vulnerabilities in platforms such as Java
                                                 engineering attacks based on key user
and Flash; and to demand faster fixes from
                                                 concerns such as widespread skepticism
their platform and software suppliers.                                                     2     	   Beth Jones of
                                                 about Facebook’s new Timeline interface,
                                                                                                 SophosLabs explains social
Not least, law enforcement authorities           or users’ natural worries about newly posted
                                                                                                 engineering
achieved significant victories against           images of themselves. Attackers also
malware networks—including the arrest            moved beyond Facebook to attack maturing
of a Russian cybercriminal charged with          platforms such as Twitter, and fast-growing
infecting 4.5 million computers with the         services such as the Pinterest social content   Naked Security Survey
goal of compromising bank accounts; and          sharing network.                                Should businesses fool
the sentencing in Armenia of the individual                                                      employees into opening
                                                 In September 2012, Sophos reported
responsible for the massive Bredolab botnet.                                                     inappropriate emails with the
                                                 the widespread delivery of Twitter direct       aim of education?
Yet another good sign: Microsoft’s aggressive
                                                 messages (DMs) from newly-compromised
lawsuit against a China-based Dynamic DNS
                                                 accounts. Purportedly from online friends,
service that enabled widespread cyber crime,
                                       1         these DMs claim you have been captured
including operation of the Nitol botnet . The
                                                 in a video that has just been posted on
lawsuit’s filing and settlement demonstrated
                                                 Facebook. If you click the link in the DM,
those who facilitate cyber crime can be held
                                                 you’re taken to a website telling you to
as accountable as the criminals themselves.
                                                 upgrade your “YouTube player” to view
In 2013, as computing increasingly shifts to     the video. If you go any further, you’ll be
virtualized cloud services and mobile            infected with the Troj/Mdrop-EML
                                                                   3
platforms, attackers will follow, just as they   backdoor Trojan.
always have. This means IT organizations
                                                 September also saw the first widespread
and users will need to ask tough new                                                                  Yes
                                                                                                                          85.21%
                                                 account takeovers on Pinterest. These
questions of their IT service providers and
                                                 attacks spilled image spam onto other                No
                                                                                                                          14.79%
partners; become more systematic about
                                                 social networks such as Twitter and                 Based on 933 respondents voting
protecting diverse devices and network
                                                 Facebook. Victimized users who had linked                    Source: Naked Security
infrastructure; and become more agile about
                                                 their Pinterest accounts to these networks
responding to new threats. We’ll be there to
                                                 found themselves blasting out tweets
help—every minute of every day.
                                                 and wall posts encouraging their friends
                                                 to participate in disreputable work-at-home
                                                           4
                                                 schemes.




Security Threat Report 2013                                                                                                       3
2012 in review: New platforms and changing threats




With 1 billion users, Facebook remains the       Emerging risks to cloud
number one social network—and hence, the                                                          Learn more about
top target. In April, Sophos teamed with         services                                         cloud services
Facebook and other security vendors to help                                                       	
improve Facebook’s resistance to malware.        In 2012, the financial and management
Facebook now draws on our massive, up-to-        advantages of cloud services attracted many      	   Adopting Cloud
the-minute lists of malicious links and scam     IT organizations. In addition to expanding       Services With Persistent
sites to reduce the risk that it will send its   their reliance on hosted enterprise software     Encryption
                   5
users into danger. Of course, this is only one   and more informal services such as the
component of the solution. Researchers at        Dropbox storage site, companies have also
Sophos and elsewhere are working to find                                                          	   Fixing Your Dropbox
                                                 begun investing more heavily in private
new approaches to protecting users against                                                        Problem	
                                                 clouds built with virtualization technology.
social network attacks.                          This move raises more questions about what
For example, Dark Reading reported that          cloud users can and should do to keep the
                                                                                                  	   CTO Gerhard
computer scientists at the University            organization secure and compliant.
                                                                                                  Eschelbeck explains cloud
of California, Riverside have created an         Cloud security drew attention in 2012 with       storage and BYOD
experimental Facebook app that is claimed        Dropbox’s admission that usernames and
to accurately identify 97% of social malware     passwords stolen from other websites had
                                  6
and scams in users’ news feeds. Innovations      been used to sign into a small number of
such as social authentication—in which           its accounts. A Dropbox employee had used
Facebook shows you photos of your friends,       the same password for all his accounts,
and asks you to identify them, something         including his work account with access to
that many hackers presumably can’t               sensitive data. When that password was
                             7
do—may also prove helpful.                       stolen elsewhere, the attacker discovered
                                                 that it could be used against Dropbox. This
                                                 was a powerful reminder that users should
                                                 rely on different passwords for each secure
                                                 site and service.
                                                 Dropbox is no stranger to cloud authentication
                                                 problems, having accidentally removed all
                                                 password protection from all its users’ files
                                                                               8
                                                 in 2011 for nearly four hours.
                                                 Also, VentureBeat reported that the company’s
                                                 iOS app was storing user login credentials in
                                                 unencrypted text files—where they would be
                                                 visible to anyone who had physical access to
                                                 the phone.




Security Threat Report 2013                                                                                                   4
Dropbox has since improved security                 ÌÌ Can you prevent snapshotting of virtual
by introducing optional two-factor                     servers that capture current operating
                  9
authentication, but its problems raise                 memory images—including all working
broader issues. In May 2012, the Fraunhofer            encryption keys? Some experts, such as
Institute for Secure Information Technology            Mel Beckman or System iNEWS, believe
reported on vulnerabilities associated with            this rules the public cloud off-limits in
registration, login, encryption, and shared            environments where legal compliance
                                           10
data access on seven cloud storage sites.              requires physical control of hardware,
                                                                    13
                                                       e.g., HIPAA.
It’s worth noting that Dropbox and some
other sites already encrypt data in storage         It’s a cloudy world, but when and if you
and transit, but this only protects data that       decide to use cloud services, the following
has not been accessed using a legitimate            three steps can help you protect your data:
user ID and password. Data stored on public
                                                    1.	Apply web-based policies using URL
cloud systems is subject to the surveillance
                                                       filtering, controlling access to public cloud
and interception laws of any of the jurisdictions
                                                       storage websites and preventing users
in which those cloud systems have servers.
                                                       from browsing to sites you’ve declared
Dropbox’s difficulties have called greater             off-limits.
attention to cloud security in general. With
                                                    2.	Use application controls to block or allow
public cloud services and infrastructure
                                                       particular applications, either for the
beyond the control of the IT organization,
                                                       entire company or for specific groups.
how should companies approach security
and compliance? Two-factor (or multi-factor)        3.	Automatically encrypt files before they
authentication is a must. But is it enough?            are uploaded to the cloud from any
Consider issues such as these:                         managed endpoint. An encryption solution
                                                       allows users to choose their preferred
ÌÌ How will you manage “information                    cloud storage services, because the files
   leakage”? Specifically, how do you know if          are always encrypted and the keys are
   malicious insiders are forwarding sensitive         always your own. And because encryption
   information to themselves, where it will            takes place on the client before any data
                                          11
   remain available even if they’re fired?             is synchronized, you have full control of
                                                       the safety of your data. You won’t have to
ÌÌ How are you vetting suppliers and                   worry if the security of your cloud
   the administrators who operate their                storage provider is breached. Central keys
   systems? Are you applying the same                  give authorized users or groups access
   strict standards and contractual                    to files and keep these files encrypted for
   requirements you demand from other                  everyone else. Should your web key go
   business-critical partners who see                  missing for some reason—maybe the user
                                   12
   confidential or strategic data?                     simply forgot the password—the security
                                                       officer inside the enterprise would have
                                                       access to the keys in order to make sure
                                                       the correct people have access to that file.




Security Threat Report 2013                                                                            5
Blackhole: Today’s
malware market leader
Featuring research by SophosLabs

A close inspection of Blackhole reveals just how
sophisticated malware authors have become. Blackhole
is now the world’s most popular and notorious malware
exploit kit. It combines remarkable technical dexterity
with a business model that could have come straight
from a Harvard Business School MBA case study.
And, barring a takedown by law enforcement, security
vendors and IT organizations are likely to be battling it
for years to come.
An exploit kit is a pre-packaged software tool that can be used on a malicious web server to
sneak malware onto your computers without you realizing it. By identifying and making use
of vulnerabilities (bugs or security holes) in software running on your computer, an exploit kit
can automatically pull off what’s called a drive-by install. This is where the content of
a web page tricks software—such as your browser, PDF reader or other online content
viewer—into downloading and running malware silently, without producing any of the warnings
or dialogs you would usually expect. Like other exploit kits, Blackhole can be used to deliver
a wide variety of payloads. Its authors profit by delivering payloads for others, and they have
delivered everything from fake antivirus and ransomware to Zeus and the infamous TDSS
and ZeroAccess rootkits. Blackhole can attack Windows, OS X, and Linux. It is an equal-
opportunity victimizer.




Security Threat Report 2013                                                                        6
Between October 2011 and March 2012,             Four stages of the Blackhole
nearly 30% of the threats detected by                                                            Blackhole represents
SophosLabs either came from Blackhole
                                                 life cycle                                      27% of exploit sites
directly, or were redirects to Blackhole                                                         and redirects
kits from compromised legitimate sites.          1.  ending users to a Blackhole
                                                    S
Blackhole is distinguished not only by its                                                       In 2012 more than 80% of
                                                    exploit site
success, but by its Software-as-a-Service                                                        the threats we saw were
rental model, similar to much of today’s           The attackers hack into legitimate            redirects, mostly from
                                                   websites and add malicious content            legitimate sites that have
cloud-based software. Weekly rental rates
                                                   (usually snippets of JavaScript) that         been hacked. A powerful
are specified (in Russian) right in the kit’s
                                                   generate links to the pages on their          warning to keep your site
accompanying read me file, along with
                                                                                                 secure and your server
surcharges for additional domain services.         Blackhole site. When unsuspecting users
                                                                                                 scripts and applications up
Like legitimate vendors of rental software,        visit the legitimate site, their browsers
                                                                                                 to date.
Blackhole’s authors offer updates free for         also automatically pull down the exploit
                                                                                         14
the life of the subscription.                      kit code from the Blackhole server.

Customers who want to run their own                Blackhole host sites change quickly.
Blackhole servers can purchase longer              Freshly registered domains are normally
licences. But the version of the Blackhole kit     used to host Blackhole, typically acquired
that these customers receive is extensively        through the abuse of dynamic DNS
obfuscated. This is one of several steps           services such as ddns., 1dumb.com,
that Blackhole’s authors have taken to keep        and dlinkddns.com. These hosts often
control over their product. We haven’t yet         disappear within one day. Blackhole’s
seen Blackhole spin-offs from unrelated            ability to consistently send traffic to the
authors, though Blackhole has been                 correct new hosts shows an impressive
                                                   level of centralized control.                   Exploit site
                                                                                                                        0.7%
aggressively updated, and other authors
                                                                                                   (Blackhole)
are borrowing its techniques.                      Blackhole has multiple strategies to
                                                                                                   Drive-by redirect
                                                                                                                       26.7%
                                                   control user traffic. We’ve recently seen
                                                                                                   (Blackhole)
                                                   its owners abuse affiliate schemes.
                                                   Web hosts voluntarily add Blackhole             Exploit site
                                                                                                                        1.8%
                                                   code in exchange for a small payment,           (not Blackhole)
                                                   perhaps without realizing what the code         Payload
                                                                                                                         7.5%
                                                   will do. We’ve also seen Blackhole use
                                                                                                   Drive-by redirect
                                                                                                                       58.5%
                                                   old-fashioned spammed email links and
                                                                                                   (not Blackhole)
                                                   attachments. For example, links that
                                                   indicate problems with a bank account,          SEO
                                                                                                                         1.1%
                                                   or claim to provide a scanned document.         Fake antivirus
                                                                                                                        0.4%

                                                 2.  oading infected code from the
                                                    L                                              Other
                                                                                                                        3.4%
                                                    landing page                                             Source: SophosLabs

                                                   Once your browser sucks in the exploit
                                                   kit content from the Blackhole server,
                                                   the attack begins. The exploit code,
                                                   usually JavaScript, first works out and
                                                   records how your browser arrived at



Security Threat Report 2013                                                                                                    7
Blackhole: Today’s malware market leader




   the Blackhole server. This identifies the      4.Tracking, learning and improving
   affiliates who generate the traffic in the                                                     Learn more about
                                                    Blackhole keeps a record of which
   first place, so they can be paid just like
                                                    exploits worked with what combination
                                                                                                  Blackhole	
   affiliates in the legitimate economy. Then                                                     	
                                                    of browser, operating system and
   the exploit code fingerprints, or profiles,
                                                    plugins. This way, Blackhole’s authors        	   Malware B-Z: Inside the
   your browser to identify what operating
                                                    can measure which exploits are most           Threat From Blackhole to
   system you are using, which browser
                                                    effective against each combination of         ZeroAccess
   version you have, and whether you have
                                                    browser, plugin, and underlying operating
   plugins installed for Flash, PDF files, Java
                                                    system. This tracking technique isn’t
   applets and more.
                                                    uncommon, but Blackhole’s authors             	  Mark Harris introduces
   While we’ve seen attacks based on many           have been diligent in updating their kit      SophosLabs
   types of vulnerabilities, security holes in      to reflect what they discover.
   Java appear to be the leading cause of
                                                    Blackhole is equally good attaking
   Blackhole infections. Here, again, Blackhole                                                   	   Fraser Howard of
                                                    advantage of new zero-day vulnerabilities.
   uses legitimate code wherever possible.                                                        SophosLabs explains
                                                    For example, in August 2012 it targeted
   For example, it loads its exploit code                                                         Blackhole
                                                    a highly-publicized vulnerability in
   through the Java Open Business Engine,
                                                    Microsoft Help and Support Center to
   which has been used to support a wide
                                                    deliver poisoned VBS scripts. Blackhole
   variety of workflow applications and
                                                    launched a new attack based on
   systems, including the U.S. president’s
                                         15         a dangerous new Java 7 vulnerability
   daily Terrorist Threat Matrix report.
                                                    (CVE-2012-4681) that allows infected
3. Delivering the payload                           code to compromise Java’s permission
                                                                       16
                                                    checking system. Remarkably, 12
   Once a victim’s system has been cracked,
                                                    hours after a proof-of-concept for this
   Blackhole can deliver the payload
                                                    Java attack went public, it was already
   it’s been directed to send. Payloads are                               17
                                                    included in Blackhole. Oracle, in turn,
   typically polymorphic—they vary with
                                                    delivered an emergency patch by the
   each new system that’s been infected.
                                                    end of August, but many systems
   Blackhole’s authors have been aggressive
                                                    remain unpatched.
   about using advanced server-side
   polymorphism and code obfuscation.               Given the level of sophistication and
   Since they maintain tight central control,       agility shown by Blackhole’s authors,
   they can deploy updates with exceptional         we have been surprised that they’ve
   speed. Compared with other exploit kits          left some portions of their kit essentially
   that attackers purchase and host, we see         stagnant. For example, URL paths,
   rapid shifts in Blackhole’s behavior and         filenames, and query string structure.
   effectiveness. Blackhole payloads also           SophosLabs expects this to change in
   typically use custom encryption tools            the future, opening new opportunities
   designed to evade antivirus detection.           for Blackhole’s authors to improve
   Those tools are added by Blackhole’s             their attacks.
   customers, and Blackhole contributes
   with an optional service that actively
   checks antivirus functionality on each
   system it attempts to attack.




Security Threat Report 2013                                                                                                   8
What we’re doing about Blackhole, and what you can do

At SophosLabs, we track Blackhole 24/7,              3.		 lock compromised legitimate websites
                                                        B
making sure that our generic detection                  and exploit sites through a combination
and reputation filtering keep up with this              of reputation filtering and content
changing exploit kit. Whenever Blackhole                detection technologies, and use content
learns how to counter them, we rapidly                  detection to block payloads. Note that
roll out updates as needed via the cloud.               reputation filtering can often block exploit
We also apply cutting-edge techniques                   sites before content detection occurs, but
for identifying and analyzing server-side               it is not foolproof by itself.
polymorphic attacks such as Blackhole.
                                                     4.		 eter or reduce social engineering
                                                        D
On your end, the best defense against                   attacks that originate with spam with
Blackhole is a defense in depth.                        up-to-date spam filters and more active
                                                        user education.
1.		 uickly patching operating systems and
   Q
   applications is always important, and it’s        5.		f your endpoint security product has
                                                        I
   best to automate your patching process.              HIPS (host intrusion prevention system)
                                                        features, use them for added protection
2.		 o reduce the attack surface, disable
   T
                                                        against new or modified exploits.
   vulnerable systems such as Java and
   Flash wherever you don’t need them.




Where are Blackhole exploit sites being hosted?
                                  Countries hosting Blackhole exploit sites (2012)

                                    B
                                     razil                1.49%        Italy
                                                                                             5.75%
                                    G
                                     reat Britain         2.24%        Chile
                                                                                            10.77%
                                    N
                                     etherlands           2.55%        Russia
                                                                                            17.88%
                                    G
                                     ermany               3.68%        United States
                                                                                            30.81%
                                    C
                                     hina                 5.22%        Other
                                                                                            13.88%
                                    T
                                     urkey                5.74%
                                                                                  Source: SophosLabs




Security Threat Report 2013                                                                            9
Java attacks reach
critical mass
This was a rough year for Java in the browser. Major
new vulnerabilities repeatedly battered Java browser
plugins, encouraging many organizations to get rid of
Java in the browser if possible.

In April, more than 600,000 Mac users found themselves recruited into the global
Flashback, or Flashplayer botnet, courtesy of a Java vulnerability left unpatched on OS X
for far too long. After Apple issued a removal tool and a Java patch, Oracle assumed direct
responsibility for publishing Java for OS X in the future, and promised to deliver Java
patches for OS X and Windows and to release OS X Java patches at the same time as
                     18
those for Windows.
Oracle’s Java developers were soon called upon to deliver prompt patches. Within days of
the discovery of a new zero-day vulnerability affecting Java 7 on all platforms and operating
systems, the flaw was already being exploited in targeted attacks, was integrated into
                                       19
the widely used Blackhole exploit kit, and had even shown up in a bogus Microsoft
                                    20
Services Agreement phishing email. According to one detailed analysis, this exploit
enabled untrusted code to access classes that should be off-limits, and even disabled the
                       21
Java security manager.
As Oracle had promised, it released an out-of-band fix more rapidly than some observers
had expected. But, within weeks, more major Java flaws surfaced. Security Explorations,
the same researchers who discovered the first flaw, found another way to bypass Java’s
                                                                                   22
secure application sandbox—this time, not just on Java 7, but also on Java 5 and 6, and
in all leading browsers. The new exploit put 1 billion devices at risk.




Security Threat Report 2013                                                                     10
Many users today have little or no need for         Major organizations still leave users’
browser-based Java programs, known as
applets. JavaScript and other technologies          passwords vulnerable
have largely taken over from applets inside
the browser. Unless you genuinely need,
                                                    Password vulnerabilities ought to be a rarity. Well-known
and know you need, Java in your browser,
                                                    and easily-followed techniques exist for generating,
Sophos recommends that you turn it off.
                                                    using and storing passwords that should keep both
Our website offers detailed instructions for        individuals and organizations safe. Yet in 2012 we saw
doing so within Internet Explorer, Firefox,         one massive password breach after another, at a slew of
                                       23
Google Chrome, Safari, and Opera.                   high profile organizations.
If you do rely on websites that require Java,
                                                    ÌÌ 	 ussian cybercriminals posted nearly 6.5 million LinkedIn
                                                       R
consider installing a second browser and
                                                       passwords on the Internet. Teams of hackers rapidly went
turning Java on in that browser only. Use
                                                       to work attacking those passwords, and cracked more
it for your Java-based websites only, and
                                                       than 60% within days. That task was made simpler by the
stick to your Java-disabled main browser
                                                       fact that LinkedIn hadn’t “salted” its password database
for everything else.                                                                            24
                                                       with random data before encrypting it.
Java isn’t the only plugin platform that’s
caused security headaches. In previous              ÌÌ 	 ating website eHarmony quickly reported that some 1.5
                                                       D
years, Adobe’s Flash has also been                     million of its own passwords were uploaded to the web
                                                                                                   25
victimized by high-profile exploits. Fortunately,      following the same attack that hit LinkedIn.
the need for browser plugins such as Flash is
diminishing. HTML5-enabled browsers have            ÌÌ 	 ormspring discovered that the passwords of 420,000 of
                                                       F
capabilities such as playing audio and video           its users had been compromised and posted online, and
built in, making customary plugins obsolete.           instructed all 28 million of the site’s members to change
                                                                                          26
                                                       their passwords as a precaution.

                                                    ÌÌ 	 ahoo Voices admitted that nearly 500,000 of its own
                                                       Y
                                                                                              27
                                                       emails and passwords had been stolen.

                                                    ÌÌ 	 ultinational technology firm Philips was attacked by
                                                       M
                                                       the r00tbeer gang. The gang walked away with
                                                       thousands of names, telephone numbers, addresses
                                                                                     28
                                                       and unencrypted passwords.

                                                    ÌÌ 	EEE, the world’s largest professional association for
                                                       I
                                                       the advancement of technology, left a log file of nearly
                                                       400 million web requests in a world-readable directory.
                                                       Those requests included the usernames and plain text
                                                                                                  29
                                                       passwords of nearly 100,000 unique users.




Security Threat Report 2013                                                                                         11
Java attacks reach critical mass




                                   So, what can you learn from data loss—beyond that
Learn more about
modern threats
                                   you don’t want it to happen to you?
	
                                   If you’re a user:
	   Train your employees to
steer clear of trouble with        ÌÌ Use stronger passwords—and use a different one for each site that stores
our free toolkit.	                    information you care about.

                                   ÌÌ Use password management software, such as 1Password, KeePass, or
	   Five Tips to Reduce               LastPass. Some of these tools will even generate hard-to-crack
Risk From Modern Web                  passwords for you.
                                                        30

Threats

                                   If you’re responsible for password databases:

                                   ÌÌ 	 on’t ever store passwords in clear text.
                                      D

                                   ÌÌ 	
                                      Always apply a randomly-generated salt to each password before hashing
                                      and encrypting it for storage.

                                   ÌÌ 	
                                      Don’t just hash your salted password once and store it. Hash multiple
                                      times to increase the complexity of testing each password during an
                                      attack. It’s best to use a recognized password crunching algorithm such as
                                      bcrypt, scrypt or PBKDF2.

                                   ÌÌ 	
                                      Compare your site’s potential vulnerabilities to the OWASP Top Ten
                                      security risks, especially potential password vulnerabilities associated with
                                                                                        31
                                      broken authentication and session management.

                                   ÌÌ 	 inally, protect your password database, network and servers with
                                      F
                                      layered defenses.




Security Threat Report 2013                                                                                           12
Android:
Today’s biggest target
Featuring research by SophosLabs

Over 100 million Android phones shipped in the second
quarter of 2012 alone. In the U.S., a September 2012
                                   32



survey of smartphone users gave Android a whopping
52.2% market share. Targets this large are difficult for
                              33



malware authors to resist. And they aren’t resisting—
attacks against Android are increasing rapidly. In these
pages, we’ll share some examples, and offer some
perspective. We’ll ask: How serious are these attacks?
Are they likely to widen or worsen? And what reasonable
steps should IT organizations and individuals take to
protect themselves?




Security Threat Report 2013                                13
Android: Today’s biggest target




Unsophisticated, but profitable:
                                                                                                             Learn more about
Fake software, unauthorized SMS messages                                                                     mobile device
                                                                                                             management
Today, the most common business model                    Andr/Boxer presents messages in Russian
for Android malware attacks is to install                and has disproportionately attacked Eastern         	
fake apps that secretly send expensive                   European Android users who visit sites              	  Free tool: Mobile
messages to premium rate SMS services.                   where they’ve been promised photos of               Security for Android
Recent examples have included phony                      attractive women.
versions of Angry Birds Space, Instagram,
                                    34                   When they arrive at these sites, users
and fake Android antivirus products. In May                                                                  	   Mobile Security Toolkit
                                                         see a webpage that is carefully crafted
2012, UK’s mobile phone industry regulator
                                                         to entice them to download and install a
discovered that 1,391 UK Android users
                                                         malicious app. For example, the user
had been stung by one of these scams.                                                                        	  Mobile Device
                                                         might be prompted (in Russian) to install a
The regulator fined the firm that operated                                                                   Management Buyers Guide
                                                         fake update for products such as Opera or
the payment system involved, halted
                                                         Skype. Or, in some cases, a fake antivirus
fund transfers, and demanded refunds for
                                                         scan is run, reports false infections, and          	  When Malware Goes
those who’d already paid. However, UK
                                                         recommends the installation of a fake               Mobile
users represented only about 10% of this
                                                         antivirus program. Once installed, the
malware’s apparent victims—it has been
                                                         new app begins sending expensive SMS
seen in at least 18 countries.
                                                         messages. Many of these Trojans install             	  Vanja Svajcer of
Currently, one family of Android malware,                with what Android calls the INSTALL_                SophosLabs explains
Andr/Boxer, accounts for the largest number              PACKAGES permission. That means they                Android malware
of Android malware samples we see, roughly               can download and install additional
one third of the total. Linked to .ru domains            malware in the future.
hosted in the Ukraine,




   Android threats accelerate
   In Australia and the U.S., Sophos is now reporting Android threat exposure rates
   exceeding those of PCs.

      Android Threat Exposure Rate                         Android TER       PC TER

      60
      50
      40
      30
      20
      10

           Australia   Brazil   United   Others   Malaysia Germany   India   France    United    Iran
                                States                                                Kingdom

     Threat exposure rate (TER): Measured as the percentage of PCs and Android devices that experienced
     a malware attack, whether successful or failed, over a three month period.

                                                                                        Source: SophosLabs


Security Threat Report 2013                                                                                                            14
Joining the botnet                             Capturing your messages and
                                                                                               Naked Security Survey
                                               your bank account                               Is smartphone SMS/TXT
Until recently, most fake software attacks
                                                                                               spam a problem for you?
we’ve seen on Android have been relatively
unsophisticated. For example, some use         We have also begun to see Android
primitive polymorphic methods that involve     malware that eavesdrops on incoming SMS
randomizing images, thereby changing           messages and forwards them to another
checksums to avoid detection. Leading          SMS number or server. This sort of data
security companies learned how to defeat       leakage represents a significant risk, both
this tactic many years ago.                     to individuals and to organizations.

But the attackers are making headway.          The potential exists for attacks like these
For example, consider the malware-infected     to target Internet banking services that send
editions of Angry Birds Space we saw in        mobile transaction authentication numbers
April 2012 (Andr/KongFu-L). Again, available   via SMS. Many banks send authentication
only through unofficial Android app markets,   codes to your phone via SMS each time
                                                                                                 Yes
                                                                                                                    43.78%
these Trojans play like the real game. But     you do an online transaction. This means
                                               that just stealing a login password is no         I
                                                                                                 t was, but I
they also use a software trick known as the
                                               longer enough for criminals to raid your          downloaded
GingerBreak exploit to gain root access,
                                                                                                 an app and it is
install malicious code, and communicate        account. But malware on your phone, such
                                                                                                 sorted now           2.36%
with a remote website to download and          as the Zeus-based Andr/Zitmo (and similar
                                               versions targeting BlackBerry) are capable        No—I rarely/never
                                                                                                 
install additional malware. This allows
                                               of intercepting those SMS messages.               received an SMS
these Trojans to avoid detection and
                                                                                                 text spam on my
removal, while recruiting the device into      Consider the following hypothetical scenario.     phone             45.29%
a global botnet.                               Through a conventional phishing attack, a
                                                                                                           Based on 552 votes
                                               victim gives criminals sufficient information
                                                                                                        Source: Naked Security
                                               to allow them to sign in to your mobile
                                               banking account and also port your phone
                                               number (this has happened). They can now
                                               log in to your online bank account while also
                                               receiving an SMS containing the second-factor
                                               authentication token needed to complete
                                               a transaction.
                                               Through the use of a malicious Android app
                                               that harvests SMS messages in real time
                                               and in concert with a social engineering
                                               attack, attackers open a brief window of
                                               opportunity to steal this token and use it
                                               before you can stop them.




Security Threat Report 2013                                                                                                15
Android: Today’s biggest target




PUAs: Not quite malware, but still risky                        Mitigating the risks while they’re still
                                                                manageable
It’s worth mentioning the widespread presence of potentially
unwanted applications (PUA). PUAs are Android apps that
                                                                In most business environments, the risks from Android
may not strictly qualify as malware, but may nevertheless
                                                                are modest at this point. But those risks are growing. Even
introduce security or other risks.
                                                                as Google makes improvements that secure the platform
First, many users have installed apps that link to aggressive   against more obvious threats, new threats emerge. For
advertising networks, can track their devices and locations,    example, some security experts have recently expressed
and may even capture contact data. These apps earn              concern about risks from new near field communications
their profits simply by serving pornographic advertising.       (NFC) features intended to allow advanced Android devices
Many companies may wish to eliminate them due to the            to function like credit cards.
information they expose, or because they may have a duty
                                                                Even today, Android malware can place a company’s
of care to protect employees from inappropriate content
                                                                future at risk by exposing strategic information or stealing
and a potentially hostile work environment.
                                                                passwords. With this in mind, IT organizations should secure
Second, some sophisticated Android users have chosen            their Android devices against malware, data loss, and other
to install Andr/DrSheep-A on their own devices. Similar to      threats. We recommend the following steps to bring down
the well-known desktop tool Firesheep, Andr/DrSheep-A           the level of risk. Remember, none of these tips are foolproof
can sniff wireless traffic and intercept unencrypted cookies    or sufficient in isolation. But in most environments, they will
from sites like Facebook and Twitter. The legitimate use for    go a long way.
this tool is to test your own network. However, it is often
used to impersonate nearby users without their knowledge.       ÌÌ 	 xtend your IT security and acceptable use policies to
                                                                   E
We currently find Andr/DrSheep-A on 2.6% of the Android            Android devices, if you haven’t done so already.
devices protected by Sophos Mobile Security. Corporate IT
departments are unlikely to countenance the installation,       ÌÌ 	 efuse access to rooted Android devices.
                                                                   R
let alone the use, of such tools.
                                                                ÌÌ 	 onsider full device encryption to protect against data
                                                                   C
If you “root” your device, it means you enable software to         loss, and provide for remote wipe of lost or stolen devices.
acquire full Android administrator privileges. The name            If you choose to encrypt, make sure your solution can also
comes from the administrator account, known as “root”              encrypt optional SD cards that may contain sensitive data,
on UNIX-like operating systems such as Android. Rooting            even if those SD cards are formatted differently.
is popular because it allows you greater control over your
device—notably to remove unwanted software add-ons              ÌÌ 	 here possible, establish automated processes for
                                                                   W
included by your service provider, and to replace them with        updating Android devices to reflect security fixes. Keep
alternatives of your own choosing.                                 your Android devices up to date with the security patches
                                                                   provided by the manufacturer and by the vendors of any
Rooting bypasses the built-in Android security model that
                                                                   additional software you’ve intalled.
limits each app’s access to data from other apps. It’s easier
for malware to gain full privileges on rooted devices, and
                                                                ÌÌ 	 onsider restricting Android devices to apps from Google’s
                                                                   C
to avoid detection and removal. For the IT organization
                                                                   official Play Store. Malware has turned up in the Play
supporting BYOD network access, rooted Android devices
                                                                   Store, but much less frequently than in many of the other
increase risk.
                                                                   unregulated, unofficial app markets, notably those in
                                                                   Eastern Europe and Asia.




Security Threat Report 2013                                                                                                  16
ÌÌ 	 hen you authorize app stores, limit users to apps with
   W
   a positive history and a strong rating.                            Naked Security Survey
                                                                      What is the most important consideration when you install an
ÌÌ 	 void social engineering attacks, and help your colleagues
   A                                                                  app on your Android device?
   avoid them. This means carefully checking the permissions
   that an app requests when it’s installed. For example,               Reputation of
                                                                        
   if you can’t think of a specific credible reason why an              developer          43.78%
   app wants to send SMS messages, don’t let it. And pause              Popularity of
                                                                        
                                                                 35
   for a moment to consider whether you still want to install it.       application        28.65%

ÌÌ 	 inally, consider using an anti-malware and mobile
   F                                                                    C
                                                                         ost of app       13.24%
   device management solution on your Android devices. We               Download
                                                                        
   recommend Sophos Mobile Control. But whatever solution               location           14.32%
   you choose, get it from a company that has extensive
   experience with both antivirus and broader security                                                      Based on 370 respondents
   challenges. Why? First, because attack techniques are                                                       Source: Naked Security
   beginning to migrate to Android from other platforms.
   Your solution provider should already know how to
   handle these. Second, because attacks are emerging and
   mutating more rapidly. Your provider should have the 24/7
   global infrastructure to identify threats, and the
   cloud-based infrastructure to respond immediately.
   Third, and most importantly, because today’s complex
   infrastructures require an integrated mobile security
   response that goes beyond antivirus alone to encompass
   multiple issues, ranging from networking to encryption.




Security Threat Report 2013                                                                                                       17
Diverse platforms and
technologies widen
opportunities for attack
Once, almost everyone ran Windows.
Attackers attacked Windows. Defenders defended
Windows. Those days are gone.

In 2012 we saw plenty of Windows-specific holes and vulnerabilities. For instance,
the Windows Sidebar and Gadgets in Windows Vista and Windows 7 were revealed to be so
insecure that Microsoft immediately eliminated them, and gave customers tools to disable
them.
Windows Sidebar had hosted mini-programs (gadgets) such as news, stocks, and weather
reports. Together, these were Microsoft’s answer to Apple’s popular Dashboard and
Widgets. However, security researchers Mickey Shkatov and Toby Kohlenberg announced
that they could demonstrate multiple attack vectors against gadgets, show how to create
                                                            36
malicious gadgets, and identify flaws in published gadgets. Already planning a new
approach to these miniature applications in Windows 8, Microsoft dropped Sidebar and
Gadgets like a rock.
While most computer users still work with Windows, far more development now takes place
elsewhere—on the web and mobile platforms. This means companies and individual users
must worry about security risks in new and untraditional environments such as Android.




Security Threat Report 2013                                                                18
Here is a sampling of security breaches in        Ransomware returns for an
2012, offering a taste of what we all must                                                         Naked Security Survey
deal with—and why our defenses must               encore                                           Which web browser do you
become increasingly layered, proactive and                                                         recommend?
comprehensive.                                    Certain attacks seem cyclical. Even when
                                                  defeated for years, they’re too easy and
ÌÌ 	n February 2012, a hacker identified
   I                                              tempting for cybercriminals to abandon
   cross-site scripting (XSS) holes in 25 UK      forever. For example, in 2012, Sophos saw a
   online stores that had been certified as       resurgence in ransomware attacks that lock
                                           37
   safe by VeriSign, Visa, or MasterCard.         users out of their computers, and demand
   Criminals can exploit XSS flaws to steal       payment to restore access.
   authentication credentials or customer
   billing information, placing customers at      Ransomware is far from new. Way back in
   risk of identity theft. The holes arose from   1989, primitive ransomware was distributed
   a common source: a poorly written script       on floppy disks by postal mail. Users
                                                  were promised advanced software to advise          Internet Explorer
                                                                                                                         5.95%
   for filtering user searches. It’s another
   reminder to users that security isn’t just a   them about HIV/AIDS, but instead found             Chrome
                                                                                                                         28.9%
   matter of words and icons. Simply seeing       their hard drives scrambled. Users were
                                                                                                     Firefox
                                                                                                                        23.09%
   https://, a padlock, or a VeriSign Trusted     told to pay $189 to an address in Panama
   logo doesn’t mean you can get careless         via bankers draft, cashier’s check, or             Safari
                                                                                                                         3.25%
                                                                             40
   online. And it’s a huge reminder to web        international money order.                         Opera
                                                                                                                        36.75%
   professionals to keep all their applications   Today’s ransomware arrives via more modern         No preference
                                                                                                                         2.06%
   and scripts up to date, including scripts      techniques, such as social engineered
   made publicly available by other authors.                                                             Based on 370 respondents
                                                  email and poisoned webpages. One sort
                                                                                                            Source: Naked Security
                                                  of ransomware merely freezes your PC
ÌÌ Thousands of self-hosted WordPress sites
   	                                              and asks for money. This leaves your
   were hosting the dangerous Blackhole           underlying files intact. Although an infection
                    38
   malware attack. In August 2012, Sophos         is disruptive, it can usually be repaired. The
   discovered a major malware campaign            other sort of ransomware scrambles your
   which attempts to infect computers             files, so it is as catastrophic as losing your
   using the notorious Blackhole exploit          laptop altogether or suffering a complete
   kit. Users receive “order verification”        disk failure.
   emails containing links to legitimate
   WordPress blogs that have been poisoned        As of this writing, the most widespread
   to download malware. Users of the hosted       ransomware is of the first type. Reveton,
   WordPress.com service aren’t vulnerable:       for example, also known as Citadel or
   the service provider, Automattic, looks        Troj/Ransom, hides the Windows desktop,
   after the security of the WordPress.com        locks you out of all programs, and displays
   servers for them.                              a full screen window with an FBI (or other
                                                  national police) logo. You see an urgent
ÌÌ 	 ackers have been demonstrating at least
   H                                              claim that illegally downloaded copyrighted
   theoretical attacks against everything         material has been found on your computer,
   from transit fare cards to the newest          and that you must pay a fine (typically $200)
   near field communication (NFC)                 to restore access.
                        39
   enabled smartphones.



Security Threat Report 2013                                                                                                    19
Diverse platforms and technologies widen opportunities for attack




This attack can be defeated by rebooting         In nearly every case, updated antivirus
to an antivirus tool that contains its own       software can prevent ransomware from            Learn more about
operating system, bypassing Windows (for         installing and running on your computer.        ransomware
example, Sophos Bootable Anti-Virus).            But if you’ve left your computer unprotected    	
Once this tool is running, users can scan        and you get hit by encryption-based
their systems, remove the infection, and         ransomware, it’s probably too late. Some        	  Top 5 Myths of Safe
restore their systems.
                       41
                                                 ransomware encryptions can be reversed          Web Browsing
                                                 (Sophos has free tools which may be able
Unfortunately, we’ve also seen growing
                                                 to help), but only if the criminals have made
numbers of infections that fully encrypt                                                         	   Director of Technology
                                                 cryptographic mistakes. There may be no
users’ hard drives using strong encryption,                                                      Strategy, James Lyne,
                                                 cure, so prevention is always better.
and securely forward the only key to the                                                         explains ransomware
attackers. In July 2012, we saw a variant
that threatened to contact police with a
“special password” that would reveal child
                                            42
pornographic files on the victim’s computer.




Security Threat Report 2013                                                                                               20
OS X and the Mac:
More users,
emerging risks
Featuring research by SophosLabs

Most malware developers have found it more profitable
to attack Windows than to learn new skills needed to
target the smaller OS X user community. But Macs are
finding a new home in thousands of businesses and
government agencies, and malware authors are paying
attention.

Forrester Research analyst Frank Gillette recently reported that “almost half of enterprises
(1,000 employees or more) are issuing Macs to at least some employees—and they plan a
                                                         43
52% increase in the number of Macs they issue in 2012.” Even more Macs are arriving
unofficially through bring your own device arrangements, where they are often an
executive’s device of choice for accessing web or cloud applications. Growing Mac
usage means many IT organizations must objectively assess, mitigate, and anticipate
Mac-related malware threats for the first time. And the risks are clearly increasing.




Security Threat Report 2013                                                                    21
OS X and the Mac: More users, emerging risks




Fake antivirus and Flashback:
Learning from Windows malware, gaining agility

In 2011, we saw a sustained attack on              Flashback first surfaced as a fake Adobe
Mac users by a malware family called               Flash installer late in 2011. In April 2012,
MacDefender. This malware, a fake antivirus,       Flashback began to install itself as a drive-by
was the first significant Mac attack to be         download, exploiting a Java vulnerability left
distributed via search result pages that           unpatched on OS X weeks after Microsoft
attracted users to legitimate sites that had       had provided a fix to Windows users. Apple
been poisoned with malware.                        ultimately patched OS X 10.7 and 10.6, but
                                                   not previous versions. At the infection’s
MacDefender is worth discussing today
                                                   peak, Sophos’ free Mac antivirus product
because it shows how Mac malware often
                                                   identified Flashback-related malware on
follows in the footsteps of older Windows
                                                   approximately 2.1% of the Macs it protected.
attacks. One sensible way to anticipate
the future of Mac malware is to see what’s         While both MacDefender and Flashback
happening now to Windows users. For                have been beaten back, they each show
instance, Mac admins might reasonably              Mac malware authors becoming more
expect new customized attacks relying on           agile. We’ve seen the authors changing the
server-side polymorphism.                          delivery mechanisms of existing malware
                                                   and pursuing new zero-day exploits.
Borrowing from MacDefender while applying
important innovations of their own, the
creators of the notorious Flashback botnet
(aka, OSX/Flshplyr) infected more than
600,000 Macs in the spring of 2012.




Mac OS X malware snapshot
In a typical week, SophosLabs detects 4,900 pieces of OS X malware on Mac computers.
This chart shows a snapshot of Mac malware detected in the week of August 1-6, 2012.


  
  OSX/FkCodec-A               26%   
                                    OSX/Flshplyer-D        3.2%
  
  OSX/FakeAV-DWN 13.28%             
                                    OSX/FakeAV-A           2.8%
  
  OSX/FakeAVZp-C              13%   
                                    OSX/DnsCha-E           2.7%
  
  OSX/FakeAVDI-A          8.6%      
                                    OSX/RSplug-A           2.4%
  
  OSX/FakeAV-DPU          7.1%      
                                    OSX/Flshplyr-E         2.4%
  
  OSX/FakeAVDI-B          6.2%      
                                    OSX/FakeAV-FNV         2.3%
  
  OSX/SafExinj-B          4.1%      
                                    OSX/Jahlav-C           2.1%
  
  OSX/FakeAV-FFN          3.3%                                                  Source: SophosLabs




Security Threat Report 2013                                                                          22
Morcut/Crisis: More sophisticated and
                                                                 Learn more about
potentially more dangerous                                       emerging OS X risks
                                                                 	
Fake antivirus software typically makes money for
cybercriminals by convincing users to provide personal credit    	   Free tool: Sophos
card information for software they don’t need. For most          Anti-Virus for Mac
enterprises, the downside risks of fake antivirus have been
modest. But malware such as OSX/Morcut-A (aka Crisis),
                                                                 	  Andrew Ludgate of
first discovered in late July 2012, presents greater risks.
                                                                 SophosLabs explains Mac
Designed for spying, Morcut can remotely monitor                 malware
virtually every way a user communicates: mouse
coordinates, IM, Skype call data, location information,
the Mac’s webcam and microphone, clipboard contents,
keystrokes, running apps, web URLs, screenshots,
calendar and address book contents, alerts, device
information, and even file system metadata.
Morcut appears as a Java Archive file (JAR) claiming to be
digitally signed by VeriSign. If installed by the user, Morcut
deploys kernel driver components to hide and run without
                                  44
administrator’s authentication; a backdoor component
which opens the Mac to other network users; command and
control to accept remote instructions and adapt its behavior;
and, most importantly, code for stealing user data.
If Morcut spreads, it will represent a serious threat
to internal corporate security and compliance. Its
capabilities especially lend themselves to targeted attacks
aimed at capturing information about specific known Mac
users in pivotal organizational roles. In contrast to most
earlier Mac malware, it also reflects an extremely thorough
understanding of Mac programming techniques, capabilities,
and potential weaknesses.
Similar backdoor techniques are already appearing
elsewhere. For instance, we recently saw them embedded
in a kit for the first time. The kit, OSX/NetWrdRC-A, is
                                     45
primitive, flawed, and easily halted. But it’s a harbinger of
more sophisticated and dangerous attacks to come.




Security Threat Report 2013                                                                23
OS X and the Mac: More users, emerging risks




Windows malware hiding quietly on Macs                              Recent OS X security improvements and
                                                                    their limitations
Much of the malware found on Macs is Windows malware.
Traditionally, many Mac users have been indifferent about
                                                                    Mac OS X, originally built on BSD UNIX, has a strong security
this—they assume that it won’t damage their systems, and
                                                                    model. In 2009, with the release of OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard,
may not consider the harm to Windows-using colleagues
                                                                    Apple added limited malware scanning through the Launch
they might place at risk. But IT administrators running
                                                                    Services Quarantine (LSQuarantine) system and XProtect
cross-platform environments (or working with partners
                                                                    technology. In mid-2011, XProtect became a dynamic push
and customers who use Windows) are likely to see things
                                                                    update service with more power to detect and clean up files
differently. Moreover, the Windows partitions of dual-boot
                                                                    fingerprinted as malicious.
Macs can indeed be infected, as can virtualized Windows
sessions running under Parallels, VMware, VirtualBox, or            In mid-2012, with OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion, Apple introduced
even the open source WINE program.                                  Gatekeeper, which manages code execution permissions
                                                                    for code obtained through approved software. By default,
Mac users who need occasional access to a Windows
                                                                    Gatekeeper pre-authorizes all software signed with an
program sometimes decide to download it from third parties,
                                                                    official Apple developer key that has not been blocked due
and may illegally create a license key using a downloadable
                                                                    to previous abuse.
generator. By doing so, they often encounter malware
such as Mal/KeyGen-M, a family of trojanized license key            Gatekeeper is a significant and welcome improvement in
generators that we’ve identified on approximately 7% of the         Mac security, but it is only a partial solution. Software copied
Macs running Sophos Anti-Virus software.                            from USB, already on the computer, copied directly between
                                                                    computers, or transferred by non-standard file transfer
Another common source of Windows malware on Macs
                                                                    systems such as BitTorrent will evade it. Individual users
today is fake Windows Media movie or TV files. These files
                                                                    with administrator credentials can change Gatekeeper’s
contain auto-forwarding web links promising the codec
                                                                    default settings to allow unsigned apps to install without
needed to view the video, but deliver zero-day malware                         46
                                                                    any alert.
instead. Windows Media files generally won’t run on Macs,
but Mac users often torrent these files to improve their            Users or running processes can still strip the LSQuarantine
“ratios” on private tracker sites, without realizing the contents   flag from files. Unsigned programs can be authorized and
are malicious. Windows users then attempt to play the               launched simply by right-clicking on them in the Finder and
videos and become infected.                                         selecting Open, instead of just double-clicking on the icon.
                                                                    Versions of OS X older than 10.8 don’t include Gatekeeper.
                                                                    Finally, the runtime interpreters for Java, Flash, and OS
                                                                    X shell scripts are all pre-authorized by Apple. These
                                                                    interpreters are free to run whatever code they wish. Java
                                                                    and Flash have been major attack vectors on the Mac
                                                                    platform. This may gradually become less of a problem—the
                                                                    Mac version of Java was recently hardened, and Adobe Flash
                                                                    is gradually being replaced by HTML5.




Security Threat Report 2013                                                                                                      24
2013 Security Threat Report
2013 Security Threat Report
2013 Security Threat Report
2013 Security Threat Report
2013 Security Threat Report
2013 Security Threat Report
2013 Security Threat Report
2013 Security Threat Report
2013 Security Threat Report
2013 Security Threat Report
2013 Security Threat Report
2013 Security Threat Report
2013 Security Threat Report
2013 Security Threat Report
2013 Security Threat Report
2013 Security Threat Report

Contenu connexe

Tendances

Crystal tutorial
Crystal tutorialCrystal tutorial
Crystal tutorialnetshet
 
TUYEN TAP CAC CAU HOI TU LUAN THI VAO NGAN HANG
TUYEN TAP CAC CAU HOI TU LUAN THI VAO NGAN HANGTUYEN TAP CAC CAU HOI TU LUAN THI VAO NGAN HANG
TUYEN TAP CAC CAU HOI TU LUAN THI VAO NGAN HANGdinhnguyenvn
 
AltiGen Max Communicator Manual
AltiGen Max Communicator ManualAltiGen Max Communicator Manual
AltiGen Max Communicator ManualCTI Communications
 
IBM Ported Tools for z/OS: PHP for z/OS Feature User’s Guide and Reference
IBM Ported Tools for z/OS: PHP for z/OS Feature User’s Guide and ReferenceIBM Ported Tools for z/OS: PHP for z/OS Feature User’s Guide and Reference
IBM Ported Tools for z/OS: PHP for z/OS Feature User’s Guide and ReferenceIBM India Smarter Computing
 
Rapport stage ingenieur (2017)
Rapport stage ingenieur (2017)Rapport stage ingenieur (2017)
Rapport stage ingenieur (2017)Mohamed Boubaya
 
Ad Ch.1 8 (1)
Ad Ch.1 8 (1)Ad Ch.1 8 (1)
Ad Ch.1 8 (1)gopi1985
 
IBM Ported Tools for z/OS: Perl for z/OS Feature User's Guide and Reference
IBM Ported Tools for z/OS: Perl for z/OS Feature User's Guide and ReferenceIBM Ported Tools for z/OS: Perl for z/OS Feature User's Guide and Reference
IBM Ported Tools for z/OS: Perl for z/OS Feature User's Guide and ReferenceIBM India Smarter Computing
 
10 examples-of-social-media-command-centers
10 examples-of-social-media-command-centers10 examples-of-social-media-command-centers
10 examples-of-social-media-command-centersShamsher Khan
 
Kindsight security labs malware report - Q4 2013
Kindsight security labs malware report - Q4 2013Kindsight security labs malware report - Q4 2013
Kindsight security labs malware report - Q4 2013Bee_Ware
 
Win8 accessibility tutorials
Win8 accessibility tutorialsWin8 accessibility tutorials
Win8 accessibility tutorialsHeo Gòm
 
January 2011 IDVA Newsletter
January 2011 IDVA NewsletterJanuary 2011 IDVA Newsletter
January 2011 IDVA NewsletterIndyVSO
 
Windows_Server_2016_Virtualization White Paper By Veeam
Windows_Server_2016_Virtualization White Paper By VeeamWindows_Server_2016_Virtualization White Paper By Veeam
Windows_Server_2016_Virtualization White Paper By VeeamKesavan Munuswamy
 

Tendances (18)

Manual rational rose
Manual rational roseManual rational rose
Manual rational rose
 
Office 2010 e book
Office 2010   e bookOffice 2010   e book
Office 2010 e book
 
Win8 accessibility tutorials
Win8 accessibility tutorialsWin8 accessibility tutorials
Win8 accessibility tutorials
 
Std c notes_03
Std c notes_03Std c notes_03
Std c notes_03
 
Crystal tutorial
Crystal tutorialCrystal tutorial
Crystal tutorial
 
TUYEN TAP CAC CAU HOI TU LUAN THI VAO NGAN HANG
TUYEN TAP CAC CAU HOI TU LUAN THI VAO NGAN HANGTUYEN TAP CAC CAU HOI TU LUAN THI VAO NGAN HANG
TUYEN TAP CAC CAU HOI TU LUAN THI VAO NGAN HANG
 
AltiGen Max Communicator Manual
AltiGen Max Communicator ManualAltiGen Max Communicator Manual
AltiGen Max Communicator Manual
 
AcroJS
AcroJSAcroJS
AcroJS
 
AltiGen Max Agent Manual
AltiGen Max Agent  ManualAltiGen Max Agent  Manual
AltiGen Max Agent Manual
 
IBM Ported Tools for z/OS: PHP for z/OS Feature User’s Guide and Reference
IBM Ported Tools for z/OS: PHP for z/OS Feature User’s Guide and ReferenceIBM Ported Tools for z/OS: PHP for z/OS Feature User’s Guide and Reference
IBM Ported Tools for z/OS: PHP for z/OS Feature User’s Guide and Reference
 
Rapport stage ingenieur (2017)
Rapport stage ingenieur (2017)Rapport stage ingenieur (2017)
Rapport stage ingenieur (2017)
 
Ad Ch.1 8 (1)
Ad Ch.1 8 (1)Ad Ch.1 8 (1)
Ad Ch.1 8 (1)
 
IBM Ported Tools for z/OS: Perl for z/OS Feature User's Guide and Reference
IBM Ported Tools for z/OS: Perl for z/OS Feature User's Guide and ReferenceIBM Ported Tools for z/OS: Perl for z/OS Feature User's Guide and Reference
IBM Ported Tools for z/OS: Perl for z/OS Feature User's Guide and Reference
 
10 examples-of-social-media-command-centers
10 examples-of-social-media-command-centers10 examples-of-social-media-command-centers
10 examples-of-social-media-command-centers
 
Kindsight security labs malware report - Q4 2013
Kindsight security labs malware report - Q4 2013Kindsight security labs malware report - Q4 2013
Kindsight security labs malware report - Q4 2013
 
Win8 accessibility tutorials
Win8 accessibility tutorialsWin8 accessibility tutorials
Win8 accessibility tutorials
 
January 2011 IDVA Newsletter
January 2011 IDVA NewsletterJanuary 2011 IDVA Newsletter
January 2011 IDVA Newsletter
 
Windows_Server_2016_Virtualization White Paper By Veeam
Windows_Server_2016_Virtualization White Paper By VeeamWindows_Server_2016_Virtualization White Paper By Veeam
Windows_Server_2016_Virtualization White Paper By Veeam
 

En vedette

Complete Security
Complete SecurityComplete Security
Complete SecuritySophos
 
Get the Most From Your Firewall
Get the Most From Your FirewallGet the Most From Your Firewall
Get the Most From Your FirewallSophos
 
Your Money or Your File! Highway Robbery with Blackhole and Ransomware
Your Money or Your File! Highway Robbery with Blackhole and RansomwareYour Money or Your File! Highway Robbery with Blackhole and Ransomware
Your Money or Your File! Highway Robbery with Blackhole and RansomwareSophos
 
Unified Threat Management
Unified Threat ManagementUnified Threat Management
Unified Threat ManagementMilan Petrásek
 
The next generation of IT security
The next generation of IT securityThe next generation of IT security
The next generation of IT securitySophos Benelux
 
UTM - The Complete Security Box
UTM - The Complete Security BoxUTM - The Complete Security Box
UTM - The Complete Security BoxSophos
 
How to stay protected against ransomware
How to stay protected against ransomwareHow to stay protected against ransomware
How to stay protected against ransomwareSophos Benelux
 
Sophos Next-Generation Enduser Protection
Sophos Next-Generation Enduser ProtectionSophos Next-Generation Enduser Protection
Sophos Next-Generation Enduser ProtectionGiovanni Giovannelli
 
Sophos Wireless Protection Overview
Sophos Wireless Protection OverviewSophos Wireless Protection Overview
Sophos Wireless Protection OverviewSophos
 

En vedette (10)

Complete Security
Complete SecurityComplete Security
Complete Security
 
Get the Most From Your Firewall
Get the Most From Your FirewallGet the Most From Your Firewall
Get the Most From Your Firewall
 
Your Money or Your File! Highway Robbery with Blackhole and Ransomware
Your Money or Your File! Highway Robbery with Blackhole and RansomwareYour Money or Your File! Highway Robbery with Blackhole and Ransomware
Your Money or Your File! Highway Robbery with Blackhole and Ransomware
 
Unified Threat Management
Unified Threat ManagementUnified Threat Management
Unified Threat Management
 
The next generation of IT security
The next generation of IT securityThe next generation of IT security
The next generation of IT security
 
UTM - The Complete Security Box
UTM - The Complete Security BoxUTM - The Complete Security Box
UTM - The Complete Security Box
 
How to stay protected against ransomware
How to stay protected against ransomwareHow to stay protected against ransomware
How to stay protected against ransomware
 
Sophos Next-Generation Enduser Protection
Sophos Next-Generation Enduser ProtectionSophos Next-Generation Enduser Protection
Sophos Next-Generation Enduser Protection
 
Sophos Utm Presentation 2016
Sophos Utm Presentation 2016Sophos Utm Presentation 2016
Sophos Utm Presentation 2016
 
Sophos Wireless Protection Overview
Sophos Wireless Protection OverviewSophos Wireless Protection Overview
Sophos Wireless Protection Overview
 

Similaire à 2013 Security Threat Report

Engaged Web Report 2012 - New Zealand
Engaged Web Report 2012 - New ZealandEngaged Web Report 2012 - New Zealand
Engaged Web Report 2012 - New ZealandIntergen
 
Hello, android introducing google’s mobile development platform, 2nd editio...
Hello, android   introducing google’s mobile development platform, 2nd editio...Hello, android   introducing google’s mobile development platform, 2nd editio...
Hello, android introducing google’s mobile development platform, 2nd editio...Kwanzoo Dev
 
Ms Patch Man Ch8
Ms Patch Man Ch8Ms Patch Man Ch8
Ms Patch Man Ch8gopi1985
 
Creating andrCreating-Android-Applicationsoid-applications
Creating andrCreating-Android-Applicationsoid-applicationsCreating andrCreating-Android-Applicationsoid-applications
Creating andrCreating-Android-Applicationsoid-applicationsMarwoutta Dh
 
Benefits of Modern Cloud Data Lake Platform Qubole GCP - Whitepaper
Benefits of Modern Cloud Data Lake Platform Qubole GCP - WhitepaperBenefits of Modern Cloud Data Lake Platform Qubole GCP - Whitepaper
Benefits of Modern Cloud Data Lake Platform Qubole GCP - WhitepaperVasu S
 
Unstructured Data and the Enterprise
Unstructured Data and the EnterpriseUnstructured Data and the Enterprise
Unstructured Data and the EnterpriseDATAVERSITY
 
Tecnología para la acción climática en América Latina y el Caribe. Cómo las s...
Tecnología para la acción climática en América Latina y el Caribe. Cómo las s...Tecnología para la acción climática en América Latina y el Caribe. Cómo las s...
Tecnología para la acción climática en América Latina y el Caribe. Cómo las s...Digital Policy and Law Consulting
 
Harnessing io t-global-development
Harnessing io t-global-developmentHarnessing io t-global-development
Harnessing io t-global-developmentFerruh Altun
 
Nominum 2017 Spring Data Revelations Security Report
Nominum 2017 Spring Data Revelations Security ReportNominum 2017 Spring Data Revelations Security Report
Nominum 2017 Spring Data Revelations Security ReportYuriy Yuzifovich
 
Motive_Security_Labs_Malware_Report_1H2015
Motive_Security_Labs_Malware_Report_1H2015Motive_Security_Labs_Malware_Report_1H2015
Motive_Security_Labs_Malware_Report_1H2015Gordon Henderson
 
Product Guide High Resolution
Product Guide High ResolutionProduct Guide High Resolution
Product Guide High Resolutionguest8e63a0
 
Product Guide High Resolution
Product Guide High ResolutionProduct Guide High Resolution
Product Guide High Resolutioncmurtagh
 
My thesis-on-sony-computer-entertainment-inc
My thesis-on-sony-computer-entertainment-incMy thesis-on-sony-computer-entertainment-inc
My thesis-on-sony-computer-entertainment-incRavi Rock
 

Similaire à 2013 Security Threat Report (20)

Manual Civil 3d Ingles
Manual Civil 3d InglesManual Civil 3d Ingles
Manual Civil 3d Ingles
 
Engaged Web Report 2012 - New Zealand
Engaged Web Report 2012 - New ZealandEngaged Web Report 2012 - New Zealand
Engaged Web Report 2012 - New Zealand
 
Hello, android introducing google’s mobile development platform, 2nd editio...
Hello, android   introducing google’s mobile development platform, 2nd editio...Hello, android   introducing google’s mobile development platform, 2nd editio...
Hello, android introducing google’s mobile development platform, 2nd editio...
 
Media kit2013
Media kit2013Media kit2013
Media kit2013
 
Media Kit
Media KitMedia Kit
Media Kit
 
Ms Patch Man Ch8
Ms Patch Man Ch8Ms Patch Man Ch8
Ms Patch Man Ch8
 
Creating andrCreating-Android-Applicationsoid-applications
Creating andrCreating-Android-Applicationsoid-applicationsCreating andrCreating-Android-Applicationsoid-applications
Creating andrCreating-Android-Applicationsoid-applications
 
Ftk 1.80 manual
Ftk 1.80 manualFtk 1.80 manual
Ftk 1.80 manual
 
Microsoft Office 2010.pdf
Microsoft Office 2010.pdfMicrosoft Office 2010.pdf
Microsoft Office 2010.pdf
 
Benefits of Modern Cloud Data Lake Platform Qubole GCP - Whitepaper
Benefits of Modern Cloud Data Lake Platform Qubole GCP - WhitepaperBenefits of Modern Cloud Data Lake Platform Qubole GCP - Whitepaper
Benefits of Modern Cloud Data Lake Platform Qubole GCP - Whitepaper
 
User Guide
User GuideUser Guide
User Guide
 
Unstructured Data and the Enterprise
Unstructured Data and the EnterpriseUnstructured Data and the Enterprise
Unstructured Data and the Enterprise
 
Tecnología para la acción climática en América Latina y el Caribe. Cómo las s...
Tecnología para la acción climática en América Latina y el Caribe. Cómo las s...Tecnología para la acción climática en América Latina y el Caribe. Cómo las s...
Tecnología para la acción climática en América Latina y el Caribe. Cómo las s...
 
Navigating International Meetings: A pocketbook guide to effective youth part...
Navigating International Meetings: A pocketbook guide to effective youth part...Navigating International Meetings: A pocketbook guide to effective youth part...
Navigating International Meetings: A pocketbook guide to effective youth part...
 
Harnessing io t-global-development
Harnessing io t-global-developmentHarnessing io t-global-development
Harnessing io t-global-development
 
Nominum 2017 Spring Data Revelations Security Report
Nominum 2017 Spring Data Revelations Security ReportNominum 2017 Spring Data Revelations Security Report
Nominum 2017 Spring Data Revelations Security Report
 
Motive_Security_Labs_Malware_Report_1H2015
Motive_Security_Labs_Malware_Report_1H2015Motive_Security_Labs_Malware_Report_1H2015
Motive_Security_Labs_Malware_Report_1H2015
 
Product Guide High Resolution
Product Guide High ResolutionProduct Guide High Resolution
Product Guide High Resolution
 
Product Guide High Resolution
Product Guide High ResolutionProduct Guide High Resolution
Product Guide High Resolution
 
My thesis-on-sony-computer-entertainment-inc
My thesis-on-sony-computer-entertainment-incMy thesis-on-sony-computer-entertainment-inc
My thesis-on-sony-computer-entertainment-inc
 

Plus de Sophos

2013 Security Threat Report Presentation
2013 Security Threat Report Presentation2013 Security Threat Report Presentation
2013 Security Threat Report PresentationSophos
 
Sophos EndUser Protection
Sophos EndUser ProtectionSophos EndUser Protection
Sophos EndUser ProtectionSophos
 
4 Steps to Optimal Endpoint Settings
4 Steps to Optimal Endpoint Settings4 Steps to Optimal Endpoint Settings
4 Steps to Optimal Endpoint SettingsSophos
 
Preparing Your School for BYOD with Sophos UTM Wireless Protection
Preparing Your School for BYOD with Sophos UTM Wireless ProtectionPreparing Your School for BYOD with Sophos UTM Wireless Protection
Preparing Your School for BYOD with Sophos UTM Wireless ProtectionSophos
 
Is Your Network Ready for BYOD?
Is Your Network Ready for BYOD?Is Your Network Ready for BYOD?
Is Your Network Ready for BYOD?Sophos
 
8 Threats Your Anti-Virus Won't Stop
8 Threats Your Anti-Virus Won't Stop8 Threats Your Anti-Virus Won't Stop
8 Threats Your Anti-Virus Won't StopSophos
 
When Malware Goes Mobile
When Malware Goes MobileWhen Malware Goes Mobile
When Malware Goes MobileSophos
 
Exposing the Money Behind Malware
Exposing the Money Behind MalwareExposing the Money Behind Malware
Exposing the Money Behind MalwareSophos
 
BYOD - Protecting Your School
BYOD - Protecting Your SchoolBYOD - Protecting Your School
BYOD - Protecting Your SchoolSophos
 
Endpoint Protection
Endpoint ProtectionEndpoint Protection
Endpoint ProtectionSophos
 
Sophos Mobile Control - Product Overview
Sophos Mobile Control - Product OverviewSophos Mobile Control - Product Overview
Sophos Mobile Control - Product OverviewSophos
 
IT Security DOs und DON’Ts (Italian)
IT Security DOs und DON’Ts (Italian)IT Security DOs und DON’Ts (Italian)
IT Security DOs und DON’Ts (Italian)Sophos
 
IT Security DOs and DON'Ts
IT Security DOs and DON'Ts IT Security DOs and DON'Ts
IT Security DOs and DON'Ts Sophos
 

Plus de Sophos (13)

2013 Security Threat Report Presentation
2013 Security Threat Report Presentation2013 Security Threat Report Presentation
2013 Security Threat Report Presentation
 
Sophos EndUser Protection
Sophos EndUser ProtectionSophos EndUser Protection
Sophos EndUser Protection
 
4 Steps to Optimal Endpoint Settings
4 Steps to Optimal Endpoint Settings4 Steps to Optimal Endpoint Settings
4 Steps to Optimal Endpoint Settings
 
Preparing Your School for BYOD with Sophos UTM Wireless Protection
Preparing Your School for BYOD with Sophos UTM Wireless ProtectionPreparing Your School for BYOD with Sophos UTM Wireless Protection
Preparing Your School for BYOD with Sophos UTM Wireless Protection
 
Is Your Network Ready for BYOD?
Is Your Network Ready for BYOD?Is Your Network Ready for BYOD?
Is Your Network Ready for BYOD?
 
8 Threats Your Anti-Virus Won't Stop
8 Threats Your Anti-Virus Won't Stop8 Threats Your Anti-Virus Won't Stop
8 Threats Your Anti-Virus Won't Stop
 
When Malware Goes Mobile
When Malware Goes MobileWhen Malware Goes Mobile
When Malware Goes Mobile
 
Exposing the Money Behind Malware
Exposing the Money Behind MalwareExposing the Money Behind Malware
Exposing the Money Behind Malware
 
BYOD - Protecting Your School
BYOD - Protecting Your SchoolBYOD - Protecting Your School
BYOD - Protecting Your School
 
Endpoint Protection
Endpoint ProtectionEndpoint Protection
Endpoint Protection
 
Sophos Mobile Control - Product Overview
Sophos Mobile Control - Product OverviewSophos Mobile Control - Product Overview
Sophos Mobile Control - Product Overview
 
IT Security DOs und DON’Ts (Italian)
IT Security DOs und DON’Ts (Italian)IT Security DOs und DON’Ts (Italian)
IT Security DOs und DON’Ts (Italian)
 
IT Security DOs and DON'Ts
IT Security DOs and DON'Ts IT Security DOs and DON'Ts
IT Security DOs and DON'Ts
 

Dernier

Transcript: New from BookNet Canada for 2024: BNC CataList - Tech Forum 2024
Transcript: New from BookNet Canada for 2024: BNC CataList - Tech Forum 2024Transcript: New from BookNet Canada for 2024: BNC CataList - Tech Forum 2024
Transcript: New from BookNet Canada for 2024: BNC CataList - Tech Forum 2024BookNet Canada
 
The Ultimate Guide to Choosing WordPress Pros and Cons
The Ultimate Guide to Choosing WordPress Pros and ConsThe Ultimate Guide to Choosing WordPress Pros and Cons
The Ultimate Guide to Choosing WordPress Pros and ConsPixlogix Infotech
 
Vertex AI Gemini Prompt Engineering Tips
Vertex AI Gemini Prompt Engineering TipsVertex AI Gemini Prompt Engineering Tips
Vertex AI Gemini Prompt Engineering TipsMiki Katsuragi
 
H2O.ai CEO/Founder: Sri Ambati Keynote at Wells Fargo Day
H2O.ai CEO/Founder: Sri Ambati Keynote at Wells Fargo DayH2O.ai CEO/Founder: Sri Ambati Keynote at Wells Fargo Day
H2O.ai CEO/Founder: Sri Ambati Keynote at Wells Fargo DaySri Ambati
 
TeamStation AI System Report LATAM IT Salaries 2024
TeamStation AI System Report LATAM IT Salaries 2024TeamStation AI System Report LATAM IT Salaries 2024
TeamStation AI System Report LATAM IT Salaries 2024Lonnie McRorey
 
Artificial intelligence in cctv survelliance.pptx
Artificial intelligence in cctv survelliance.pptxArtificial intelligence in cctv survelliance.pptx
Artificial intelligence in cctv survelliance.pptxhariprasad279825
 
Take control of your SAP testing with UiPath Test Suite
Take control of your SAP testing with UiPath Test SuiteTake control of your SAP testing with UiPath Test Suite
Take control of your SAP testing with UiPath Test SuiteDianaGray10
 
Designing IA for AI - Information Architecture Conference 2024
Designing IA for AI - Information Architecture Conference 2024Designing IA for AI - Information Architecture Conference 2024
Designing IA for AI - Information Architecture Conference 2024Enterprise Knowledge
 
DSPy a system for AI to Write Prompts and Do Fine Tuning
DSPy a system for AI to Write Prompts and Do Fine TuningDSPy a system for AI to Write Prompts and Do Fine Tuning
DSPy a system for AI to Write Prompts and Do Fine TuningLars Bell
 
Dev Dives: Streamline document processing with UiPath Studio Web
Dev Dives: Streamline document processing with UiPath Studio WebDev Dives: Streamline document processing with UiPath Studio Web
Dev Dives: Streamline document processing with UiPath Studio WebUiPathCommunity
 
Streamlining Python Development: A Guide to a Modern Project Setup
Streamlining Python Development: A Guide to a Modern Project SetupStreamlining Python Development: A Guide to a Modern Project Setup
Streamlining Python Development: A Guide to a Modern Project SetupFlorian Wilhelm
 
Developer Data Modeling Mistakes: From Postgres to NoSQL
Developer Data Modeling Mistakes: From Postgres to NoSQLDeveloper Data Modeling Mistakes: From Postgres to NoSQL
Developer Data Modeling Mistakes: From Postgres to NoSQLScyllaDB
 
What's New in Teams Calling, Meetings and Devices March 2024
What's New in Teams Calling, Meetings and Devices March 2024What's New in Teams Calling, Meetings and Devices March 2024
What's New in Teams Calling, Meetings and Devices March 2024Stephanie Beckett
 
"Debugging python applications inside k8s environment", Andrii Soldatenko
"Debugging python applications inside k8s environment", Andrii Soldatenko"Debugging python applications inside k8s environment", Andrii Soldatenko
"Debugging python applications inside k8s environment", Andrii SoldatenkoFwdays
 
Anypoint Exchange: It’s Not Just a Repo!
Anypoint Exchange: It’s Not Just a Repo!Anypoint Exchange: It’s Not Just a Repo!
Anypoint Exchange: It’s Not Just a Repo!Manik S Magar
 
Scanning the Internet for External Cloud Exposures via SSL Certs
Scanning the Internet for External Cloud Exposures via SSL CertsScanning the Internet for External Cloud Exposures via SSL Certs
Scanning the Internet for External Cloud Exposures via SSL CertsRizwan Syed
 
Advanced Test Driven-Development @ php[tek] 2024
Advanced Test Driven-Development @ php[tek] 2024Advanced Test Driven-Development @ php[tek] 2024
Advanced Test Driven-Development @ php[tek] 2024Scott Keck-Warren
 
Unleash Your Potential - Namagunga Girls Coding Club
Unleash Your Potential - Namagunga Girls Coding ClubUnleash Your Potential - Namagunga Girls Coding Club
Unleash Your Potential - Namagunga Girls Coding ClubKalema Edgar
 
SAP Build Work Zone - Overview L2-L3.pptx
SAP Build Work Zone - Overview L2-L3.pptxSAP Build Work Zone - Overview L2-L3.pptx
SAP Build Work Zone - Overview L2-L3.pptxNavinnSomaal
 
DevoxxFR 2024 Reproducible Builds with Apache Maven
DevoxxFR 2024 Reproducible Builds with Apache MavenDevoxxFR 2024 Reproducible Builds with Apache Maven
DevoxxFR 2024 Reproducible Builds with Apache MavenHervé Boutemy
 

Dernier (20)

Transcript: New from BookNet Canada for 2024: BNC CataList - Tech Forum 2024
Transcript: New from BookNet Canada for 2024: BNC CataList - Tech Forum 2024Transcript: New from BookNet Canada for 2024: BNC CataList - Tech Forum 2024
Transcript: New from BookNet Canada for 2024: BNC CataList - Tech Forum 2024
 
The Ultimate Guide to Choosing WordPress Pros and Cons
The Ultimate Guide to Choosing WordPress Pros and ConsThe Ultimate Guide to Choosing WordPress Pros and Cons
The Ultimate Guide to Choosing WordPress Pros and Cons
 
Vertex AI Gemini Prompt Engineering Tips
Vertex AI Gemini Prompt Engineering TipsVertex AI Gemini Prompt Engineering Tips
Vertex AI Gemini Prompt Engineering Tips
 
H2O.ai CEO/Founder: Sri Ambati Keynote at Wells Fargo Day
H2O.ai CEO/Founder: Sri Ambati Keynote at Wells Fargo DayH2O.ai CEO/Founder: Sri Ambati Keynote at Wells Fargo Day
H2O.ai CEO/Founder: Sri Ambati Keynote at Wells Fargo Day
 
TeamStation AI System Report LATAM IT Salaries 2024
TeamStation AI System Report LATAM IT Salaries 2024TeamStation AI System Report LATAM IT Salaries 2024
TeamStation AI System Report LATAM IT Salaries 2024
 
Artificial intelligence in cctv survelliance.pptx
Artificial intelligence in cctv survelliance.pptxArtificial intelligence in cctv survelliance.pptx
Artificial intelligence in cctv survelliance.pptx
 
Take control of your SAP testing with UiPath Test Suite
Take control of your SAP testing with UiPath Test SuiteTake control of your SAP testing with UiPath Test Suite
Take control of your SAP testing with UiPath Test Suite
 
Designing IA for AI - Information Architecture Conference 2024
Designing IA for AI - Information Architecture Conference 2024Designing IA for AI - Information Architecture Conference 2024
Designing IA for AI - Information Architecture Conference 2024
 
DSPy a system for AI to Write Prompts and Do Fine Tuning
DSPy a system for AI to Write Prompts and Do Fine TuningDSPy a system for AI to Write Prompts and Do Fine Tuning
DSPy a system for AI to Write Prompts and Do Fine Tuning
 
Dev Dives: Streamline document processing with UiPath Studio Web
Dev Dives: Streamline document processing with UiPath Studio WebDev Dives: Streamline document processing with UiPath Studio Web
Dev Dives: Streamline document processing with UiPath Studio Web
 
Streamlining Python Development: A Guide to a Modern Project Setup
Streamlining Python Development: A Guide to a Modern Project SetupStreamlining Python Development: A Guide to a Modern Project Setup
Streamlining Python Development: A Guide to a Modern Project Setup
 
Developer Data Modeling Mistakes: From Postgres to NoSQL
Developer Data Modeling Mistakes: From Postgres to NoSQLDeveloper Data Modeling Mistakes: From Postgres to NoSQL
Developer Data Modeling Mistakes: From Postgres to NoSQL
 
What's New in Teams Calling, Meetings and Devices March 2024
What's New in Teams Calling, Meetings and Devices March 2024What's New in Teams Calling, Meetings and Devices March 2024
What's New in Teams Calling, Meetings and Devices March 2024
 
"Debugging python applications inside k8s environment", Andrii Soldatenko
"Debugging python applications inside k8s environment", Andrii Soldatenko"Debugging python applications inside k8s environment", Andrii Soldatenko
"Debugging python applications inside k8s environment", Andrii Soldatenko
 
Anypoint Exchange: It’s Not Just a Repo!
Anypoint Exchange: It’s Not Just a Repo!Anypoint Exchange: It’s Not Just a Repo!
Anypoint Exchange: It’s Not Just a Repo!
 
Scanning the Internet for External Cloud Exposures via SSL Certs
Scanning the Internet for External Cloud Exposures via SSL CertsScanning the Internet for External Cloud Exposures via SSL Certs
Scanning the Internet for External Cloud Exposures via SSL Certs
 
Advanced Test Driven-Development @ php[tek] 2024
Advanced Test Driven-Development @ php[tek] 2024Advanced Test Driven-Development @ php[tek] 2024
Advanced Test Driven-Development @ php[tek] 2024
 
Unleash Your Potential - Namagunga Girls Coding Club
Unleash Your Potential - Namagunga Girls Coding ClubUnleash Your Potential - Namagunga Girls Coding Club
Unleash Your Potential - Namagunga Girls Coding Club
 
SAP Build Work Zone - Overview L2-L3.pptx
SAP Build Work Zone - Overview L2-L3.pptxSAP Build Work Zone - Overview L2-L3.pptx
SAP Build Work Zone - Overview L2-L3.pptx
 
DevoxxFR 2024 Reproducible Builds with Apache Maven
DevoxxFR 2024 Reproducible Builds with Apache MavenDevoxxFR 2024 Reproducible Builds with Apache Maven
DevoxxFR 2024 Reproducible Builds with Apache Maven
 

2013 Security Threat Report

  • 1. Security Threat Report 2013 New Platforms and Changing Threats
  • 2. Table of contents Graphics Foreword. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Survey: Email education . . . . . . . . 3 2012 in review: Blackhole. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 New platforms and changing threats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Countries hosting Blackhole . . . . . . 9 Widening attacks related to Facebook and other Survey: Smartphone spam. . . . . . 15 social media platforms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Survey: Android app consideration. 17 Emerging risks to cloud services. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Survey: Web browser. . . . . . . . . 19 Mac OS X malware snapshot. . . . . 22 Blackhole: Today’s malware market leader. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Top 12 spam producing countries. . 27 Four stages of the Blackhole life cycle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Spam sources by continent. . . . . . 27 What we’re doing about Blackhole, and what you can do. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Threat exposure rate . . . . . . . . . 29 Java attacks reach critical mass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 So, what can you learn from data loss—beyond that you don’t want it to happen to you?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Videos Android: Social engineering explained. . . . . . 3 Today’s biggest target. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Cloud storage and BYOD . . . . . . . . 4 Unsophisticated, but profitable: Introducing SophosLabs. . . . . . . . .8 Fake software, unauthorized SMS messages. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Blackhole. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Joining the botnet. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Android malware. . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Capturing your messages and your bank account. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Ransomware. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 PUAs: Not quite malware, but still risky. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Mac malware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Mitigating the risks while they’re still manageable. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Long tail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Diverse platforms and technologies widen opportunities for attack. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Ransomware returns for an encore . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Security Threat Report 2013
  • 3. OS X and the Mac: More users, emerging risks . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Fake antivirus and Flashback: Learning from Windows malware, gaining agility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 . . Morcut/Crisis: More sophisticated and potentially more dangerous. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Windows malware hiding quietly on Macs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Recent OS X security improvements and their limitations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Implementing a comprehensive Mac anti-malware solution. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Authorities make high-profile malware arrests and takedowns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Growth of dangerous targeted attacks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Polymorphic and targeted attacks: The long tail . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Polymorphism: Not new, but more troublesome. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Countering server-side polymorphism. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Targeted attacks: narrow, focused and dangerous . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Defense-in-depth against SSP. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Complete security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 Explore your two paths to complete security with Sophos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 What to expect in 2013 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 The last word. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Sources. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Adware Adware is software that displays advertisements on your computer Security Threat Report 2013
  • 5. Foreword Reflecting on a very busy year for cyber security, I would like to highlight some key observations for 2012. No doubt, the increasing mobility of data in corporate environments is one of the biggest challenges we faced in the past year. Users are fully embracing the power to access data from anywhere. The rapid adoption of bring your own device (BYOD) and cloud are really accelerating this trend, and providing new vectors of attack. Another trend we are seeing is the changing nature of the endpoint device, transforming organizations from a traditional homogeneous world of Windows systems to an environment of diverse platforms. Modern malware is effective at attacking new platforms and we are seeing rapid growth of malware targeting mobile devices. While malware for Android was just a lab example a few years ago, it has become a serious and growing threat. BYOD is a rapidly evolving trend, and many of our customers and users actively embrace this trend. Employees are looking to use their smartphone, tablet, or next generation notebook to connect to corporate networks. That means IT departments are being asked to secure sensitive data on devices they have very little control over. BYOD can be a win-win for users and employers, but the security challenges are real while boundaries between business and private use are blurring. It raises questions on who owns, manages and secures devices and the data on them. Finally, the web remains the dominant source of distribution for malware—in particular, malware using social engineering or targeting the browser and associated applications with exploits. For example, malware kits like Blackhole are a potent cocktail of a dozen or more exploits that target the tiniest security holes and take advantage of missing patches. Cybercriminals tend to focus where the weak spots are and use a technique until it becomes less effective, and then move on to the next frontier. Security is at the heart of this revolution of BYOD and cloud. Protecting data in a world where systems are changing rapidly, and information flows freely, requires a coordinated ecosystem of security technologies at the endpoint, gateway, mobile devices and in the cloud. IT security is evolving from a device-centric to a user-centric view, and the security requirements are many. A modern security strategy must focus on all the key components—enforcement of use policies, data encryption, secure access to corporate networks, productivity and content filtering, vulnerability and patch management, and of course threat and malware protection. Best wishes, Gerhard Eschelbeck CTO, Sophos Security Threat Report 2013 1
  • 6. 2012 in review: New platforms and changing threats In 2012, we saw attackers extend their reach to more platforms, from social networks and cloud services to Android mobile devices. We saw them respond to new security research findings more rapidly, and leverage zero-day exploits more effectively. In the past year the most sophisticated malware authors upped the stakes with new business models and software paradigms to build more dangerous and sustained attacks. For instance, the creators of Blackhole, an underground malware toolkit delivered through Software-as-a-Service rental arrangements (aka crime packs), announced a new version. They acknowledged the success of antivirus companies in thwarting their activities, and promised to raise their game in 2012. Private cybercriminals were apparently joined by state-based actors and allies capable of delivering advanced attacks against strategic targets. We saw reports of malware attacks against energy sector infrastructure throughout the Middle East, major distributed denial-of-service attacks against global banks, and targeted spearphishing attacks against key facilities. More conventionally, attackers continued to target thousands of badly-configured websites and databases to expose passwords and deliver malware—yet again demonstrating the need for increased vigilance in applying security updates and reducing attack surfaces. Meanwhile, a new generation of victims found themselves on the wrong end of payment demands from cybercriminals, as social engineering attacks such as fake antivirus and ransomware continued unabated. Security Threat Report 2013 2
  • 7. In the wake of these growing risks, 2012 also Widening attacks related to saw good news. This year, IT organizations Learn more about and other defenders increasingly recognized Facebook and other attacks related to the importance of layered defenses. Many social media platforms social media platforms organizations began to address the security challenges of smartphones, tablets, and Throughout 2012, hundreds of millions of bring your own device (BYOD) programs. Four Data Threats in a users flocked to social networks—and so Enterprises moved to reduce their exposure Post-PC World did attackers. They built creative new social to vulnerabilities in platforms such as Java engineering attacks based on key user and Flash; and to demand faster fixes from concerns such as widespread skepticism their platform and software suppliers. 2 Beth Jones of about Facebook’s new Timeline interface, SophosLabs explains social Not least, law enforcement authorities or users’ natural worries about newly posted engineering achieved significant victories against images of themselves. Attackers also malware networks—including the arrest moved beyond Facebook to attack maturing of a Russian cybercriminal charged with platforms such as Twitter, and fast-growing infecting 4.5 million computers with the services such as the Pinterest social content Naked Security Survey goal of compromising bank accounts; and sharing network. Should businesses fool the sentencing in Armenia of the individual employees into opening In September 2012, Sophos reported responsible for the massive Bredolab botnet. inappropriate emails with the the widespread delivery of Twitter direct aim of education? Yet another good sign: Microsoft’s aggressive messages (DMs) from newly-compromised lawsuit against a China-based Dynamic DNS accounts. Purportedly from online friends, service that enabled widespread cyber crime, 1 these DMs claim you have been captured including operation of the Nitol botnet . The in a video that has just been posted on lawsuit’s filing and settlement demonstrated Facebook. If you click the link in the DM, those who facilitate cyber crime can be held you’re taken to a website telling you to as accountable as the criminals themselves. upgrade your “YouTube player” to view In 2013, as computing increasingly shifts to the video. If you go any further, you’ll be virtualized cloud services and mobile infected with the Troj/Mdrop-EML 3 platforms, attackers will follow, just as they backdoor Trojan. always have. This means IT organizations September also saw the first widespread and users will need to ask tough new Yes 85.21% account takeovers on Pinterest. These questions of their IT service providers and attacks spilled image spam onto other No 14.79% partners; become more systematic about social networks such as Twitter and Based on 933 respondents voting protecting diverse devices and network Facebook. Victimized users who had linked Source: Naked Security infrastructure; and become more agile about their Pinterest accounts to these networks responding to new threats. We’ll be there to found themselves blasting out tweets help—every minute of every day. and wall posts encouraging their friends to participate in disreputable work-at-home 4 schemes. Security Threat Report 2013 3
  • 8. 2012 in review: New platforms and changing threats With 1 billion users, Facebook remains the Emerging risks to cloud number one social network—and hence, the Learn more about top target. In April, Sophos teamed with services cloud services Facebook and other security vendors to help improve Facebook’s resistance to malware. In 2012, the financial and management Facebook now draws on our massive, up-to- advantages of cloud services attracted many Adopting Cloud the-minute lists of malicious links and scam IT organizations. In addition to expanding Services With Persistent sites to reduce the risk that it will send its their reliance on hosted enterprise software Encryption 5 users into danger. Of course, this is only one and more informal services such as the component of the solution. Researchers at Dropbox storage site, companies have also Sophos and elsewhere are working to find Fixing Your Dropbox begun investing more heavily in private new approaches to protecting users against Problem clouds built with virtualization technology. social network attacks. This move raises more questions about what For example, Dark Reading reported that cloud users can and should do to keep the CTO Gerhard computer scientists at the University organization secure and compliant. Eschelbeck explains cloud of California, Riverside have created an Cloud security drew attention in 2012 with storage and BYOD experimental Facebook app that is claimed Dropbox’s admission that usernames and to accurately identify 97% of social malware passwords stolen from other websites had 6 and scams in users’ news feeds. Innovations been used to sign into a small number of such as social authentication—in which its accounts. A Dropbox employee had used Facebook shows you photos of your friends, the same password for all his accounts, and asks you to identify them, something including his work account with access to that many hackers presumably can’t sensitive data. When that password was 7 do—may also prove helpful. stolen elsewhere, the attacker discovered that it could be used against Dropbox. This was a powerful reminder that users should rely on different passwords for each secure site and service. Dropbox is no stranger to cloud authentication problems, having accidentally removed all password protection from all its users’ files 8 in 2011 for nearly four hours. Also, VentureBeat reported that the company’s iOS app was storing user login credentials in unencrypted text files—where they would be visible to anyone who had physical access to the phone. Security Threat Report 2013 4
  • 9. Dropbox has since improved security ÌÌ Can you prevent snapshotting of virtual by introducing optional two-factor servers that capture current operating 9 authentication, but its problems raise memory images—including all working broader issues. In May 2012, the Fraunhofer encryption keys? Some experts, such as Institute for Secure Information Technology Mel Beckman or System iNEWS, believe reported on vulnerabilities associated with this rules the public cloud off-limits in registration, login, encryption, and shared environments where legal compliance 10 data access on seven cloud storage sites. requires physical control of hardware, 13 e.g., HIPAA. It’s worth noting that Dropbox and some other sites already encrypt data in storage It’s a cloudy world, but when and if you and transit, but this only protects data that decide to use cloud services, the following has not been accessed using a legitimate three steps can help you protect your data: user ID and password. Data stored on public 1. Apply web-based policies using URL cloud systems is subject to the surveillance filtering, controlling access to public cloud and interception laws of any of the jurisdictions storage websites and preventing users in which those cloud systems have servers. from browsing to sites you’ve declared Dropbox’s difficulties have called greater off-limits. attention to cloud security in general. With 2. Use application controls to block or allow public cloud services and infrastructure particular applications, either for the beyond the control of the IT organization, entire company or for specific groups. how should companies approach security and compliance? Two-factor (or multi-factor) 3. Automatically encrypt files before they authentication is a must. But is it enough? are uploaded to the cloud from any Consider issues such as these: managed endpoint. An encryption solution allows users to choose their preferred ÌÌ How will you manage “information cloud storage services, because the files leakage”? Specifically, how do you know if are always encrypted and the keys are malicious insiders are forwarding sensitive always your own. And because encryption information to themselves, where it will takes place on the client before any data 11 remain available even if they’re fired? is synchronized, you have full control of the safety of your data. You won’t have to ÌÌ How are you vetting suppliers and worry if the security of your cloud the administrators who operate their storage provider is breached. Central keys systems? Are you applying the same give authorized users or groups access strict standards and contractual to files and keep these files encrypted for requirements you demand from other everyone else. Should your web key go business-critical partners who see missing for some reason—maybe the user 12 confidential or strategic data? simply forgot the password—the security officer inside the enterprise would have access to the keys in order to make sure the correct people have access to that file. Security Threat Report 2013 5
  • 10. Blackhole: Today’s malware market leader Featuring research by SophosLabs A close inspection of Blackhole reveals just how sophisticated malware authors have become. Blackhole is now the world’s most popular and notorious malware exploit kit. It combines remarkable technical dexterity with a business model that could have come straight from a Harvard Business School MBA case study. And, barring a takedown by law enforcement, security vendors and IT organizations are likely to be battling it for years to come. An exploit kit is a pre-packaged software tool that can be used on a malicious web server to sneak malware onto your computers without you realizing it. By identifying and making use of vulnerabilities (bugs or security holes) in software running on your computer, an exploit kit can automatically pull off what’s called a drive-by install. This is where the content of a web page tricks software—such as your browser, PDF reader or other online content viewer—into downloading and running malware silently, without producing any of the warnings or dialogs you would usually expect. Like other exploit kits, Blackhole can be used to deliver a wide variety of payloads. Its authors profit by delivering payloads for others, and they have delivered everything from fake antivirus and ransomware to Zeus and the infamous TDSS and ZeroAccess rootkits. Blackhole can attack Windows, OS X, and Linux. It is an equal- opportunity victimizer. Security Threat Report 2013 6
  • 11. Between October 2011 and March 2012, Four stages of the Blackhole nearly 30% of the threats detected by Blackhole represents SophosLabs either came from Blackhole life cycle 27% of exploit sites directly, or were redirects to Blackhole and redirects kits from compromised legitimate sites. 1. ending users to a Blackhole S Blackhole is distinguished not only by its In 2012 more than 80% of exploit site success, but by its Software-as-a-Service the threats we saw were rental model, similar to much of today’s The attackers hack into legitimate redirects, mostly from websites and add malicious content legitimate sites that have cloud-based software. Weekly rental rates (usually snippets of JavaScript) that been hacked. A powerful are specified (in Russian) right in the kit’s generate links to the pages on their warning to keep your site accompanying read me file, along with secure and your server surcharges for additional domain services. Blackhole site. When unsuspecting users scripts and applications up Like legitimate vendors of rental software, visit the legitimate site, their browsers to date. Blackhole’s authors offer updates free for also automatically pull down the exploit 14 the life of the subscription. kit code from the Blackhole server. Customers who want to run their own Blackhole host sites change quickly. Blackhole servers can purchase longer Freshly registered domains are normally licences. But the version of the Blackhole kit used to host Blackhole, typically acquired that these customers receive is extensively through the abuse of dynamic DNS obfuscated. This is one of several steps services such as ddns., 1dumb.com, that Blackhole’s authors have taken to keep and dlinkddns.com. These hosts often control over their product. We haven’t yet disappear within one day. Blackhole’s seen Blackhole spin-offs from unrelated ability to consistently send traffic to the authors, though Blackhole has been correct new hosts shows an impressive level of centralized control. Exploit site 0.7% aggressively updated, and other authors (Blackhole) are borrowing its techniques. Blackhole has multiple strategies to Drive-by redirect 26.7% control user traffic. We’ve recently seen (Blackhole) its owners abuse affiliate schemes. Web hosts voluntarily add Blackhole Exploit site 1.8% code in exchange for a small payment, (not Blackhole) perhaps without realizing what the code Payload 7.5% will do. We’ve also seen Blackhole use Drive-by redirect 58.5% old-fashioned spammed email links and (not Blackhole) attachments. For example, links that indicate problems with a bank account, SEO 1.1% or claim to provide a scanned document. Fake antivirus 0.4% 2. oading infected code from the L Other 3.4% landing page Source: SophosLabs Once your browser sucks in the exploit kit content from the Blackhole server, the attack begins. The exploit code, usually JavaScript, first works out and records how your browser arrived at Security Threat Report 2013 7
  • 12. Blackhole: Today’s malware market leader the Blackhole server. This identifies the 4.Tracking, learning and improving affiliates who generate the traffic in the Learn more about Blackhole keeps a record of which first place, so they can be paid just like exploits worked with what combination Blackhole affiliates in the legitimate economy. Then of browser, operating system and the exploit code fingerprints, or profiles, plugins. This way, Blackhole’s authors Malware B-Z: Inside the your browser to identify what operating can measure which exploits are most Threat From Blackhole to system you are using, which browser effective against each combination of ZeroAccess version you have, and whether you have browser, plugin, and underlying operating plugins installed for Flash, PDF files, Java system. This tracking technique isn’t applets and more. uncommon, but Blackhole’s authors Mark Harris introduces While we’ve seen attacks based on many have been diligent in updating their kit SophosLabs types of vulnerabilities, security holes in to reflect what they discover. Java appear to be the leading cause of Blackhole is equally good attaking Blackhole infections. Here, again, Blackhole Fraser Howard of advantage of new zero-day vulnerabilities. uses legitimate code wherever possible. SophosLabs explains For example, in August 2012 it targeted For example, it loads its exploit code Blackhole a highly-publicized vulnerability in through the Java Open Business Engine, Microsoft Help and Support Center to which has been used to support a wide deliver poisoned VBS scripts. Blackhole variety of workflow applications and launched a new attack based on systems, including the U.S. president’s 15 a dangerous new Java 7 vulnerability daily Terrorist Threat Matrix report. (CVE-2012-4681) that allows infected 3. Delivering the payload code to compromise Java’s permission 16 checking system. Remarkably, 12 Once a victim’s system has been cracked, hours after a proof-of-concept for this Blackhole can deliver the payload Java attack went public, it was already it’s been directed to send. Payloads are 17 included in Blackhole. Oracle, in turn, typically polymorphic—they vary with delivered an emergency patch by the each new system that’s been infected. end of August, but many systems Blackhole’s authors have been aggressive remain unpatched. about using advanced server-side polymorphism and code obfuscation. Given the level of sophistication and Since they maintain tight central control, agility shown by Blackhole’s authors, they can deploy updates with exceptional we have been surprised that they’ve speed. Compared with other exploit kits left some portions of their kit essentially that attackers purchase and host, we see stagnant. For example, URL paths, rapid shifts in Blackhole’s behavior and filenames, and query string structure. effectiveness. Blackhole payloads also SophosLabs expects this to change in typically use custom encryption tools the future, opening new opportunities designed to evade antivirus detection. for Blackhole’s authors to improve Those tools are added by Blackhole’s their attacks. customers, and Blackhole contributes with an optional service that actively checks antivirus functionality on each system it attempts to attack. Security Threat Report 2013 8
  • 13. What we’re doing about Blackhole, and what you can do At SophosLabs, we track Blackhole 24/7, 3. lock compromised legitimate websites B making sure that our generic detection and exploit sites through a combination and reputation filtering keep up with this of reputation filtering and content changing exploit kit. Whenever Blackhole detection technologies, and use content learns how to counter them, we rapidly detection to block payloads. Note that roll out updates as needed via the cloud. reputation filtering can often block exploit We also apply cutting-edge techniques sites before content detection occurs, but for identifying and analyzing server-side it is not foolproof by itself. polymorphic attacks such as Blackhole. 4. eter or reduce social engineering D On your end, the best defense against attacks that originate with spam with Blackhole is a defense in depth. up-to-date spam filters and more active user education. 1. uickly patching operating systems and Q applications is always important, and it’s 5. f your endpoint security product has I best to automate your patching process. HIPS (host intrusion prevention system) features, use them for added protection 2. o reduce the attack surface, disable T against new or modified exploits. vulnerable systems such as Java and Flash wherever you don’t need them. Where are Blackhole exploit sites being hosted? Countries hosting Blackhole exploit sites (2012) B razil 1.49% Italy 5.75% G reat Britain 2.24% Chile 10.77% N etherlands 2.55% Russia 17.88% G ermany 3.68% United States 30.81% C hina 5.22% Other 13.88% T urkey 5.74% Source: SophosLabs Security Threat Report 2013 9
  • 14. Java attacks reach critical mass This was a rough year for Java in the browser. Major new vulnerabilities repeatedly battered Java browser plugins, encouraging many organizations to get rid of Java in the browser if possible. In April, more than 600,000 Mac users found themselves recruited into the global Flashback, or Flashplayer botnet, courtesy of a Java vulnerability left unpatched on OS X for far too long. After Apple issued a removal tool and a Java patch, Oracle assumed direct responsibility for publishing Java for OS X in the future, and promised to deliver Java patches for OS X and Windows and to release OS X Java patches at the same time as 18 those for Windows. Oracle’s Java developers were soon called upon to deliver prompt patches. Within days of the discovery of a new zero-day vulnerability affecting Java 7 on all platforms and operating systems, the flaw was already being exploited in targeted attacks, was integrated into 19 the widely used Blackhole exploit kit, and had even shown up in a bogus Microsoft 20 Services Agreement phishing email. According to one detailed analysis, this exploit enabled untrusted code to access classes that should be off-limits, and even disabled the 21 Java security manager. As Oracle had promised, it released an out-of-band fix more rapidly than some observers had expected. But, within weeks, more major Java flaws surfaced. Security Explorations, the same researchers who discovered the first flaw, found another way to bypass Java’s 22 secure application sandbox—this time, not just on Java 7, but also on Java 5 and 6, and in all leading browsers. The new exploit put 1 billion devices at risk. Security Threat Report 2013 10
  • 15. Many users today have little or no need for Major organizations still leave users’ browser-based Java programs, known as applets. JavaScript and other technologies passwords vulnerable have largely taken over from applets inside the browser. Unless you genuinely need, Password vulnerabilities ought to be a rarity. Well-known and know you need, Java in your browser, and easily-followed techniques exist for generating, Sophos recommends that you turn it off. using and storing passwords that should keep both Our website offers detailed instructions for individuals and organizations safe. Yet in 2012 we saw doing so within Internet Explorer, Firefox, one massive password breach after another, at a slew of 23 Google Chrome, Safari, and Opera. high profile organizations. If you do rely on websites that require Java, ÌÌ ussian cybercriminals posted nearly 6.5 million LinkedIn R consider installing a second browser and passwords on the Internet. Teams of hackers rapidly went turning Java on in that browser only. Use to work attacking those passwords, and cracked more it for your Java-based websites only, and than 60% within days. That task was made simpler by the stick to your Java-disabled main browser fact that LinkedIn hadn’t “salted” its password database for everything else. 24 with random data before encrypting it. Java isn’t the only plugin platform that’s caused security headaches. In previous ÌÌ ating website eHarmony quickly reported that some 1.5 D years, Adobe’s Flash has also been million of its own passwords were uploaded to the web 25 victimized by high-profile exploits. Fortunately, following the same attack that hit LinkedIn. the need for browser plugins such as Flash is diminishing. HTML5-enabled browsers have ÌÌ ormspring discovered that the passwords of 420,000 of F capabilities such as playing audio and video its users had been compromised and posted online, and built in, making customary plugins obsolete. instructed all 28 million of the site’s members to change 26 their passwords as a precaution. ÌÌ ahoo Voices admitted that nearly 500,000 of its own Y 27 emails and passwords had been stolen. ÌÌ ultinational technology firm Philips was attacked by M the r00tbeer gang. The gang walked away with thousands of names, telephone numbers, addresses 28 and unencrypted passwords. ÌÌ EEE, the world’s largest professional association for I the advancement of technology, left a log file of nearly 400 million web requests in a world-readable directory. Those requests included the usernames and plain text 29 passwords of nearly 100,000 unique users. Security Threat Report 2013 11
  • 16. Java attacks reach critical mass So, what can you learn from data loss—beyond that Learn more about modern threats you don’t want it to happen to you? If you’re a user: Train your employees to steer clear of trouble with ÌÌ Use stronger passwords—and use a different one for each site that stores our free toolkit. information you care about. ÌÌ Use password management software, such as 1Password, KeePass, or Five Tips to Reduce LastPass. Some of these tools will even generate hard-to-crack Risk From Modern Web passwords for you. 30 Threats If you’re responsible for password databases: ÌÌ on’t ever store passwords in clear text. D ÌÌ Always apply a randomly-generated salt to each password before hashing and encrypting it for storage. ÌÌ Don’t just hash your salted password once and store it. Hash multiple times to increase the complexity of testing each password during an attack. It’s best to use a recognized password crunching algorithm such as bcrypt, scrypt or PBKDF2. ÌÌ Compare your site’s potential vulnerabilities to the OWASP Top Ten security risks, especially potential password vulnerabilities associated with 31 broken authentication and session management. ÌÌ inally, protect your password database, network and servers with F layered defenses. Security Threat Report 2013 12
  • 17. Android: Today’s biggest target Featuring research by SophosLabs Over 100 million Android phones shipped in the second quarter of 2012 alone. In the U.S., a September 2012 32 survey of smartphone users gave Android a whopping 52.2% market share. Targets this large are difficult for 33 malware authors to resist. And they aren’t resisting— attacks against Android are increasing rapidly. In these pages, we’ll share some examples, and offer some perspective. We’ll ask: How serious are these attacks? Are they likely to widen or worsen? And what reasonable steps should IT organizations and individuals take to protect themselves? Security Threat Report 2013 13
  • 18. Android: Today’s biggest target Unsophisticated, but profitable: Learn more about Fake software, unauthorized SMS messages mobile device management Today, the most common business model Andr/Boxer presents messages in Russian for Android malware attacks is to install and has disproportionately attacked Eastern fake apps that secretly send expensive European Android users who visit sites Free tool: Mobile messages to premium rate SMS services. where they’ve been promised photos of Security for Android Recent examples have included phony attractive women. versions of Angry Birds Space, Instagram, 34 When they arrive at these sites, users and fake Android antivirus products. In May Mobile Security Toolkit see a webpage that is carefully crafted 2012, UK’s mobile phone industry regulator to entice them to download and install a discovered that 1,391 UK Android users malicious app. For example, the user had been stung by one of these scams. Mobile Device might be prompted (in Russian) to install a The regulator fined the firm that operated Management Buyers Guide fake update for products such as Opera or the payment system involved, halted Skype. Or, in some cases, a fake antivirus fund transfers, and demanded refunds for scan is run, reports false infections, and When Malware Goes those who’d already paid. However, UK recommends the installation of a fake Mobile users represented only about 10% of this antivirus program. Once installed, the malware’s apparent victims—it has been new app begins sending expensive SMS seen in at least 18 countries. messages. Many of these Trojans install Vanja Svajcer of Currently, one family of Android malware, with what Android calls the INSTALL_ SophosLabs explains Andr/Boxer, accounts for the largest number PACKAGES permission. That means they Android malware of Android malware samples we see, roughly can download and install additional one third of the total. Linked to .ru domains malware in the future. hosted in the Ukraine, Android threats accelerate In Australia and the U.S., Sophos is now reporting Android threat exposure rates exceeding those of PCs. Android Threat Exposure Rate Android TER PC TER 60 50 40 30 20 10 Australia Brazil United Others Malaysia Germany India France United Iran States Kingdom Threat exposure rate (TER): Measured as the percentage of PCs and Android devices that experienced a malware attack, whether successful or failed, over a three month period. Source: SophosLabs Security Threat Report 2013 14
  • 19. Joining the botnet Capturing your messages and Naked Security Survey your bank account Is smartphone SMS/TXT Until recently, most fake software attacks spam a problem for you? we’ve seen on Android have been relatively unsophisticated. For example, some use We have also begun to see Android primitive polymorphic methods that involve malware that eavesdrops on incoming SMS randomizing images, thereby changing messages and forwards them to another checksums to avoid detection. Leading SMS number or server. This sort of data security companies learned how to defeat leakage represents a significant risk, both this tactic many years ago. to individuals and to organizations. But the attackers are making headway. The potential exists for attacks like these For example, consider the malware-infected to target Internet banking services that send editions of Angry Birds Space we saw in mobile transaction authentication numbers April 2012 (Andr/KongFu-L). Again, available via SMS. Many banks send authentication only through unofficial Android app markets, codes to your phone via SMS each time Yes 43.78% these Trojans play like the real game. But you do an online transaction. This means that just stealing a login password is no I t was, but I they also use a software trick known as the longer enough for criminals to raid your downloaded GingerBreak exploit to gain root access, an app and it is install malicious code, and communicate account. But malware on your phone, such sorted now 2.36% with a remote website to download and as the Zeus-based Andr/Zitmo (and similar versions targeting BlackBerry) are capable No—I rarely/never install additional malware. This allows of intercepting those SMS messages. received an SMS these Trojans to avoid detection and text spam on my removal, while recruiting the device into Consider the following hypothetical scenario. phone 45.29% a global botnet. Through a conventional phishing attack, a Based on 552 votes victim gives criminals sufficient information Source: Naked Security to allow them to sign in to your mobile banking account and also port your phone number (this has happened). They can now log in to your online bank account while also receiving an SMS containing the second-factor authentication token needed to complete a transaction. Through the use of a malicious Android app that harvests SMS messages in real time and in concert with a social engineering attack, attackers open a brief window of opportunity to steal this token and use it before you can stop them. Security Threat Report 2013 15
  • 20. Android: Today’s biggest target PUAs: Not quite malware, but still risky Mitigating the risks while they’re still manageable It’s worth mentioning the widespread presence of potentially unwanted applications (PUA). PUAs are Android apps that In most business environments, the risks from Android may not strictly qualify as malware, but may nevertheless are modest at this point. But those risks are growing. Even introduce security or other risks. as Google makes improvements that secure the platform First, many users have installed apps that link to aggressive against more obvious threats, new threats emerge. For advertising networks, can track their devices and locations, example, some security experts have recently expressed and may even capture contact data. These apps earn concern about risks from new near field communications their profits simply by serving pornographic advertising. (NFC) features intended to allow advanced Android devices Many companies may wish to eliminate them due to the to function like credit cards. information they expose, or because they may have a duty Even today, Android malware can place a company’s of care to protect employees from inappropriate content future at risk by exposing strategic information or stealing and a potentially hostile work environment. passwords. With this in mind, IT organizations should secure Second, some sophisticated Android users have chosen their Android devices against malware, data loss, and other to install Andr/DrSheep-A on their own devices. Similar to threats. We recommend the following steps to bring down the well-known desktop tool Firesheep, Andr/DrSheep-A the level of risk. Remember, none of these tips are foolproof can sniff wireless traffic and intercept unencrypted cookies or sufficient in isolation. But in most environments, they will from sites like Facebook and Twitter. The legitimate use for go a long way. this tool is to test your own network. However, it is often used to impersonate nearby users without their knowledge. ÌÌ xtend your IT security and acceptable use policies to E We currently find Andr/DrSheep-A on 2.6% of the Android Android devices, if you haven’t done so already. devices protected by Sophos Mobile Security. Corporate IT departments are unlikely to countenance the installation, ÌÌ efuse access to rooted Android devices. R let alone the use, of such tools. ÌÌ onsider full device encryption to protect against data C If you “root” your device, it means you enable software to loss, and provide for remote wipe of lost or stolen devices. acquire full Android administrator privileges. The name If you choose to encrypt, make sure your solution can also comes from the administrator account, known as “root” encrypt optional SD cards that may contain sensitive data, on UNIX-like operating systems such as Android. Rooting even if those SD cards are formatted differently. is popular because it allows you greater control over your device—notably to remove unwanted software add-ons ÌÌ here possible, establish automated processes for W included by your service provider, and to replace them with updating Android devices to reflect security fixes. Keep alternatives of your own choosing. your Android devices up to date with the security patches provided by the manufacturer and by the vendors of any Rooting bypasses the built-in Android security model that additional software you’ve intalled. limits each app’s access to data from other apps. It’s easier for malware to gain full privileges on rooted devices, and ÌÌ onsider restricting Android devices to apps from Google’s C to avoid detection and removal. For the IT organization official Play Store. Malware has turned up in the Play supporting BYOD network access, rooted Android devices Store, but much less frequently than in many of the other increase risk. unregulated, unofficial app markets, notably those in Eastern Europe and Asia. Security Threat Report 2013 16
  • 21. ÌÌ hen you authorize app stores, limit users to apps with W a positive history and a strong rating. Naked Security Survey What is the most important consideration when you install an ÌÌ void social engineering attacks, and help your colleagues A app on your Android device? avoid them. This means carefully checking the permissions that an app requests when it’s installed. For example, Reputation of if you can’t think of a specific credible reason why an developer 43.78% app wants to send SMS messages, don’t let it. And pause Popularity of 35 for a moment to consider whether you still want to install it. application 28.65% ÌÌ inally, consider using an anti-malware and mobile F C ost of app 13.24% device management solution on your Android devices. We Download recommend Sophos Mobile Control. But whatever solution location 14.32% you choose, get it from a company that has extensive experience with both antivirus and broader security Based on 370 respondents challenges. Why? First, because attack techniques are Source: Naked Security beginning to migrate to Android from other platforms. Your solution provider should already know how to handle these. Second, because attacks are emerging and mutating more rapidly. Your provider should have the 24/7 global infrastructure to identify threats, and the cloud-based infrastructure to respond immediately. Third, and most importantly, because today’s complex infrastructures require an integrated mobile security response that goes beyond antivirus alone to encompass multiple issues, ranging from networking to encryption. Security Threat Report 2013 17
  • 22. Diverse platforms and technologies widen opportunities for attack Once, almost everyone ran Windows. Attackers attacked Windows. Defenders defended Windows. Those days are gone. In 2012 we saw plenty of Windows-specific holes and vulnerabilities. For instance, the Windows Sidebar and Gadgets in Windows Vista and Windows 7 were revealed to be so insecure that Microsoft immediately eliminated them, and gave customers tools to disable them. Windows Sidebar had hosted mini-programs (gadgets) such as news, stocks, and weather reports. Together, these were Microsoft’s answer to Apple’s popular Dashboard and Widgets. However, security researchers Mickey Shkatov and Toby Kohlenberg announced that they could demonstrate multiple attack vectors against gadgets, show how to create 36 malicious gadgets, and identify flaws in published gadgets. Already planning a new approach to these miniature applications in Windows 8, Microsoft dropped Sidebar and Gadgets like a rock. While most computer users still work with Windows, far more development now takes place elsewhere—on the web and mobile platforms. This means companies and individual users must worry about security risks in new and untraditional environments such as Android. Security Threat Report 2013 18
  • 23. Here is a sampling of security breaches in Ransomware returns for an 2012, offering a taste of what we all must Naked Security Survey deal with—and why our defenses must encore Which web browser do you become increasingly layered, proactive and recommend? comprehensive. Certain attacks seem cyclical. Even when defeated for years, they’re too easy and ÌÌ n February 2012, a hacker identified I tempting for cybercriminals to abandon cross-site scripting (XSS) holes in 25 UK forever. For example, in 2012, Sophos saw a online stores that had been certified as resurgence in ransomware attacks that lock 37 safe by VeriSign, Visa, or MasterCard. users out of their computers, and demand Criminals can exploit XSS flaws to steal payment to restore access. authentication credentials or customer billing information, placing customers at Ransomware is far from new. Way back in risk of identity theft. The holes arose from 1989, primitive ransomware was distributed a common source: a poorly written script on floppy disks by postal mail. Users were promised advanced software to advise Internet Explorer 5.95% for filtering user searches. It’s another reminder to users that security isn’t just a them about HIV/AIDS, but instead found Chrome 28.9% matter of words and icons. Simply seeing their hard drives scrambled. Users were Firefox 23.09% https://, a padlock, or a VeriSign Trusted told to pay $189 to an address in Panama logo doesn’t mean you can get careless via bankers draft, cashier’s check, or Safari 3.25% 40 online. And it’s a huge reminder to web international money order. Opera 36.75% professionals to keep all their applications Today’s ransomware arrives via more modern No preference 2.06% and scripts up to date, including scripts techniques, such as social engineered made publicly available by other authors. Based on 370 respondents email and poisoned webpages. One sort Source: Naked Security of ransomware merely freezes your PC ÌÌ Thousands of self-hosted WordPress sites and asks for money. This leaves your were hosting the dangerous Blackhole underlying files intact. Although an infection 38 malware attack. In August 2012, Sophos is disruptive, it can usually be repaired. The discovered a major malware campaign other sort of ransomware scrambles your which attempts to infect computers files, so it is as catastrophic as losing your using the notorious Blackhole exploit laptop altogether or suffering a complete kit. Users receive “order verification” disk failure. emails containing links to legitimate WordPress blogs that have been poisoned As of this writing, the most widespread to download malware. Users of the hosted ransomware is of the first type. Reveton, WordPress.com service aren’t vulnerable: for example, also known as Citadel or the service provider, Automattic, looks Troj/Ransom, hides the Windows desktop, after the security of the WordPress.com locks you out of all programs, and displays servers for them. a full screen window with an FBI (or other national police) logo. You see an urgent ÌÌ ackers have been demonstrating at least H claim that illegally downloaded copyrighted theoretical attacks against everything material has been found on your computer, from transit fare cards to the newest and that you must pay a fine (typically $200) near field communication (NFC) to restore access. 39 enabled smartphones. Security Threat Report 2013 19
  • 24. Diverse platforms and technologies widen opportunities for attack This attack can be defeated by rebooting In nearly every case, updated antivirus to an antivirus tool that contains its own software can prevent ransomware from Learn more about operating system, bypassing Windows (for installing and running on your computer. ransomware example, Sophos Bootable Anti-Virus). But if you’ve left your computer unprotected Once this tool is running, users can scan and you get hit by encryption-based their systems, remove the infection, and ransomware, it’s probably too late. Some Top 5 Myths of Safe restore their systems. 41 ransomware encryptions can be reversed Web Browsing (Sophos has free tools which may be able Unfortunately, we’ve also seen growing to help), but only if the criminals have made numbers of infections that fully encrypt Director of Technology cryptographic mistakes. There may be no users’ hard drives using strong encryption, Strategy, James Lyne, cure, so prevention is always better. and securely forward the only key to the explains ransomware attackers. In July 2012, we saw a variant that threatened to contact police with a “special password” that would reveal child 42 pornographic files on the victim’s computer. Security Threat Report 2013 20
  • 25. OS X and the Mac: More users, emerging risks Featuring research by SophosLabs Most malware developers have found it more profitable to attack Windows than to learn new skills needed to target the smaller OS X user community. But Macs are finding a new home in thousands of businesses and government agencies, and malware authors are paying attention. Forrester Research analyst Frank Gillette recently reported that “almost half of enterprises (1,000 employees or more) are issuing Macs to at least some employees—and they plan a 43 52% increase in the number of Macs they issue in 2012.” Even more Macs are arriving unofficially through bring your own device arrangements, where they are often an executive’s device of choice for accessing web or cloud applications. Growing Mac usage means many IT organizations must objectively assess, mitigate, and anticipate Mac-related malware threats for the first time. And the risks are clearly increasing. Security Threat Report 2013 21
  • 26. OS X and the Mac: More users, emerging risks Fake antivirus and Flashback: Learning from Windows malware, gaining agility In 2011, we saw a sustained attack on Flashback first surfaced as a fake Adobe Mac users by a malware family called Flash installer late in 2011. In April 2012, MacDefender. This malware, a fake antivirus, Flashback began to install itself as a drive-by was the first significant Mac attack to be download, exploiting a Java vulnerability left distributed via search result pages that unpatched on OS X weeks after Microsoft attracted users to legitimate sites that had had provided a fix to Windows users. Apple been poisoned with malware. ultimately patched OS X 10.7 and 10.6, but not previous versions. At the infection’s MacDefender is worth discussing today peak, Sophos’ free Mac antivirus product because it shows how Mac malware often identified Flashback-related malware on follows in the footsteps of older Windows approximately 2.1% of the Macs it protected. attacks. One sensible way to anticipate the future of Mac malware is to see what’s While both MacDefender and Flashback happening now to Windows users. For have been beaten back, they each show instance, Mac admins might reasonably Mac malware authors becoming more expect new customized attacks relying on agile. We’ve seen the authors changing the server-side polymorphism. delivery mechanisms of existing malware and pursuing new zero-day exploits. Borrowing from MacDefender while applying important innovations of their own, the creators of the notorious Flashback botnet (aka, OSX/Flshplyr) infected more than 600,000 Macs in the spring of 2012. Mac OS X malware snapshot In a typical week, SophosLabs detects 4,900 pieces of OS X malware on Mac computers. This chart shows a snapshot of Mac malware detected in the week of August 1-6, 2012. OSX/FkCodec-A 26% OSX/Flshplyer-D 3.2% OSX/FakeAV-DWN 13.28% OSX/FakeAV-A 2.8% OSX/FakeAVZp-C 13% OSX/DnsCha-E 2.7% OSX/FakeAVDI-A 8.6% OSX/RSplug-A 2.4% OSX/FakeAV-DPU 7.1% OSX/Flshplyr-E 2.4% OSX/FakeAVDI-B 6.2% OSX/FakeAV-FNV 2.3% OSX/SafExinj-B 4.1% OSX/Jahlav-C 2.1% OSX/FakeAV-FFN 3.3% Source: SophosLabs Security Threat Report 2013 22
  • 27. Morcut/Crisis: More sophisticated and Learn more about potentially more dangerous emerging OS X risks Fake antivirus software typically makes money for cybercriminals by convincing users to provide personal credit Free tool: Sophos card information for software they don’t need. For most Anti-Virus for Mac enterprises, the downside risks of fake antivirus have been modest. But malware such as OSX/Morcut-A (aka Crisis), Andrew Ludgate of first discovered in late July 2012, presents greater risks. SophosLabs explains Mac Designed for spying, Morcut can remotely monitor malware virtually every way a user communicates: mouse coordinates, IM, Skype call data, location information, the Mac’s webcam and microphone, clipboard contents, keystrokes, running apps, web URLs, screenshots, calendar and address book contents, alerts, device information, and even file system metadata. Morcut appears as a Java Archive file (JAR) claiming to be digitally signed by VeriSign. If installed by the user, Morcut deploys kernel driver components to hide and run without 44 administrator’s authentication; a backdoor component which opens the Mac to other network users; command and control to accept remote instructions and adapt its behavior; and, most importantly, code for stealing user data. If Morcut spreads, it will represent a serious threat to internal corporate security and compliance. Its capabilities especially lend themselves to targeted attacks aimed at capturing information about specific known Mac users in pivotal organizational roles. In contrast to most earlier Mac malware, it also reflects an extremely thorough understanding of Mac programming techniques, capabilities, and potential weaknesses. Similar backdoor techniques are already appearing elsewhere. For instance, we recently saw them embedded in a kit for the first time. The kit, OSX/NetWrdRC-A, is 45 primitive, flawed, and easily halted. But it’s a harbinger of more sophisticated and dangerous attacks to come. Security Threat Report 2013 23
  • 28. OS X and the Mac: More users, emerging risks Windows malware hiding quietly on Macs Recent OS X security improvements and their limitations Much of the malware found on Macs is Windows malware. Traditionally, many Mac users have been indifferent about Mac OS X, originally built on BSD UNIX, has a strong security this—they assume that it won’t damage their systems, and model. In 2009, with the release of OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard, may not consider the harm to Windows-using colleagues Apple added limited malware scanning through the Launch they might place at risk. But IT administrators running Services Quarantine (LSQuarantine) system and XProtect cross-platform environments (or working with partners technology. In mid-2011, XProtect became a dynamic push and customers who use Windows) are likely to see things update service with more power to detect and clean up files differently. Moreover, the Windows partitions of dual-boot fingerprinted as malicious. Macs can indeed be infected, as can virtualized Windows sessions running under Parallels, VMware, VirtualBox, or In mid-2012, with OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion, Apple introduced even the open source WINE program. Gatekeeper, which manages code execution permissions for code obtained through approved software. By default, Mac users who need occasional access to a Windows Gatekeeper pre-authorizes all software signed with an program sometimes decide to download it from third parties, official Apple developer key that has not been blocked due and may illegally create a license key using a downloadable to previous abuse. generator. By doing so, they often encounter malware such as Mal/KeyGen-M, a family of trojanized license key Gatekeeper is a significant and welcome improvement in generators that we’ve identified on approximately 7% of the Mac security, but it is only a partial solution. Software copied Macs running Sophos Anti-Virus software. from USB, already on the computer, copied directly between computers, or transferred by non-standard file transfer Another common source of Windows malware on Macs systems such as BitTorrent will evade it. Individual users today is fake Windows Media movie or TV files. These files with administrator credentials can change Gatekeeper’s contain auto-forwarding web links promising the codec default settings to allow unsigned apps to install without needed to view the video, but deliver zero-day malware 46 any alert. instead. Windows Media files generally won’t run on Macs, but Mac users often torrent these files to improve their Users or running processes can still strip the LSQuarantine “ratios” on private tracker sites, without realizing the contents flag from files. Unsigned programs can be authorized and are malicious. Windows users then attempt to play the launched simply by right-clicking on them in the Finder and videos and become infected. selecting Open, instead of just double-clicking on the icon. Versions of OS X older than 10.8 don’t include Gatekeeper. Finally, the runtime interpreters for Java, Flash, and OS X shell scripts are all pre-authorized by Apple. These interpreters are free to run whatever code they wish. Java and Flash have been major attack vectors on the Mac platform. This may gradually become less of a problem—the Mac version of Java was recently hardened, and Adobe Flash is gradually being replaced by HTML5. Security Threat Report 2013 24