VB Blog

VB2018 video: Adware is just malware with a legal department - how we reverse engineered OSX/Pirrit, received legal threats, and survived

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Mar 8, 2019

Amit Serper first analysed the OSX/Pirrit adware in 2016, highlighting some of its malware-like techniques, and soon afterwards started receiving legal threats from the company behind it. At VB2018 Amit gave a presentation in which he discussed both the adware and the legal threats he received for calling it malware. Today, we publish the video of Amit's presentation.

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VB2018 paper: Anatomy of an attack: detecting and defeating CRASHOVERRIDE

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Mar 5, 2019

In December 2016, the CRASHOVERRIDE malware framework was used to cause a blackout in Ukraine. At VB2018 in Montreal, Dragos researcher Joe Slowik presented a detailed paper on the framework, explaining how the malware works and how it targets various protocols used to operate the electric grid. Today we publish both Joe's paper and the recording of his presentation.

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VB2018 presentation: Levelling up: why sharing threat intelligence makes you more competitive

Posted by   Helen Martin on   Mar 1, 2019

In a presentation at VB2018, Michael Daniel, President and CEO of the Cyber Threat Alliance, outlined exactly how threat sharing strengthens a company's competitive advantage. Today we release the recording of his presentation.

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The malspam security products miss: Emotet, Ursnif, and a spammer's blunder

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Feb 25, 2019

The set-up of the VBSpam test lab gives us a unique insight into the kinds of emails that are more likely to bypass email filters. This week we look at the malspam that was missed: a very international email with a link serving Emotet, an Italian Ursnif campaign with a password-protected ZIP and an email to which a clumsy spammer had attached a list of email addresses rather than a payload.

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VB2018 paper: The modality of mortality in domain names

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Feb 22, 2019

Domains play a crucial role in most cyber attacks, from the very advanced to the very mundane. Today, we publish a VB2018 paper by Paul Vixie (Farsight Security) who undertook the first systematic study into the lifetimes of newly registered domains.

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VB2018 paper: Analysing compiled binaries using logic

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Feb 20, 2019

Constraint programming is a lesser-known technique that is becoming increasingly popular among malware analysts. In a paper presented at VB2018 Thaís Moreira Hamasaki presented an overview of the technique and explained how it can be applied to the analysis of (potentially) malicious binaries. Today, we publish both Thaís' paper and the video of her presentation.

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Virus Bulletin encourages experienced speakers and newcomers alike to submit proposals for VB2019

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Feb 19, 2019

With a little less than a month before the deadline of the call for papers for VB2019, Virus Bulletin encourages submissions from experienced speakers and newcomers alike.

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VB2018 paper: Internet balkanization: why are we raising borders online?

Posted by   Helen Martin on   Feb 13, 2019

At VB2018 in Montreal, Ixia researcher Stefan Tanase presented a thought-provoking paper on the current state of the Internet and the worrying tendency towards raising borders and restricting the flow of information. Today we publish both his paper and the recording of his presentation.

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The malspam security products miss: banking and email phishing, Emotet and Bushaloader

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Feb 11, 2019

The set-up of the VBSpam test lab gives us a unique insight into the kinds of emails that are more likely to bypass email filters. This week we look at the malspam that was missed: banking and email phishing, Emotet and Bushaloader.

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VB2018 paper: Where have all the good hires gone?

Posted by   Helen Martin on   Feb 8, 2019

The cybersecurity skills gap has been described as one of the biggest challenges facing IT leaders today. At VB2018 in Montreal, ESET's Lysa Myers outlined some of the things the industry can do to help address the problem. Today we publish Lysa's paper and the recording of her presentation.

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Search blog

China to try e-stamping out spam

Postage stamps to become the norm for Chinese emailers?
Postage stamps to become the norm for Chinese emailers? The national Internet regulator in China has announced future plans to introduce 'e-stamp' technology in an attempt to curb… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/10/china-try-e-stamping-out-spam/

Wot, no comparative?

VB100 Netware comparative review delayed.
VB100 Netware comparative review delayed.VB apologises to those expecting to find a VB100 comparative review of products on Novell Netware in this month's issue. Due to illness,… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/10/wot-no-comparative/

October

Anti-virus and security related news provided by independent anti-virus advisors, Virus Bulletin
https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/10/

Trivia

Panda reveals country with lowest level of infected PCs.
Panda reveals country with lowest level of infected PCs.Panda Security has revealed that results from its online malware-scanning tool Nanoscan indicate that computers it scanned… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/10/trivia/

Alarm over possible PDF flaw

Vulnerability announcement hyped to disaster level.
Vulnerability announcement hyped to disaster level. The announcement of a potentially serious vulnerability in the ubiquitous Adobe PDF document format sparked considerable media… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/10/alarm-over-possible-pdf-flaw/

October issue of VB published

The October issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to download.
The October issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to download. The October 2007 issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to browse online or… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/10/october-issue-vb-published/

Phil makes anti-phishing education child's play

Researchers create game to raise awareness.
Researchers create game to raise awareness. Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University have created an interactive game designed to teach players how to identify phishing URLs and… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/10/phil-makes-anti-phishing-education-child-s-play/

Another security hole found in GMail

Vulnerability latest in a growing list of holes in Google's web applications.
Vulnerability latest in a growing list of holes in Google's web applications. A significant security hole has been found in Google's web mail application GMail. Security… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/another-security-hole-found-gmail/

Fujacks/Panda virus authors sentenced, offered job

Fujacks author put away for four years.
Fujacks author put away for four years. Four men who were charged last month with writing, selling and spreading the W32/Fujacks virus and worm (a.k.a. the 'Panda burning… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/fujacks-panda-virus-authors-sentenced-offered-job/

Vulnerabilities closed in OpenOffice, StarOffice

Flaws patched in TIFF parsing code.
Flaws patched in TIFF parsing code. Security researchers at iDefense revealed last week that OpenOfficeversion 2.0.4 and earlier versions are vulnerable to maliciously crafted TIFF… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/vulnerabilities-closed-openoffice-staroffice/

Microsoft files further adware patent

User behaviour monitors could be used to target ads.
User behaviour monitors could be used to target ads. Following a patent application disclosed some months ago, details have been released of another adware scheme patented by… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/microsoft-files-further-adware-patent/

St. Petersburg US Consulate website hacked

Malware served by official government site.
Malware served by official government site. Web-watchers at Sophos have reported spotting malware hosted on the website of the US Consulate in St. Petersburg, using obfuscated… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/st-petersburg-us-consulate-website-hacked/

Boot virus shipped on German laptops

Aged malware installed on batch of Vista systems.
Aged malware installed on batch of Vista systems. A consignment of laptops from German manufacturer Medion, sold through German and Danish branches of giant retail chain Aldi, have… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/boot-virus-shipped-german-laptops/

VB2007 last-minute hot-topic papers revealed

Schedule for up-to-the-minute tech talks announced.
Schedule for up-to-the-minute tech talks announced.VB has unveiled the schedule for a series of up-to-the-minute technical presentations at the VB2007 conference next week (19-21… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/last-minute-hot-topic-papers-revealed/

Quiet Patch Tuesday

Four flaws fixed in minimal security update.
Four flaws fixed in minimal security update.Microsoft's monthly 'Patch Tuesday' release of security updates for Windows and other software has been fairly quiet this month - with… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/quiet-patch-tuesday/

Yahoo!-owned ad firm serves up trojans

Infectious flash adverts displayed on major sites.
Infectious flash adverts displayed on major sites. Advertising supplied by ad firm Right Media, a company bought out by web giant Yahoo! earlier this year after an initial… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/yahoo-owned-ad-firm-serves-trojans/

AOL quietly drops free-to-all AV offering

Gratis software now for members only, old users may be at risk.
Gratis software now for members only, old users may be at risk. A month ago we reported on AOL's switch of providers for its free anti-virus software offering, from the… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/aol-quietly-drops-free-all-av-offering/

New worm spreading via Skype

Multilingual malware posing as porn in chat messages.
Multilingual malware posing as porn in chat messages. VoIP and chat system Skype has been targeted by another worm, sending chat messages to harvested contacts posing as links to… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/new-worm-spreading-skype/

Minor flaws patched in Sophos AV

Security vulnerabilities found and fixed.
Security vulnerabilities found and fixed. Two separate flaws have been reported in Sophos's anti-virus engine, affecting most of its product range and allowing security bypass and… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/minor-flaws-patched-sophos-av/

Storm DDoS hits anti-scam sites

419 fighters attacked - NFL and TOR latest spam hooks.
419 fighters attacked - NFL and TOR latest spam hooks. The massive botnet amassed by the 'Storm' (Zhelatin/Nuwar/Dorf/etc.) attack continues to target new victims, with the TOR… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/storm-ddos-hits-anti-scam-sites/

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