VB Blog

VB2017 paper: The (testing) world turned upside down

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Nov 8, 2017

At VB2017 in Madrid, industry veteran and ESET Senior Research Fellow David Harley presented a paper on the state of security software testing. Today we publish David's paper in both HTML and PDF format.

Read more  

VB2017 video: Turning Trickbot: decoding an encrypted command-and-control channel

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Nov 3, 2017

Trickbot, a banking trojan which appeared this year, seems to be a new, more modular, and more extensible malware descendant of the notorious Dyre botnet trojan. At VB2017, Symantec researcher Andrew Brandt presented a walkthrough of a typical Trickbot infection process, and its aftermath, as seen through the lens of a tool used to perform man-in-the-middle decryption. Today, we publish both Andrew's slides and the recording of his presentation.

Read more  

Paper: FAME - Friendly Malware Analysis Framework

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Nov 2, 2017

Today, we publish a short paper in which CERT Société Générale presents FAME, its open source malware analysis framework.

Read more  

Ebury and Mayhem server malware families still active

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Oct 31, 2017

Ebury and Mayhem, two families of Linux server malware, about which VB published papers back in 2014, are still active and have received recent updates.

Read more  

VB2017 paper: Crypton - exposing malware's deepest secrets

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Oct 27, 2017

Crypton, a tool developed by F5 Networks researchers Julia Karpin and Anna Dorfman, aims to speed up the reverse engineering process by decrypting encrypted content found in a (malicious) binary. The researchers described the tool in a paper which they presented at VB2017 in Madrid. Today, we publish both the paper and the recording of their presentation.

Read more  

VB2017 paper: The sprawling market of consumer spyware

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Oct 25, 2017

For many people, the threat of an abusive partner or ex-partner is very real - and the market for consumer spyware worryingly large. Today, we publish the recording of a presentation on the subject of consumer spyware given at VB2017 by The Daily Beast reporter Joseph Cox.

Read more  

Gábor Szappanos wins fourth Péter Szőr Award

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Oct 23, 2017

At the VB2017 gala dinner, the fourth Péter Szőr Award was presented to Sophos researcher Gábor Szappanos for his paper "AKBuilder – the crowdsourced exploit kit".

Read more  

VB2017 paper: Walking in your enemy's shadow: when fourth-party collection becomes attribution hell

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Oct 20, 2017

We publish the VB2017 paper and video by Kaspersky Lab researchers Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade and Costin Raiu, in which they look at fourth-party collection (spies spying on other spies' campaigns) and its implications for attribution.

Read more  

Didn't come to VB2017? Tell us why!

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Oct 11, 2017

Virus Bulletin is a company - and a conference - with a mission: to further the research in and facilitate the fight against digital threats. To help us in this mission, we want to hear from those who didn't come to Madrid. What is your impression of the VB Conference? What did you think of this year's programme? And why couldn't you come to Madrid?

Read more  

Montreal will host VB2018

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Oct 10, 2017

Last week, we announced the full details of VB2018, which will take place 3-5 October 2018 at the Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth hotel in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Read more  

Search blog

Compromised Yahoo! accounts continue to spread Android malware

Problem likely to be on Yahoo!'s side.
Problem likely to be on Yahoo!'s side. In recent weeks, we have noticed an uptick in the amount of spam sent from compromised Yahoo! accounts; we have reasons to believe the… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/06/compromised-yahoo-accounts-continue-spread-android-malware/

VB2013 speaker spotlight

We speak to VB2013 presenters Lysa Myers and David Harley about their research interests and what they aim to bring to the conference.
We speak to VB2013 presenters Lysa Myers and David Harley about their research interests and what they aim to bring to the conference. The VB2013 conference takes place this autumn… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/06/speaker-spotlight-harley-myers/

Facebook temporarily blocks access from Tor

Malicious activity triggered automatic lockdown.
Malicious activity triggered automatic lockdown. A 'high volume of malicious activity across Tor exit nodes' is believed to have been the reason why Facebook temporarily blocked… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/06/facebook-temporarily-blocks-access-tor/

AV Test releases Android test data

30 mobile solutions tested for malware protection and speed hit.
30 mobile solutions tested for malware protection and speed hit. Independent test organization AV-Test has released its latest report, covering the Andriod platform. This major… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/06/av-test-releases-android-test-data/

Latest VBSpam tests show web host spam harder to block

Most filters see a small increase in their catch rates overall.
Most filters see a small increase in their catch rates overall. The results of VB's latest spam filter test show that the spam sent from web hosts is significantly harder to block… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/06/latest-vbspam-tests-show-web-host-spam-harder-block/

AMTSO unveils product setup check tools

Set of checks can show if your security is properly configured and operational.
Set of checks can show if your security is properly configured and operational. Today AMTSO officially released its 'Feature settings check' solutions, a set of simple tools to… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/06/amtso-unveils-product-setup-check-tools/

June

Anti-virus and security related news provided by independent anti-virus advisors, Virus Bulletin
https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/06/

June issue of VB published

The June issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to download.
The June issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to download. The June 2013 issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to browse online or download… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/06/june-issue-vb-published/

US lifts ban on anti-virus software for Iran

Eased restrictions welcomed by security experts.
Eased restrictions welcomed by security experts. The United States has announced it has eased export restrictions to Iran, and now allows for the export of mobile phones and… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/05/us-lifts-ban-anti-virus-software-iran/

Ruby on Rails vulnerability exploited in the wild

Code executed on web servers to cause them to join IRC botnet.
Code executed on web servers to cause them to join IRC botnet. A critical vulnerability in Ruby on Rails is currently being exploited to make web servers join an IRC botnet, Ars… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/05/ruby-rails-vulnerability-exploited-wild/

Latest AV-Test results released

New round of figures compare products to Microsoft baselines.
New round of figures compare products to Microsoft baselines. Independent test organization AV-Test has released its latest bimonthly report, covering 26 consumer products and nine… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/05/latest-av-test-results-released/

Symantec quietly retires PC Tools security product lines

Sales of Spyware Doctor and other security products end, support to continue for existing users.
Sales of Spyware Doctor and other security products end, support to continue for existing users.Symantec has quietly announced the end of life the of PC Tools security product… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/05/symantec-quietly-retires-pc-tools-security-product-lines/

Dutch citizens keep extra cash at hand following DDoS attacks

Month-long attacks had significant impact.
Month-long attacks had significant impact. 25% of Dutch citizens have followed advice to keep extra cash at home, following a recent spate of DDoS attacks on Dutch banks. At the… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/05/dutch-citizens-keep-extra-cash-hand-following-ddos-attacks/

India believed to be source of sophisticated surveillance campaigns

In-depth investigations find widespread worldwide snooping, Pakistan primary target.
In-depth investigations find widespread worldwide snooping, Pakistan primary target. Several reports have emerged recently covering a highly organised campaign of targeted… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/05/india-believed-be-source-sophisticated-surveillance-campaigns/

German anti-botnet advisory recommends the use of ad blockers for security

'If websites want to include ads, they must make sure they are secure.'
'If websites want to include ads, they must make sure they are secure.' In an open letter to several prominent German websites, Botfrei, the German anti-botnet advisory centre, has… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/05/german-anti-botnet-advisory-recommends-use-ad-blockers-security/

Commoditization increasingly seen in mobile malware

Number of malicious samples and families increase, as Android remains most popular mobile platform.
Number of malicious samples and families increase, as Android remains most popular mobile platform. As the number of mobile malware samples in existence continues to grow faster… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/05/commoditization-increasingly-seen-mobile-malware/

Microsoft 'found to make requests' to URLs shared via Skype

HEAD requests likely used to determine landing page.
HEAD requests likely used to determine landing page. Is Microsoft checking all the links you share via Skype? German online magazine Heise thinks so. A reader of security magazine… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/05/microsoft-found-make-requests-urls-shared-skype/

Program turns anti-analysis tools against the malware

Users cautioned to be wary of a false sense of security.
Users cautioned to be wary of a false sense of security. Could you defeat VM-aware malware by making your system aware of VM-aware malware? Tricks to frustrate researchers and… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/05/program-turns-anti-analysis-tools-against-malware/

Twitter, Facebook accounts used in watering hole campaign

USAID sympathizers targeted with links from 'like-minded people'.
USAID sympathizers targeted with links from 'like-minded people'. Two social networking accounts have been discovered that were used in a recent targeted attack. Opinions on… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/05/twitter-facebook-accounts-used-watering-hole-campaign/

Microsoft offers fix-it for IE 8 zero-day

CVE-2013-1347 used in watering hole attacks.
CVE-2013-1347 used in watering hole attacks. Following this weekend's discovery of a new zero-day vulnerability in version 8 of Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser, the company… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/05/microsoft-offers-fix-it-ie-8-zero-day/

We have placed cookies on your device in order to improve the functionality of this site, as outlined in our cookies policy. However, you may delete and block all cookies from this site and your use of the site will be unaffected. By continuing to browse this site, you are agreeing to Virus Bulletin's use of data as outlined in our privacy policy.