Research Saturday

Introducing An AI advantage for the US Open from Smart Talks with IBM.

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As AI technology progresses, its impact on our daily lives—including how we consume our favorite sports— will grow alongside it. In this episode of Smart Talks with IBM, Jacob Goldstein, host of Pushkin’s own What’s Your Problem?, sat down with Brian Ryerson, Senior Director of Digital Strategy at the US Tennis Association. They discuss the impact of data on the fan experience, the role that storytelling plays in sports, and how AI has unlocked innovative features, such as AI Commentary and Match Reports. 

This is a paid advertisement from IBM. The conversations on this podcast don't necessarily represent IBM's positions, strategies or opinions.

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DISCLAIMER: Please note, this is an independent podcast episode not affiliated with, endorsed by, or produced in conjunction with the host podcast feed or any of its media entities. The views and opinions expressed in this episode are solely those of the creators and guests. For any concerns, please reach out to [email protected].

Tim Peck, a Senior Threat Researcher at Securonix, is discussing their work on "Threat actors behind the DEV#POPPER campaign have retooled and are continuing to target software developers via social engineering." The DEV#POPPER campaign continues to evolve, now targeting developers with malware capable of operating on Linux, Windows, and macOS systems.

The threat actors, believed to be North Korean, employ sophisticated social engineering tactics, such as fake job interviews, to deliver stealthy malware that gathers sensitive information, including browser credentials and system data.

The research can be found here:

• Research Update: Threat Actors Behind the DEV#POPPER Campaign Have Retooled and are Continuing to Target Software Developers via Social Engineering

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Introducing An AI advantage for the US Open from Smart Talks with IBM.

Follow the show: Smart Talks with IBM

As AI technology progresses, its impact on our daily lives—including how we consume our favorite sports— will grow alongside it. In this episode of Smart Talks with IBM, Jacob Goldstein, host of Pushkin’s own What’s Your Problem?, sat down with Brian Ryerson, Senior Director of Digital Strategy at the US Tennis Association. They discuss the impact of data on the fan experience, the role that storytelling plays in sports, and how AI has unlocked innovative features, such as AI Commentary and Match Reports. 

This is a paid advertisement from IBM. The conversations on this podcast don't necessarily represent IBM's positions, strategies or opinions.

Visit us at https://ibm.com/smarttalks

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

DISCLAIMER: Please note, this is an independent podcast episode not affiliated with, endorsed by, or produced in conjunction with the host podcast feed or any of its media entities. The views and opinions expressed in this episode are solely those of the creators and guests. For any concerns, please reach out to [email protected].

Robert Duncan, VP of Product Strategy from Netcraft, is discussing their work on "Mule-as-a-Service Infrastructure Exposed." Netcraft's new threat intelligence reveals the intricate connections within global fraud networks, showing how criminals use specialized services like Mule-as-a-Service (MaaS) to launder scam proceeds.

By mapping the cyber and financial infrastructure, including bank accounts, crypto wallets, and phone numbers, Netcraft exposes how different scams are interconnected and identifies weak points that can be targeted to disrupt these operations. This insight provides an opportunity to prevent fraud and protect against financial crimes like pig butchering, investment scams, and romance fraud.

The research can be found here:

• Mule-as-a-Service Infrastructure Exposed

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Snir Ben Shimol from ZEST Security on their work, "How we hacked a cloud production environment by exploiting Terraform providers." In this blog, ZEST discusses the security risks associated with Terraform providers, particularly those from community sources.

The research highlights the importance of carefully vetting providers, regular scanning, and following best practices like version pinning to mitigate potential vulnerabilities in cloud infrastructure management.

The research can be found here:

• The hidden risks of Terraform providers

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Shachar Menashe, Senior Director of Security Research at JFrog, is talking about "When Prompts Go Rogue: Analyzing a Prompt Injection Code Execution in Vanna.AI." A security vulnerability in the Vanna.AI tool, called CVE-2024-5565, allows hackers to exploit large language models (LLMs) by manipulating user input to execute malicious code, a method known as prompt injection.

This poses a significant risk when LLMs are connected to critical functions, highlighting the need for stronger security measures.

The research can be found here:

• When Prompts Go Rogue: Analyzing a Prompt Injection Code Execution in Vanna.AI

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This week, we are joined by Jason Baker, Senior Threat Consultant at GuidePoint Security, and he is discussing their work on "Worldwide Web: An Analysis of Tactics and Techniques Attributed to Scattered Spider." In early 2024, a current RansomHub RaaS affiliate was identified as a former Alphv/Black Cat affiliate and is believed to be linked to the Scattered Spider group, known for using overlapping tools, tactics, and victims.

The high-confidence assessment by GuidePoint’s DFIR and GRIT teams is supported by the consistent use of tools like ngrok and Tailscale, social engineering tactics, and systematic playbooks in intrusions.

The research can be found here:

• Worldwide Web: An Analysis of Tactics and Techniques Attributed to Scattered Spider

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Dick O'Brien from Symantec Threat Hunter team is talking about their work on "Ransomware Attackers May Have Used Privilege Escalation Vulnerability as Zero-day." Also going to provide some background/history on Black Basta. CVE-2024-26169 in the Windows Error Reporting Service, patched on March 12, 2024, allowed privilege escalation.

Despite initial claims of no active exploitation, recent analysis indicates it may have been exploited as a zero-day before the patch.

The research can be found here:

• Ransomware Attackers May Have Used Privilege Escalation Vulnerability as Zero-day

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This week, we are joined by Selena Larson, Staff Threat Researcher, Lead Intelligence Analysis and Strategy at Proofpoint, as well as host of the "Only Malware in the Building" podcast, as she is discussing their research on "Scammers Create Fraudulent Olympics Ticketing Websites." Proofpoint recently identified a fraudulent website selling fake tickets to the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics and quickly suspended the domain.

This site was among many identified by the French Gendarmerie Nationale and Olympics partners, who have shut down 51 of 338 fraudulent websites, with 140 receiving formal notices from law enforcement.

The research can be found here:

• Security Brief: Scammers Create Fraudulent Olympics Ticketing Websites

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This week, we are joined by Asheer Malhotra and Vitor Ventura from Cisco Talos, and they are discussing "Operation Celestial Force employs mobile and desktop malware to target Indian entities." Cisco Talos revealed Operation Celestial Force, an espionage campaign by the Pakistani threat group "Cosmic Leopard," targeting Indian defense, government, and technology sectors.

Active for at least six years, the operation has recently increased its use of mobile malware and commercial spyware for surveillance.

The research can be found here:

• Operation Celestial Force employs mobile and desktop malware to target Indian entities

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