Malware

Pierluigi Paganini January 11, 2026
SECURITY AFFAIRS MALWARE NEWSLETTER ROUND 79

Security Affairs Malware newsletter includes a collection of the best articles and research on malware in the international landscape Malware Newsletter VVS Discord Stealer Using Pyarmor for Obfuscation and Detection Evasion   A Broken System Fueling Botnets Malicious NPM Packages Deliver NodeCordRAT     Boto-Cor-de-Rosa campaign reveals Astaroth WhatsApp-based worm activity in Brazil CNCERT: Risk Warning Regarding […]

Pierluigi Paganini January 09, 2026
China-linked UAT-7290 spies on telco in South Asia and Europe using modular malware

China-linked UAT-7290 has targeted South Asia and Southeastern Europe since 2022, conducting espionage and deploying RushDrop, DriveSwitch, and SilentRaid. China-linked threat actor UAT-7290 has conducted espionage attacks since at least 2022, targeting South Asia and Southeastern Europe. UAT-7290 primarily targets telecom providers, it conducts espionage by deeply embedding in victim networks and also operates Operational […]

Pierluigi Paganini January 08, 2026
Astaroth banking Trojan spreads in Brazil via WhatsApp worm

A WhatsApp worm spread the Astaroth banking trojan across Brazil by automatically sending malicious messages to victims’ contacts. Astaroth, a long-running Brazilian banking malware, has evolved in a new campaign dubbed Boto Cor-de-Rosa by abusing WhatsApp Web for propagation. The malware harvests the victim’s WhatsApp contact list and automatically sends malicious messages to each contact, […]

Pierluigi Paganini January 07, 2026
Fake Booking.com lures and BSoD scams spread DCRat in European hospitality sector

PHALT#BLYX targets European hotels with fake Booking emails and BSoD lures, tricking staff into installing the DCRat remote access trojan. Researchers uncovered a late-December 2025 campaign, dubbed PHALT#BLYX, targeting European hotels with fake Booking-themed emails. Victims are redirected to bogus BSoD pages using ClickFix-style lures that prompt them to apply “fixes.” The multi-stage attack ultimately […]

Pierluigi Paganini January 05, 2026
Russia-linked APT UAC-0184 uses Viber to spy on Ukrainian military in 2025

Russia-linked APT UAC-0184 targets Ukrainian military and government bodies via Viber, delivering malicious ZIP files for espionage in 2025. Russia-linked threat actor UAC-0184 (aka Hive0156) is targeting Ukrainian military and government entities, using Viber messages to deliver malicious ZIP files as part of ongoing intelligence-gathering operations in 2025. “Recent monitoring data from the 360 ​​Advanced […]

Pierluigi Paganini January 05, 2026
Kimwolf botnet leverages residential proxies to hijack 2M+ Android devices

The Kimwolf botnet has infected over 2 million Android devices, spreading mainly through residential proxy networks, researchers say. The Kimwolf botnet has compromised more than 2 million Android devices, spreading primarily via residential proxy networks, according to cybersecurity firm Synthient. Kimwolf is a newly discovered Android botnet linked to the Aisuru botnet that has infected over 1.8 […]

Pierluigi Paganini January 05, 2026
VVS Stealer, a new python malware steals Discord credentials

VVS Stealer is a Python-based malware that steals Discord credentials and tokens and has been sold on Telegram since at least April 2025. Palo Alto Networks researchers uncovered VVS Stealer, a Python-based malware that steals Discord credentials and tokens and has been sold on Telegram since at least April 2025. VVS Stealer uses the source […]

Pierluigi Paganini January 04, 2026
SECURITY AFFAIRS MALWARE NEWSLETTER ROUND 78

Security Affairs Malware newsletter includes a collection of the best articles and research on malware in the international landscape Malware Newsletter Evasive Panda APT poisons DNS requests to deliver MgBot   Spearphishing Campaign Abuses npm Registry to Target U.S. and Allied Manufacturing and Healthcare Organizations   EmEditor Supply Chain Incident Details Disclosed: Distribution of Information-Stealing Malware Sweeps […]

Pierluigi Paganini January 02, 2026
Two U.S. cybersecurity professionals plead guilty in BlackCat/Alphv ransomware case

Two U.S. cybersecurity professionals pleaded guilty to charges tied to their roles in BlackCat/Alphv ransomware attacks. The U.S. cybersecurity professionals Ryan Goldberg and Kevin Martin pleaded guilty to charges tied to their roles in BlackCat/Alphv ransomware attacks that occurred in 2023. Court records show Ryan Goldberg, Kevin Martin, and a co-conspirator deployed ALPHV BlackCat ransomware […]

Pierluigi Paganini December 30, 2025
Mustang Panda deploys ToneShell via signed kernel-mode rootkit driver

China-linked APT Mustang Panda used a signed kernel-mode rootkit driver to load shellcode and deploy its ToneShell backdoor. China-linked APT Mustang Panda (aka Hive0154, HoneyMyte, Camaro Dragon, RedDelta or Bronze President) was observed using a signed kernel-mode rootkit driver with embedded shellcode to deploy its ToneShell backdoor. Mustang Panda has been active since at least 2012, targeting American and European entities such as […]