Hacking Campaign Expands to More Regions Within Ukraine, Experts Warn of Cyber Threats

Kaspersky Unveils New Details on CommonMagic Campaign Targeting Ukraine

Kaspersky researchers recently disclosed further details regarding the CommonMagic campaign that was first observed back in March. The cybersecurity firm reported that a new framework of the CommonMagic campaign has been discovered and has expanded its activities to also target organizations in Central and Western Ukraine. Kaspersky also linked the unknown actor to previous advanced persistent threat (APT) campaigns such as Operation BugDrop and Operation Groundbai (Prikormka). The newly-discovered framework called CloudWizard utilizes nine modules to perform various malicious activities including gathering files, keylogging, capturing screenshots, recording microphone input, and password theft. Kaspersky found that one of these modules could exfiltrate data from Gmail accounts by extracting cookies from browser databases. This allows it to access and smuggle activity logs, contact lists, and all email messages from targeted accounts.

Geopolitical Factors Motivate APT Attacks

The prevailing tension be 通過 een Russia and Ukraine in the Eastern European conflict region remains a significant motivator for APT attacks. According to Georgy Kucherin, a security researcher at Kaspersky’s Global Research and Analysis Team, the actor behind these operations has been demonstrating a persistent commitment to cyberespionage, continuously enhancing their toolset and targeting organizations of interest for over fifteen years. Kucherin anticipates that this will continue for the foreseeable future and stresses the importance of taking adequate security measures to avoid becoming a victim of a targeted attack.

Attribution and Linkages to Previous Campaigns

Through their research, Kaspersky experts have made significant progress in attributing the malicious campaigns of Prikormka, Operation Groundbait, Operation BugDrop, CommonMagic, and CloudWizard to the same active threat actor. There are several similarities including code similarities, file naming and listing patterns, hosting by Ukrainian hosting services, and shared victim profiles. Furthermore, CloudWizard also bears resemblances to the recently reported campaign, CommonMagic. This attacker’s persistence and ongoing commitment to cyberespionage pose far-reaching threats to organizations in Ukraine and beyond.

Preventive Measures to Mitigate Cybersecurity Threats

To prevent falling victim to a targeted attack by known or unknown threat actors, Kaspersky recommends the following measures:

– Provide your SOC team with access to the latest threat intelligence
– Upskill your cybersecurity team to tackle the latest targeted threats with Kaspersky online training
– Implement EDR solutions such as Kaspersky Endpoint Detection and Response for endpoint-level detection, investigation, and timely remediation of incidents
– Implement corporate-level security solutions that detect advanced threats on the ne 通過 ork level at an early stage, such as Kaspersky Anti Targeted Attack Platform
– Introduce security awareness training and teach practical skills to your team, such as through the Kaspersky Automated Security Awareness Platform.

Editorial: The Ongoing Need for Improved Cybersecurity Measures

The case of the CommonMagic campaign highlights an ongoing need for improved cybersecurity measures worldwide. Threat actors with sufficient determination and resources can continuously create new and more sophisticated ways to infiltrate target systems. Therefore, organizations must regularly update their security measures and invest in employee cybersecurity awareness to prevent inadvertently falling victim to cyberattacks. There is an ongoing need to implement cyber protections with better analytics, automation, and intelligence to keep systems safe and minimize the potential for exposure to harmful data breaches.

Conclusion

The CommonMagic campaign further highlights the increasing complexity and persistence of threat actors and emphasizes the need for updated cybersecurity measures and training. Companies must stay vigilant, proactively work with experts such as Kaspersky to analyze all cyber threats and revise their security procedures accordingly. By doing so, they can make their systems more resilient and less susceptible to attacks and minimize the potential for significant disruptions to business operations, reputational damage, and financial loss.