TECHZONE™

Iran-Linked MuddyWater Hackers Target U.S. Networks With New Dindoor Backdoor https://thehackernews.com/2026/03/iran-linked-muddywater-hackers-target.html New research from Broadcom's Symantec and Carbon Black Threat Hunter Team has discovered evidence of an Iranian hacking group embedding itself in several U.S. companies' networks, including banks, airports, non-profit, and the Israeli arm of a software company. The activity has been attributed to a state-sponsored hacking group called MuddyWater (aka Seedworm). It's affiliated with the Iranian

China-Linked Hackers Use TernDoor, PeerTime, BruteEntry in South American Telecom Attacks https://thehackernews.com/2026/03/china-linked-hackers-use-terndoor.html A China-linked advanced persistent threat (APT) actor has been targeting critical telecommunications infrastructure in South America since 2024, targeting Windows and Linux systems and edge devices with three different implants. The activity is being tracked by Cisco Talos under the moniker UAT-9244, describing it as closely associated with another cluster known as FamousSparrow. It's worth

Microsoft Reveals ClickFix Campaign Using Windows Terminal to Deploy Lumma Stealer https://thehackernews.com/2026/03/microsoft-reveals-clickfix-campaign.html Microsoft on Thursday disclosed details of a new widespread ClickFix social engineering campaign that has leveraged the Windows Terminal app as a way to activate a sophisticated attack chain and deploy the Lumma Stealer malware. The activity, observed in February 2026, makes use of the terminal emulator program instead of instructing users to launch the Windows Run dialog and paste a command

Hikvision and Rockwell Automation CVSS 9.8 Flaws Added to CISA KEV Catalog https://thehackernews.com/2026/03/hikvision-and-rockwell-automation-cvss.html The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) on Thursday added two security flaws impacting Hikvision and Rockwell Automation products to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, citing evidence of active exploitation. The critical-severity vulnerabilities are listed below - CVE-2017-7921 (CVSS score: 9.8) - An improper authentication vulnerability affecting

How SMBs use threat research and MDR to build a defensive edge https://www.welivesecurity.com/en/business-security/how-smbs-use-threat-research-mdr-build-defensive-edge/ We speak to Director of ESET Threat Research Jean-Ian Boutin about where solutions that blend advanced technology with human expertise provide the most practical value for businesses

Cisco Confirms Active Exploitation of Two Catalyst SD-WAN Manager Vulnerabilities https://thehackernews.com/2026/03/cisco-confirms-active-exploitation-of.html Cisco has disclosed that two more vulnerabilities affecting Catalyst SD-WAN Manager (formerly SD-WAN vManage) have come under active exploitation in the wild. The vulnerabilities in question are listed below - CVE-2026-20122 (CVSS score: 7.1) - An arbitrary file overwrite vulnerability that could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to overwrite arbitrary files on the local file system.

Preparing for the Quantum Era: Post-Quantum Cryptography Webinar for Security Leaders https://thehackernews.com/2026/03/preparing-for-quantum-era-post-quantum.html Most organizations assume encrypted data is safe. But many attackers are already preparing for a future where today’s encryption can be broken. Instead of trying to decrypt information now, they are collecting encrypted data and storing it so it can be decrypted later using quantum computers. This tactic—known as “harvest now, decrypt later”—means sensitive data transmitted today could become

ThreatsDay Bulletin: DDR5 Bot Scalping, Samsung TV Tracking, Reddit Privacy Fine & More https://thehackernews.com/2026/03/threatsday-bulletin-redis-rce-ddr5-bot.html Some weeks in cybersecurity feel routine. This one doesn’t. Several new developments surfaced over the past few days, showing how quickly the threat landscape keeps shifting. Researchers uncovered fresh activity, security teams shared new findings, and a few unexpected moves from major tech companies also drew attention. Together, these updates offer a useful snapshot of what is happening

Dust Specter Targets Iraqi Officials with New SPLITDROP and GHOSTFORM Malware https://thehackernews.com/2026/03/dust-specter-targets-iraqi-officials.html A suspected Iran-nexus threat actor has been attributed to a campaign targeting government officials in Iraq by impersonating the country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs to deliver a set of never-before-seen malware. Zscaler ThreatLabz, which observed the activity in January 2026, is tracking the cluster under the name Dust Specter. The attacks, which manifest in the form of two different

Where Multi-Factor Authentication Stops and Credential Abuse Starts https://thehackernews.com/2026/03/where-multi-factor-authentication-stops.html Organizations typically roll out multi-factor authentication (MFA) and assume stolen passwords are no longer enough to access systems. In Windows environments, that assumption is often wrong. Attackers still compromise networks every day using valid credentials. The issue is not MFA itself, but coverage.  Enforced through an identity provider (IdP) such as Microsoft Entra ID, Okta, or

APT28-Linked Campaign Deploys BadPaw Loader and MeowMeow Backdoor in Ukraine https://thehackernews.com/2026/03/apt28-linked-campaign-deploys-badpaw.html Cybersecurity researchers have disclosed details of a new Russian cyber campaign that has targeted Ukrainian entities with two previously undocumented malware families named BadPaw and MeowMeow. "The attack chain initiates with a phishing email containing a link to a ZIP archive. Once extracted, an initial HTA file displays a lure document written in Ukrainian concerning border crossing appeals

Europol-Led Operation Takes Down Tycoon 2FA Phishing-as-a-Service Linked to 64,000 Attacks https://thehackernews.com/2026/03/europol-led-operation-takes-down-tycoon.html Tycoon 2FA, one of the prominent phishing-as-a-service (PhaaS) toolkits that allowed cybercriminals to stage adversary-in-the-middle (AitM) credential harvesting attacks at scale, was dismantled by a coalition of law enforcement agencies and security companies. The subscription-based phishing kit, which first emerged in August 2023, was described by Europol as one of the largest phishing

FBI and Europol Seize LeakBase Forum Used to Trade Stolen Credentials https://thehackernews.com/2026/03/fbi-and-europol-seize-leakbase-forum.html A joint law enforcement operation has dismantled LeakBase, one of the world's largest online forums for cybercriminals to buy and sell stolen data and cybercrime tools. The LeakBase forum, per the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ), had over 142,000 members and more than 215,000 messages between members as of December 2025. Those attempting to access the forum's website ("leakbase[.]la") are now

Protecting education: How MDR can tip the balance in favor of schools https://www.welivesecurity.com/en/business-security/protecting-education-how-mdr-can-tip-balance-favor-schools/ The education sector is notoriously short on cash, but rich in assets for threat actors to target. How can managed detection and response (MDR) help learning institutions regain the initiative?

149 Hacktivist DDoS Attacks Hit 110 Organizations in 16 Countries After Middle East Conflict https://thehackernews.com/2026/03/149-hacktivist-ddos-attacks-hit-110.html Cybersecurity researchers have warned of a surge in retaliatory hacktivist activity following the U.S.-Israel coordinated military campaign against Iran, codenamed Epic Fury and Roaring Lion. "The hacktivist threat in the Middle East is highly lopsided, with two groups, Keymous+ and DieNet, driving nearly 70% of all attack activity between February 28 and March 2," Radware said in a Tuesday

Coruna iOS Exploit Kit Uses 23 Exploits Across Five Chains Targeting iOS 13–17.2.1 https://thehackernews.com/2026/03/coruna-ios-exploit-kit-uses-23-exploits.html Google said it identified a "new and powerful" exploit kit dubbed Coruna (aka CryptoWaters) targeting Apple iPhone models running iOS versions between 13.0 and 17.2.1. The exploit kit featured five full iOS exploit chains and a total of 23 exploits, Google Threat Intelligence Group (GTIG) said. It's not effective against the latest version of iOS. The findings were first reported by WIRED. "The

New RFP Template for AI Usage Control and AI Governance  https://thehackernews.com/2026/03/new-rfp-template-for-ai-usage-control.html As AI becomes the central engine for enterprise productivity, security leaders are finally getting the green light — and the budget — to secure it. But there’s a quiet crisis unfolding in the boardroom: many organizations know they need "AI Governance," but they have no idea what they are actually looking for. The CISO’s Dilemma: You Have the AI Budget, but Do You Have the Requirements? As AI

Fake Laravel Packages on Packagist Deploy RAT on Windows, macOS, and Linux https://thehackernews.com/2026/03/fake-laravel-packages-on-packagist.html Cybersecurity researchers have flagged malicious Packagist PHP packages masquerading as Laravel utilities that act as a conduit for a cross-platform remote access trojan (RAT) that's functional on Windows, macOS, and Linux systems. The names of the packages are listed below - nhattuanbl/lara-helper (37 Downloads) nhattuanbl/simple-queue (29 Downloads) nhattuanbl/lara-swagger (49 Downloads)

APT41-Linked Silver Dragon Targets Governments Using Cobalt Strike and Google Drive C2 https://thehackernews.com/2026/03/apt41-linked-silver-dragon-targets.html Cybersecurity researchers have disclosed details of an advanced persistent threat (APT) group dubbed Silver Dragon that has been linked to cyber attacks targeting entities in Europe and Southeast Asia since at least mid-2024. "Silver Dragon gains its initial access by exploiting public-facing internet servers and by delivering phishing emails that contain malicious attachments," Check Point said

CISA Adds Actively Exploited VMware Aria Operations Flaw CVE-2026-22719 to KEV Catalog https://thehackernews.com/2026/03/cisa-adds-actively-exploited-vmware.html The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) on Tuesday added a recently disclosed security flaw impacting Broadcom VMware Aria Operations to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, citing active exploitation in the wild. The high-severity vulnerability, CVE-2026-22719 (CVSS score: 8.1), has been described as a case of command injection that could allow an