Greetings, Spear phishing is experiencing a significant surge, marked by a rise in both prevalence and sophistication. Cyber Criminals employ highly targeted techniques to deceive their victims, demonstrating a precision that focuses on specific individuals or organisations. The particularly concerning aspect of these attacks lies in their high success rate, attributed to their effectiveness in appearing genuine. A joint advisory from key nations – Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States, highlights the spear phishing techniques employed by the Russian state-based actor, Star Blizzard. This advisory aims to raise awareness regarding the increasingly sophisticated tactics used by cyber adversaries to target individuals and organisations globally. Notably these techniques are commonly directed at sectors such as academia, defence, governmental organisations, NGO’s (Non-Governmental Organisations), and political figures. While Star Blizzard has predominately targeted the UK and US, the advisory serves as a global warning, urging everyone to remain vigilant. The evolving nature of these attacks necessitates a collective effort to stay informed and proactive against the growing threats. The advisory provides valuable insights into spear-phishing campaigns and offers guidance on recognising potential signs of deception. In spear-phishing campaigns, cybercriminals gather detailed information about their targets including names, titles, and relationships. This level of personalisation makes these phishing attempts more convincing and challenging to identify. The perpetrators often impersonate high-ranking executives of trusted individuals within an organisation, manipulating employees into divulging sensitive information or performing actions that could compromise security. The emails appear very legitimate as they often use cloned email templates from the target organisation, increasing the likelihood that recipients will trust and act upon them. This method usually involves social engineering tactics, manipulating human psychology to exploit trust or authority. Attackers may leverage information from social media, organisational information, or other sources to craft convincing and targeted messages. Staying informed about these tactics and remaining vigilant are crucial steps in fortifying defences against such deceptive cyber threats. Empower your employees by allocating resources for training and investing in broader education and awareness initiatives. Head to our website for more information on upcoming training courses for 2024! Adobe Patches 207 Security Bugs in Mega Patch Tuesday Bundle Date: 2023-12-12 Author: Security Week [Please see AUSCERT Bulletins: ESB-2023.7419, ESB-2023.7418, ESB-2023.7413] Adobe warned users on both Windows and macOS systems about exposure to code execution, memory leaks and denial-of-service security issues. Software maker Adobe on Tuesday rolled out fixes for code execution flaws in the enterprise-facing Illustrator, Substance 3D Sampler and After Effects products. Microsoft December 2023 Patch Tuesday fixes 34 flaws, 1 zero-day Date: 2023-12-12 Author: Bleeping Computer [Please see AUSCERT Bulletins: ASB-2023.(0230 – 0235)] Today is Microsoft's December 2023 Patch Tuesday, which includes security updates for a total of 34 flaws and one previously disclosed, unpatched vulnerability in AMD CPUs. While eight remote code execution (RCE) bugs were fixed, Microsoft only rated three as critical. In total, there were four critical vulnerabilities, with one in Power Platform (Spoofing), two in Internet Connection Sharing (RCE), and one in Windows MSHTML Platform (RCE). Critical Vulnerability in popular Java framework Apache Struts2 Date: 2023-12-14 Author: ACSC [Please see AUSCERT bulletin: https://portal.auscert.org.au/bulletins/ESB-2023.7339.2] A Critical RCE vulnerability has been found in the Apache Struts2 Framework with ‘flawed file upload logic’. This can allow a temporary file upload to instead be uploaded to any directories and allow execution, such as the deployment of a web shell. Patches have been released for the framework itself, but mitigation will also require vendors applying these patches in all applications which use the framework. This includes multiple enterprise-oriented web applications. Exploitation attempts have been observed globally. UniFi devices broadcasted private video to other users’ accounts Date: 2023-12-15 Author: Ars Technica Users of UniFi, the popular line of wireless devices from manufacturer Ubiquiti, are reporting receiving private camera feeds from, and control over, devices belonging to other users, posts published to social media site Reddit over the past 24 hours show. “Recently, my wife received a notification from UniFi Protect, which included an image from a security camera,” one Reddit user reported. “However, here's the twist—this camera doesn't belong to us.” WordPress 6.4.2 Patches Remote Code Execution Vulnerability Date: 2023-12-08 Author: Security Week WordPress last week released a security update for the popular content management system (CMS) to address a remote code execution (RCE) vulnerability. The flaw addressed in the open source CMS is a property oriented programming (POP) chain issue introduced in WordPress core 6.4. It can be combined with a different object injection flaw, allowing attackers to execute PHP code on vulnerable websites. Apple Ships iOS 17.2 With Urgent Security Patches Date: 2023-12-11 Author: Security Week [Please see AUSCERT Bulletin: https://portal.auscert.org.au/bulletins/ESB-2023.7367] Apple on Monday rolled out security-themed iOS and iPadOS refreshes to address multiple serious vulnerabilities that expose mobile users to malicious hacker attacks. The newest iOS 17.2 and iPadOS 17.2 contains fixes for at least 11 documented security defects, some serious enough to lead to arbitrary code execution or app sandbox escapes. ASB-2023.0230 – ALERT Microsoft Windows: CVSS (Max): 8.8 Microsoft has released its monthly security patch update for December 2023 which resolves 25 vulnerabilities in Windows and Windows Server. ESB-2023.7367 – iOS 17.2 and iPadOS 17.2: CVSS (Max): 7.1* The newest iOS 17.2 and iPadOS 17.2 rollout addresses a number of security issues , some serious enough to lead to arbitrary code execution or app sandbox escapes. ESB-2023.7339.2 – UPDATE Apache Struts: CVSS (Max): None A Critical RCE vulnerability has been found in the Apache Struts2 which has been exploited in the wild. Patches have been released and it is strongly recommended that IT Administrators take immediate action to apply these patches and ensure the security of their systems. ESB-2023.7344 – WordPress: CVSS (Max): None WordPress has released WordPress 6.4.2. for the popular content management system to address a remote code execution vulnerability. Site owners and administrators are advised to update to the fixed CMS version as soon as possible. ESB-2023.7413 – Adobe Illustrator: CVSS (Max): 7.8 Adobe has released an update for Adobe Illustrator 2023 and 2024. This update resolves critical vulnerabilities that could lead to arbitrary code execution. Stay safe, stay patched and have a good weekend! The AUSCERT team

Greetings, Automation has long been recognized as the future, but is the future already upon us? The emergence of next-generation connectivity, exemplified by autonomous vehicles and smart cities, signals the dawn of a new era in digital infrastructure. The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced robotics is propelling automation to new heights, revolutionizing productivity across diverse industries. In this transformative landscape, building our capabilities in these cutting-edge technologies becomes imperative. Doing so ensures that we not only keep up with change but also position ourselves to capitalize on emerging opportunities as they arise. New emerging technologies are likely to transform cyber roles and reshape skill requirements as automated tools assume greater responsibility for core network protection functions. Minister Clare O’Neil has outlined the critical role of automation in the 2023-2030 Cyber Security Strategy. In response to cybercriminals increasingly employing sophisticated technologies to automate ransomware attacks, the strategy advocates a proactive approach through the deployment of automated threat detectors. Essentially, the strategy recognizes automation as a cornerstone in the ongoing battle against cyber threats. The investment in automated solutions and real-time collaboration underscores a commitment to staying ahead in the dynamic cybersecurity landscape, ensuring a robust defence against emerging cyber threats. Successfully implementing automation relies heavily on a strong foundation of clear definitions, guidelines, and processes Often organisations struggle with automation due to a lack of well-documented processes and limited staffing resources. This along with other factors such as maturity and process monitorability, contributes to the challenges security teams face when implementing automation. Successful automation requires a pragmatic approach where teams identify and prioritize processes that are feasible and provide the greatest impact on efficiency and risk reduction. To conclude we would like to remind you of the webinar discussion we have coming up next week designed to support you with the development and submission of your presentations for AUSCERT2024! Register here Atlassian patches critical RCE flaws across multiple products Date: 2023-12-06 Author: Bleeping Computer [AUSCERT has identified the impacted members (where possible) and contacted them via email]. [See AUSCERT bulletins: ESB-2023.7312, ESB-2023.7311, ESB-2023.7310, ESB-2023.7308] Atlassian has published security advisories for four critical remote code execution (RCE) vulnerabilities impacting Confluence, Jira, and Bitbucket servers, along with a companion app for macOS. VMware fixes critical Cloud Director auth bypass unpatched for 2 weeks Date: 2023-12-01 Author: Bleeping Computer [Please see AUSCERT bulletin: https://portal.auscert.org.au/bulletins/ESB-2023.6704.2] VMware has fixed a critical authentication bypass vulnerability in Cloud Director appliance deployments, a bug that was left unpatched for over two weeks since it was disclosed on November 14th. Cloud Director is a VMware platform that enables admins to manage data centers spread across multiple locations as Virtual Data Centers (VDC). The auth bypass security flaw (CVE-2023-34060) only impacts appliances running VCD Appliance 10.5 that were previously upgraded from an older release. However, VMware says it doesn't affect fresh VCD Appliance 10.5 installs, Linux deployments, and other appliances. "Sierra:21" vulnerabilities impact critical infrastructure routers Date: 2023-12-06 Author: Bleeping Computer [Please see AUSCERT bulletin: https://portal.auscert.org.au/bulletins/ESB-2023.7318] A set of 21 newly discovered vulnerabilities impact Sierra OT/IoT routers and threaten critical infrastructure with remote code execution, unauthorized access, cross-site scripting, authentication bypass, and denial of service attacks. The flaws discovered by Forescout Vedere Labs affect Sierra Wireless AirLink cellular routers and open-source components like TinyXML and OpenNDS (open Network Demarcation Service). AirLink routers are highly regarded in the field of industrial and mission-critical applications due to high-performance 3G/4G/5G and WiFi and multi-network connectivity. Nissan discloses cyber incident in Australia and NZ Date: 2023-12-07 Author: iTnews Carmaker Nissan is investigating a cyber incident affecting undisclosed systems used by its Australian and New Zealand operations. The company said in a statement overlaid on its homepage that the “Australian and New Zealand Nissan Corporation and Financial Services advises that its systems have been subject to a cyber incident.” Apple fixes two new iOS zero-days in emergency updates Date: 2023-12-30 Author: Bleeping Computer [Please see AUSCERT bulletin: https://portal.auscert.org.au/bulletins/ESB-2023.7211] Apple released emergency security updates to fix two zero-day vulnerabilities exploited in attacks and impacting iPhone, iPad, and Mac devices, reaching 20 zero-days patched since the start of the year. "Apple is aware of a report that this issue may have been exploited against versions of iOS before iOS 16.7.1," the company said in an advisory issued on Wednesday. Establishing New Rules for Cyber Warfare Date: 2023-12-05 Author: Dark Reading The efforts of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to establish rules of engagement to combatants in a cyberwar should be applauded internationally, even if adherence is likely to be limited. The ICRC recently released a set of rules for civilian hackers involved in conflicts to follow in order to clarify the line between civilians and combatants, as cyberspace can be a blurry place to work in — especially during a war. ESB-2023.6704.2 – UPDATE VMware Cloud Director Appliance: CVSS (Max): 9.8 VMware has released Cloud Director Appliance 10.5.1 to fix the authentication bypass vulnerability reported in November 2023. ESB-2023.7318 – Sierra Wireless AirLink with ALEOS firmware: CVSS (Max): 8.1 Multiple vulnerabilities have been reported in Sierra Wireless AirLink with ALEOS which if exploited could result in a cross site scripting or denial-of-service attack. ESB-2023.7309 – Google Chrome: CVSS (Max): None Google announced the release of Chrome 120 to the stable channel for Mac,Linux and Windows. This update contains patches for 10 vulnerabilities. ESB-2023.7308 – ALERT Confluence Data Center and Confluence Server: CVSS (Max): 9.0 The Template Injection vulnerability in Confluence Data Center and Server allows an authenticated attacker to inject unsafe user input into a Confluence page which could result in a RCE attack on an affected instance. Atlassian recommends applying patches to the affected installations. ESB-2023.7339.2 – UPDATE Apache Struts: CVSS (Max): None The Apache Struts group has released Apache Struts versions 6.3.0.2 & 2.5.33 to address a potential security vulnerability identified as CVE-2023-50164. Stay safe, stay patched and have a good weekend! The AUSCERT team

Greetings, As December unfolds and ushers in the enchanting Christmas season, a wave of joy and warmth embraces us. It’s that magical time when we dust off cherished decorations and unwrap trees, inviting a festive cheer into our lives. May your December days be adorned with happiness, love and the spirit of giving as we immerse ourselves in the holiday spirit! On that note this year’s theme for AUSCERT2024 highlights the significant influence that everyone’s actions can carry within the broader cyber community. It promotes the idea of passing it forward by demonstrating how shared knowledge and collaboration can create a ripple effect, strengthening the entire cyber industry. Submit a presentation and contributing to the growth and development of our community. Join our upcoming webinar discussion to gain support in enhancing your presentation skills In cyber news this week, the Queensland Parliament has successfully enacted a mandatory data breach notification scheme, set to impact state agencies from mid-2025 and local governments from mid-2026. Government agencies will be subject to new requirements for managing personal information, after the ‘Information Privacy and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2023’ was passed by parliament on Wednesday. Under the scheme, agencies must notify affected individuals and the Office of the Information Commissioner of data breaches that have the potential to result in serious harm. This proactive notification process empowers individuals by enabling them to take decisive action to manage risks and mitigate potential harm arising from a data breach. Mandating notification underscores the importance of data security for agencies, prompting a more proactive approach to preventing and managing data breaches.In essence, this legislative measure not only safeguards individuals but also serves as a catalyst for improved data security practices within government entities. Queensland has become only the second state to legislate a mandatory data breach notification scheme for public sector entities, along with NSW. In other news, the ACSC Essential Eight Maturity Model (E8MM) was recently updated to better assist organisations in protecting their digital assets against cyber threats. Key focus areas for this update have included balancing patching timeframes, increasing adoption of phishing-resistant multifactor authentication, supporting management of cloud services, and performing incident detection and response for internet-facing infrastructure. Critical bug in ownCloud file sharing app exposes admin passwords Date: 2023-11-24 Author: Bleeping Computer [AUSCERT has identified the impacted members (where possible) and contacted them via email] Open source file sharing software ownCloud is warning of three critical-severity security vulnerabilities, including one that can expose administrator passwords and mail server credentials. ownCloud is an open-source file sync and sharing solution designed for individuals and organizations wishing to manage and share files through a self-hosted platform. It is used by businesses and enterprises, educational institutes, government agencies, and privacy-conscious individuals who prefer to maintain control over their data rather than hosting it at third-party cloud storage providers. Essential Eight Maturity Model Update Date: 2023-11-27 Author: ASD As the Australian Signals Directorate (ASD) is committed to providing cyber security advice that is contemporary, fit for purpose and practical, the Essential Eight Maturity Model (E8MM) is updated annually. In doing so, it is designed to assist organisations in protecting their internet-connected information technology networks against common cyber threats. Key focus areas for this update have included balancing patching timeframes, increasing adoption of phishing-resistant multifactor authentication, supporting management of cloud services, and performing incident detection and response for internet-facing infrastructure. AI systems ‘subject to new types of vulnerabilities,’ British and US cyber agencies warn Date: 2023-11-28 Author: The Record “AI systems are subject to new types of vulnerabilities,” the 20-page document warns — specifically referring to machine-learning tools. The new guidelines have been agreed upon by 18 countries, including the members of the G7, a group that does not include China or Russia. The guidance classifies these vulnerabilities within three categories: those “affecting the model’s classification or regression performance”; those “allowing users to perform unauthorized actions”; and those involving users “extracting sensitive model information.” Guidelines for secure AI system development Date: 2023-11-27 Author: NCSC This document recommends guidelines for providers of any systems that use artificial intelligence (AI), whether those systems have been created from scratch or built on top of tools and services provided by others. Implementing these guidelines will help providers build AI systems that function as intended, are available when needed, and work without revealing sensitive data to unauthorised parties. Okta Breach Impacted All Customer Support Users—Not 1 Percent Date: 2023-11-29 Author: WIRED In late October, the identity management platform Okta began notifying its users of a breach of its customer support system. The company said at the time that about 1 percent of its 18,400 customers were impacted by the incident. But in a massive expansion of this estimate early this morning, Okta said that its investigation has uncovered additional evidence that, in fact, all of its customers had data stolen in the breach two months ago. ESB-2023.7196 – Tenable Nessus: CVSS (Max): 9.8 Several of the third-party components (HandlebarsJS, OpenSSL, and jquery-file-upload) were found to contain vulnerabilities, and updated versions have been made available by the providers ESB-2023.7117 – ALERT Google Chrome: CVSS (Max): None The Stable channel has been updated to 119.0.6045.199 for Mac and Linux and 119.0.6045.199/.200 for Windows. This update includes 7 security fixes ESB-2023.7077 – Perl: CVSS (Max): 9.8 Perl incorrectly handled printing certain warning messages. An attacker could possibly use this issue to cause Perl to consume resources, leading to a denial of service. This issue only affected Ubuntu 22.04 LTS. ( CVE-2022-48522 ) ESB-2023.7135 – Delta Electronics InfraSuite Device Master: CVSS (Max): 9.8 Successful exploitation of these vulnerabilities could allow an attacker to remotely execute arbitrary code and obtain plaintext credentials ESB-2023.7211 – ALERT Apple: CVSS (Max): None Apple is aware of a report that this issue may have been exploited against some versions of iOS Stay safe, stay patched and have a good weekend! The AUSCERT team

Greetings, This week we released a new episode of our Share Today, Save Tomorrow podcast – episode 28: Cyber Artefacts. In this episode Anthony sits down with Mike Pritchard from Cydarm Technologies to discuss Mike’s passion for collecting hardware artefacts that provide insights into the history of cyber security. Mike showcases extraordinary artefacts dating back 60-70 years, offering a glimpse into the foundations of the computer industry. In the final part of the episode, Anthony hands over to Bek Cheb, AUSCERT’s Business Manager, who has a chat with our Principal Analyst, Mark Carey-Smith, about AUSCERT2024 and the exceptional mentoring support available for speakers. If you’re interested in speaking at AUSCERT2024 but are unsure about what to present or struggling to choose a topic, we’re hosting a webinar to address any concerns and guide you through the process of formulating a concept for your presentation. If you’d like to attend, please register here AUSCERT is thrilled to introduce a new service for our members – AusMISP. So, what is AusMISP, you might be asking? Well, AusMISP is a platform that facilitates the sharing of threat intelligence with members. The platform features a shared curated feed of threat indicators that members can utilise to enhance their network security. This collaborative effort includes threat intelligence acquired from trusted communities and organisations, contributing to the enhancement of members' cyber security posture. For our higher education members, we have an existing special sector specific platform AHECS ISAC, which includes AusMISP data and additional threat indicators relevant to this sector. Eager to learn more about AusMISP and exactly what it entails? Head to our website or message our membership team who can provide you with a Starter Guide and other resources to help your organisation implement it as part of your cyber security strategy! To conclude if you’re looking for some captivating reading this weekend, then delve into the “Australia’s Strategic Vision in Cyber Security” written by Sasenka Abeysooriya, Program Director and Senior Strategic Advisor at UQ and AUSCERT Director and UQ CISO David Stockdale. The article summarises the visionary leadership, strategic layers of defence, and the broader implications of Australia’s 2023-2030 Cyber Security Strategy. Securing Customer Personal Data for Small to Medium Businesses Date: 2023-11-17 Author: ASD The latest Annual Cyber Threat Report found that cybercrime reports have increased compared to data from the previous year, with one report now received every 6 minutes. During the 2022-23 financial year, the cost of cybercrime to businesses increased by 14%. Per cybercrime report, small businesses experienced an average financial loss of $46,000, while cybercrime cost medium businesses an average of $97,200. The Australian Signals Directorate’s Australian Cyber Security Centre (ASD’s ACSC) has launched a new publication on Securing Customer Personal Data for Small and Medium Businesses. Gov commits $18.2m for SME cyber security boost Date: 2023-11-21 Author: iTnews The federal government has announced two initiatives aimed at boosting support to small and medium businesses (SMEs) to fortify their cyber security skills. The government has promised $7.2 million to set up a voluntary cyber health-check program, enabling access to a free, self-assessments of cyber security maturity. It’s also committed another $11 million towards the Small Business Cyber Resilience Service, which offers one-on-one assistance towards cyber challenges, and covers cyber attack recovery. Malware dev says they can revive expired Google auth cookies Date: 2023-11-21 Author: Bleeping Computer The Lumma information-stealer malware (aka 'LummaC2') is promoting a new feature that allegedly allows cybercriminals to restore expired Google cookies, which can be used to hijack Google accounts. Session cookies are specific web cookies used to allow a browsing session to log in to a website's services automatically. As these cookies allow anyone possessing them to log in to the owner's account, they commonly have a limited lifespan for security reasons to prevent misuse if stolen. Researchers want more detail on industrial control system alerts Date: 2023-11-22 Author: CyberScoop At the beginning of July, Rockwell Automation released a security advisory about a vulnerability in one of its products. Working with the U.S. government, the company said it had become aware that a state-backed hacking unit had developed the ability to run malicious code on the communication modules of an industrial controller. The company wouldn’t identify who had this ability to attack its products and an accompanying advisory from the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency said there were no known instances of the vulnerability being exploited in the wild. Cybersecurity Investment Involves More Than Just Technology Date: 2023-11-17 Author: Dark Reading Organizations are looking for a "high value for money" when deciding how to allocate their cybersecurity budgets, and there is a "greater focus on getting value from existing resources," according to S-RM's "Cyber Security Insights Report 2023." The report, which reflects responses from 600 C-suite business leaders and senior IT professionals within large organizations, found that the top five investment areas were cybersecurity technologies (49%), threat intelligence (46%), risk assessment (42%), cyber insurance (42%), and third-party risk management (40%). Fewer organizations highlighted technology as good value for money in 2023 (49%) than in 2022 (58%). ESB-2023.6886 – Tenable Security Center: CVSS (Max): 8.8 Tenable Security Center has been updated to address vulnerabilities affecting third-party components ESB-2023.6945 – Atlassian Products: CVSS (Max): 8.5 Several high severity vulnerabilities have been patched in various Atlassian products ESB-2023.6949 – Firefox: CVSS (Max): 7.5 Mozilla has updated Firefox to address multiple vulnerabilities ESB-2023.6997 – Intel NUC Software Products: CVSS (Max): 8.8 Intel has addressed several vulnerabilities affecting NUC Software products in its quarterly update Stay safe, stay patched and have a good weekend! The AUSCERT team

Greetings, With Black Friday sales already underway, it’s a good reminder to remain vigilant. Each year the deals claim to be bigger and better, drawing people into excessive spending. Cyber criminals have become very sophisticated in exploiting this opportunity to execute cyber attacks. Educate your family and friends on the potential dangers of online shopping during this time! This week, the Australian Signals Directorate (ASD) released its annual cyber security threat report,revealing some very concerning statistics. The report indicates that cyber crimes continued to be a pervasive and endemic threat to Australia’s economic and social prosperity throughout 2022-23. Australia is perceived as a very popular target due to its booming e-commerce industry and relative wealth. The report revealed the most common cyber attacks on individuals consisted of identity fraud, online banking fraud and online shopping fraud. For Australian businesses, the cost of cyber crime has climbed by 14% with the most identified attack being compromised emails. Business email compromise fraud continues to significantly impact businesses with almost $80 million in reported losses. Malicious cyber actors often exploit unpatched and misconfigured systems or take advantage of weak or re-used credentials to access systems and networks. To defend against email attacks, set aside time for regular cyber security training and ensure staff are cautious of emails that contain requests for payment of change of bank details Thankfully for our nation we have a proactive Cyber Security Minister, Clare O’Neil, who understands the growing concerns of individuals and businesses and is taking proactive steps to mitigate these threats to our economy. Ms O’Neil is planning to create new legislation that would classify telecommunication companies as critical infrastructure for the first time, requiring company boards to comply with strict rules that already cover hospitals, utilities, ports, and energy generation assets. Following the high-profile Optus attack last year and nationwide network outage last week, the Australian government believes it is necessary to include telcos under the Security of Critical Infrastructure Act. This means they will now be required to sign off on a new cyber risk management program every year or face potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars in penalties. To conclude, we are excited to notify you our Call for Presentations for AUSCERT2024 is now open! Submit your papers today! Microsoft Warns of Critical Bugs Being Exploited in the Wild Date: 2023-11-14 Author: Security Week [Please see AUSCERT bulletins: https://portal.auscert.org.au/bulletins/ASB-2023.0226 and https://portal.auscert.org.au/bulletins/ASB-2023.0223] The world’s largest software maker Microsoft on Tuesday released patches with cover for at least 59 documented security vulnerabilities, including a pair of critical-severity zero-days already being exploited in the wild. Redmond’s security response team documented a wide range of security defects in a range of Windows OS and components and called special attention to two vulnerabilities — CVE-2023-36033 and CVE-2023-36036 — being exploited in active attacks. LockBit ransomware exploits Citrix Bleed in attacks, 10K servers exposed Date: 2023-11-14 Author: Bleeping Computer [AUSCERT identified the impacted members (where possible) and notified them via email on 11 October 2023] [We urge impacted members to promptly apply the patches in accordance with the vendor's recommendations, if they have not already done so] The Lockbit ransomware attacks use publicly available exploits for the Citrix Bleed vulnerability (CVE-2023-4966) to breach the systems of large organizations, steal data, and encrypt files. Although Citrix made fixes available for CVE-2023-4966 more than a month ago, thousands of internet-exposed endpoints are still running vulnerable appliances, many in the U.S. Novel backdoor persists even after critical Confluence vulnerability is patched Date: 2023-11-14 Author: The Register [AUSCERT identified the impacted members (where possible) and notified them via email on 01 November 2023] [We urge impacted members to promptly apply the patches in accordance with the vendor's recommendations, if they have not already done so] A new backdoor was this week found implanted in the environments of organizations to exploit the recently disclosed critical vulnerability in Atlassian Confluence. The backdoor provides attackers remote access to a victim, both its Confluence server and other network resources, and is found to persist even after Confluence patches are applied. Azure CLI credential leak part of Microsoft's monthly patch rollup Date: 2023-11-15 Author: iTnews [Please see AUSCERT bulletin: https://portal.auscert.org.au/bulletins/ASB-2023.0224] One of the critical vulnerabilities, CVE-2023-36052, is important enough to receive a detailed technical discussion in this blog post. The bug leaks credentials to GitHub Actions logs through the Azure command-line interface (CLI). Aviad Hahami of Palo Alto’s Prisma Cloud found that Azure CLI commands could be used to show sensitive data and output to continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD) logs, Microsoft explained. Intel patches high-severity vulnerability affecting central processing units Date: 2023-11-15 Author: The Record The U.S. chip manufacturer Intel has patched a high-severity vulnerability affecting central processing units in its desktop, mobile and server products. The successful exploitation of the bug could allow hackers to gain higher-level access to the system, obtain sensitive information and even cause the machine to crash. The vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2023-23583 and codenamed Reptar, carries the CVSS severity score of 8.8 out of 10. There haven't been any reported incidents of an attack through Reptar in the wild. CISA warns of actively exploited Juniper pre-auth RCE exploit chain Date: 2023-11-13 Author: Bleeping Computer CISA warned federal agencies today to secure Juniper devices on their networks by Friday against four vulnerabilities now used in remote code execution (RCE) attacks as part of a pre-auth exploit chain. The alert comes one week after Juniper updated its advisory to notify customers that the flaws found in Juniper's J-Web interface (tracked as CVE-2023-36844, CVE-2023-36845, CVE-2023-36846, and CVE-2023-36847) have been successfully exploited in the wild. "Juniper SIRT is now aware of successful exploitation of these vulnerabilities. Customers are urged to immediately upgrade," the company said. ESB-2023.6749 – FortiSIEM: CVSS (Max): 9.3 Fortinet has recently identified a critical vulnerability in the FortiSIEM report server. This vulnerability involves an OS command injection and could potentially be exploited by remote, unauthenticated attackers. By sending specially crafted API requests, these attackers may be able to execute arbitrary commands on the affected system. It is crucial for customers to be aware of this vulnerability and take appropriate measures to mitigate the risk. ESB-2023.6734 – Google Chrome: CVSS (Max): None Google has released an update for the Google Chrome Stable channel. The update version 119.0.6045.159 is specifically for Mac and Linux users, while Windows users will receive either version 119.0.6045.159 or 119.0.6045.160. It is recommended that users of Google Chrome on these platforms update to the latest version to ensure they have the most recent security enhancements and bug fixes. ESB-2023.6639 – Adobe ColdFusion: CVSS (Max): 9.8 Adobe has released an update for ColdFusion that addresses critical vulnerabilities. These vulnerabilities have the potential to result in the deserialization of untrusted data, improper access control, and other security issues ASB-2023.0223 – ALERT Microsoft Windows: CVSS (Max): 9.8* Microsoft has recently issued its monthly security patch update for November 2023. This update addresses a total of 32 vulnerabilities found in Windows and Windows Server. It is important to note that Microsoft has confirmed the active exploitation of CVE-36025, CVE-2023-36033, and CVE-2023-36036. ESB-2023.6704 – VMware Cloud Director Appliance: CVSS (Max): 9.8 An authentication bypass vulnerability has been identified in VMware Cloud Director Appliance with the CVE identifier CVE-2023-34060. This vulnerability affects VMware products that have been upgraded to version 10.5 from a previous version. To address this issue, updates have been released by VMware Stay safe, stay patched and have a good weekend! The AUSCERT team

Greetings, Thirty-five years ago the ‘Morris Worm’ carved a path of destruction and chaos that inadvertently triggered a ripple effect of events, paving the way for the thriving cyber security industry we have today. Prior to this incident, cyber security wasn’t really a consideration by the public. However, this event, along with subsequent ones, quickly changed peoples' perspectives. Although many within the field already familiar with the story may see it as a ‘ho-hum’ history tale, it’s important to remember that understanding our history is crucial for building a stronger future. Robert Morris Jr, intent on discovering how big the internet was, accidentally set loose the first ever internet worm upon thousands of computers. The young grad student was completing his graduate degree at Cornell when he launched the experiment that would change the cyber world forever. Previously no attack had affected so many computers, taking down systems in government facilities, hospitals, and military bases in addition to privately owned computers. The experiment resulted in US$100,000 – 10,000,000 dollars’ worth of damage, taking hundreds of people days to clean up the mess left in its wake. This event became a tale of caution to many students studying in the field as probing vulnerabilities out of curiosity can have huge detrimental and unintended consequences. In response to incidents like the Morris Worm, the concept of Computer Emergency Response Teams (CERTs) emerged, highlighting the need for coordinated efforts to respond to and mitigate cyber incidents. Some key takeaways from incidents like the Morris Worm include the importance of proactive measures, the need for rapid incident response teams and the continuous evolution of security measures to stay ahead of emerging threats. In the context of growth and development we should not dismiss the past but instead learn from it. Click here to read more insights about the event from industry luminary Gene Spafford. What better way to create your own ripple effect in the community than by contributing your time and expertise to our upcoming AUSCERT2024 conference? Your knowledge and skills have the potential to create a significant impact and further advance the industry. Call for Tutorials submissions portal is closing today, so don’t miss out! Presentation submissions will be opening on November 16, next week! We invite anyone within the industry interested in speaking at the conference to submit a proposal. We offer excellent benefits such as travel and accommodation, as well as mentoring support for speakers. Additionally, sponsorship opportunities are also now available on our website. Critical Atlassian Confluence bug exploited in Cerber ransomware attacks Date: 2023-11-06 Author: Bleeping Computer Attackers are exploiting a recently patched and critical severity Atlassian Confluence authentication bypass flaw to encrypt victims' files using Cerber ransomware. Described by Atlassian as an improper authorization vulnerability and tracked as CVE-2023-22518, this bug received a 9.1/10 severity rating, and it affects all versions of Confluence Data Center and Confluence Server software. Veeam warns of critical bugs in Veeam ONE monitoring platform Date: 2023-11-06 Author: Bleeping Computer [AUSCERT has directly notified members about this vulnerability where possible] Veeam released hotfixes today to address four vulnerabilities in the company's Veeam ONE IT infrastructure monitoring and analytics platform, two of them critical. The company assigned almost maximum severity ratings (9.8 and 9.9/10 CVSS base scores) to the critical security flaws since they let attackers gain remote code execution (RCE) and steal NTLM hashes from vulnerable servers. The remaining two are medium-severity bugs that require user interaction or have limited impact. Hacker Leaks 35 Million Scraped LinkedIn User Records Date: 2023-11-07 Author: Hack Read The scraped LinkedIn database was leaked in two parts: one part contained 5 million user records, while the second part contained 35 million records. A LinkedIn database, holding the personal information of over 35 million users, was leaked by a hacker operating under the alias USDoD. The database was leaked on the infamous cybercrime and hacker platform, Breach Forums. Government looks at passwordless access for myGov Date: 2023-11-09 Author: iTnews The federal government intends to change how citizens authenticate to the myGov system from next year, moving to passwordless approaches such as passkeys and facial recognition. At the press conference, government services minister Bill Shorten said the government planned to "upgrade the security of the myGov system." He said myGov "will benefit from a number of changes to how customers can sign-in, ensuring that accounts and personal information remain protected.” New Microsoft Exchange zero-days allow RCE, data theft attacks Date: 2023-11-03 Author: Bleeping Computer Microsoft Exchange is impacted by four zero-day vulnerabilities that attackers can exploit remotely to execute arbitrary code or disclose sensitive information on affected installations. The zero-day vulnerabilities were disclosed by Trend Micro's Zero Day Initiative (ZDI) yesterday, who reported them to Microsoft on September 7th and 8th, 2023. Despite Microsoft acknowledging the reports, its security engineers decided the flaws weren't severe enough to guarantee immediate servicing, postponing the fixes for later. ESB-2023.6043.3 – UPDATED ALERT Cisco iOS XE Software: CVSS (Max): 10.0 Cisco provided fixes as a result of an ongoing investigation into observed exploitation of the web UI feature in Cisco IOS XE software. The investigation determined that the treat actors exploited two previously unknown issues documented in CVE-2023-20198 and CVE-2023-20273. ESB-2023.6313.2 – UPDATED ALERT Confluence Data Center and Server: CVSS (Max): 10.0 Atlassian observed several active exploits and reports of threat actors using ransomware in relation to Confluence. Atlassian has released fixes to mitigate this threat in new versions of Confluence Data Center and Server. ESB-2023.6480 – Jira: CVSS (Max): 10.0 Certain versions of Jira Service Management Data Center and Server allowed authenticated attackers to initiate an XML External Entity Injection attack using job descriptions. Atlassian has released fixes to mitigate this vulnerabiliy in new versions of Jira Service Management Data Center and Server. ESB-2023.6481 – cacti: CVSS (Max): 9.8 Multiple security vulnerabilities have been discovered in Cacti, a web interface for graphing of monitoring systems, which could result in cross-site scripting, SQL injection, an open redirect or command injection. Updating cacti packages addresses these vulnerabilies. ESB-2023.6438 – webkit2gtk3: CVSS (Max): 8.8 SUSE released an update that solves eight vulnerabilities and contains two security fixes which addresses issues where processing malicious web content could lead to arbitrary code execution. Stay safe, stay patched and have a good weekend! The AUSCERT team

Greetings, This week, many of us excitedly dusted off our costumes and indulged in Halloween celebrations. The tradition is gradually gaining more traction in Australia, with an increasing number of children embracing the thrill of trick-or-treating. Both youngsters and adults enthusiastically engage in the festivities, dressing in a wide variety of costumes ranging from monsters to fairies. This festive time also provides a good opportunity for our children to learn about the various personas people can adopt in our community and digital world, some helpful and some unfortunately harmful. Cyber security threats can be highly detrimental to an organisation’s reputation, financial stability and overall success. Gone are the days of cyber security being solely the IT department’s responsibility. Today, leadership at all levels must actively support policies and practices throughout the organisation. Fostering a progressive and active cyber security culture within the workplace is crucial for achieving organisational resilience. Leaders and senior executives are now expected to possess a comprehensive understanding of cyber security risk management to ensure the safety and well-being of their organisation and its stakeholders. In a surprising development on Monday that has spooked some in the cybersecurity community, the Securities and Exchange Commission charged SolarWinds and its CISO Timothy Brown with fraud and internal control failures for allegedly misleading investors about its cyber security practices and known risks. While this case is still unfolding, it serves as a valuable learning experience for us all. It underlines the critical importance of actively implementing strong cyber security risk management practices. Leadership plays a pivotal role in ensuring the safety of their organisation by possessing a comprehensive understanding of the cyber security risks relevant to them, and leading accordingly. Instead of jumping to conclusions, we should utilise this case as an opportunity to reflect on the significance of cyber security risk within organisations and the detrimental impacts that deceptive behaviour can have. AUSCERT recognizes the increasing demands and pressures on leadership to possess cyber security risk management knowledge and skills. Therefore, we have launched a new training course designed to empower leaders in this critical area. The Cyber Resilience for Senior Executives course equips participants with the knowledge and skills required to effectively lead their organisation’s strategic response to the cyber security challenge and improve their organisational resilience. This course is suitable for any senior executives, with any background and no technical knowledge is required. Critical vulnerability found in Atlassian Confluence software Date: 2023-11-01 Author: iTnews [AUSCERT has identified the impacted members (where possible) and contacted them via email. Also please see our bulletin: https://portal.auscert.org.au/bulletins/ESB-2023.6313 ] The company’s advisory for CVE-2023-22518 attributed a message to the company’s CISO, Bala Sathiamurthy, saying the users are “vulnerable to significant data loss” if the vulnerability is exploited. “There are no reports of active exploitation at this time; however, customers must take immediate action to protect their instances,” Sathiamurthy wrote. RCE exploit for Wyze Cam v3 publicly released, patch now Date: 2023-10-30 Author: Bleeping Computer A security researcher has published a proof-of-concept (PoC) exploit for Wyze Cam v3 devices that opens a reverse shell and allows the takeover of vulnerable devices. Wyze Cam v3 is a top-selling, inexpensive indoor/outdoor security camera with support for color night vision, SD card storage, cloud connectivity for smartphone control, IP65 weatherproofing, and more. Security researcher Peter Geissler (aka bl4sty) recently discovered two flaws in the latest Wyze Cam v3 firmware that can be chained together for remote code execution on vulnerable devices. 3,000 Apache ActiveMQ servers vulnerable to RCE attacks exposed online Date: 2023-11-01 Author: Bleeping Computer Over three thousand internet-exposed Apache ActiveMQ servers are vulnerable to a recently disclosed critical remote code execution (RCE) vulnerability. Apache ActiveMQ is a scalable open-source message broker that fosters communication between clients and servers, supporting Java and various cross-language clients and many protocols, including AMQP, MQTT, OpenWire, and STOMP Citrix Bleed: Mass exploitation in progress (CVE-2023-4966) Date: 2023-10-30 Author: Help Net Security [Please see AUSCERT bulletin: https://portal.auscert.org.au/bulletins/ESB-2023.5826.2] CVE-2023-4966, aka “Citrix Bleed”, a critical information disclosure vulnerability affecting Citrix NetScaler ADC/Gateway devices, is being massively exploited by threat actors. According to security researcher Kevin Beaumont’s cybersecurity industry sources, one ransomware group has already distributed a Python script to automate the attack chain to their operators, and other groups have started leveraging a working exploit. New CVSS 4.0 vulnerability severity rating standard released Date: 2023-11-01 Author: Bleeping Computer The Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams (FIRST) has officially released CVSS v4.0, the next generation of its Common Vulnerability Scoring System standard, eight years after CVSS v3.0, the previous major version. CVSS is a standardized framework for assessing software security vulnerabilities' severity used to assign numerical scores or qualitative representation (such as low, medium, high, and critical) based on exploitability, impact on confidentiality, integrity, availability, and required privileges, with higher scores denoting more severe vulnerabilities. ESB-2023.6234.3 – UPDATED ALERT BIG-IP Configuration Utility: CVSS (Max): 9.8 F5 is warning BIG-IP admins about recently disclosed Configuration utility unauthenticated remote code execution vulnerability (CVE-2023-46747) ESB-2023.6266 – IBM Security QRadar SIEM: CVSS (Max): 9.8 IBM QRadar SIEM contains components that have been identified as vulnerable and can potentially be exploited using automated tools. However, IBM has taken the necessary steps to address the relevant CVEs. ESB-2023.6321 – Zavio IP Camera: CVSS (Max): 9.8 Users of Zavio IP cameras are strongly urged to change their devices since proper updates to patch these vulnerabilities will not be available. ESB-2023.6344 – ALERT Tenable Security Center: CVSS (Max): 9.8 Tenable has discovered vulnerabilities in Tenable Security Center, and released a critical patch to address these issues. Stay safe, stay patched and have a good weekend! The AUSCERT team

Greetings, AUSCERT2024 has officially launched! The countdown is on for another year of exciting tutorials, presentations, workshops and more! This year’s theme; ‘Pay it Forward’, is about discovering the power of amplifying your impact in the realm of cyber security and highlighting the significant influence that everyone’s actions can create. It promotes the idea of how sharing knowledge and collaborating can cause a ripple effect, strengthening the broader community. This year, consider paying it forward by sharing your knowledge and expertise at our conference, either through tutorials or presentations. Your insights have the potential to create a significant impact and further advance the industry. Call for Tutorials is now open and will run until November 10th. Once tutorial submissions close, we will then open the Call for Presentations. We extend a warm invitation to anyone within the industry interested in speaking at the conference to submit a proposal. We offer excellent mentoring support for speakers to ensure a successful experience. Additionally, sponsorship opportunities are also now available, and you can access the sponsorship prospectus for more information on how you can get involved. In other news, AUSCERT recently participated in the 2023 ASEAN Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) Incident Drill (ACID). This annual drill hosted by Singapore since 2006, tests incident response capability and strengthens cyber security preparedness and cooperation among CERTs in ASEAN member states and Dialogue Partners. This year’s ACID tested the CERTs’ preparedness against multi-pronged attacks arising from hacktivism. This theme was chosen due to the increasing frequency and sophistication of global cyber attacks that are motivated by ideological beliefs. Such attacks typically include multi-pronged attacks using a combination of Distributed Denial-of-Service, data breaches and wiper wares against government websites, financial institutions, media outlets etc This year, SingCERT moderated a new exercise using realistic real-world scenarios as a practical way to test participants’ knowledge and expertise in the field. AUSCERT takes pride in participating in this drill annually, as it plays a pivotal role in enhancing cooperation, facilitating the exchange of experiences, and fostering awareness of emerging cyber attack trends. Critical RCE flaws found in SolarWinds access audit solution Date: 2023-10-20 Author: Bleeping Computer Security researchers found three critical remote code execution vulnerabilities in the SolarWinds Access Rights Manager (ARM) product that remote attackers could use to run code with SYSTEM privileges. SolarWinds ARM is a tool that enables organizations to manage and audit user access rights across their IT environments. It offers Microsoft Active Directory integration, role-based access control, visual feedback, and more. VMware fixes critical code execution flaw in vCenter Server Date: 2023-10-25 Author: Bleeping Computer [AUSCERT has also identified the impacted members (where possible) and contacted them via email] VMware issued security updates to fix a critical vCenter Server vulnerability that can be exploited to gain remote code execution attacks on vulnerable servers. The vulnerability (CVE-2023-34048) was reported by Grigory Dorodnov of Trend Micro's Zero Day Initiative and is due to an out-of-bounds write weakness in vCenter's DCE/RPC protocol implementation. US energy firm shares how Akira ransomware hacked its systems Date: 2023-10-23 Author: Bleeping Computer In a rare display of transparency, US energy services firm BHI Energy details how the Akira ransomware operation breached their networks and stole the data during the attack. BHI Energy, part of Westinghouse Electric Company, is a specialty engineering services and staffing solutions provider supporting private and government-operated oil & gas, nuclear, wind, solar, and fossil power generation units and electricity transmission and distribution facilities. Rockwell Automation Warns Customers of Cisco Zero-Day Affecting Stratix Switches Date: 2023-10-24 Author: Security Week [Please see AUSCERT bulletin: https://portal.auscert.org.au/bulletins/ESB-2023.6197] The cybersecurity community discovered tens of thousands of compromised systems shortly after Cisco disclosed the existence of the first zero-day. Rockwell informed customers last week that its Stratix 5800 and 5200 managed industrial Ethernet switches, which use the Cisco IOS XE operating system, are affected by CVE-2023-20198. The devices are only impacted if the IOS XE web UI feature is enabled. 1Password detects “suspicious activity” in its internal Okta account Date: 2023-10-24 Author: Ars Technica 1Password, a password manager used by millions of people and more than 100,000 businesses, said it detected suspicious activity on a company account provided by Okta, the identity and authentication service that disclosed a breach on Friday. “On September 29, we detected suspicious activity on our Okta instance that we use to manage our employee-facing apps,” 1Password CTO Pedro Canahuati wrote in an email. “We immediately terminated the activity, investigated, and found no compromise of user data or other sensitive systems, either employee-facing or user-facing.” ESB-2023.6140 – Atlassian Products: CVSS (Max): 10.0 Atlassian has identified multiple vulnerabilities in their products, with 2 being classified as critical. To ensure the security of their customers, Atlassian strongly advises upgrading to the latest version ASB-2023.0221 – Okta support case management system Okta has recently experienced a cyber incident concerning their support case management system. In response to this, AUSCERT recommends that its members promptly implement the suggested mitigation measures to address any potential risks ESB-2023.6197 – ALERT Rockwell Automation Stratix 5800 and Stratix 5200: CVSS (Max): 10.0 Rockwell Automation has issued patches to address a critical vulnerability found in Stratix 5800 and Stratix 5200. If successfully exploited, this vulnerability could potentially grant unauthorized control of the affected system to an attacker without authentication. It is strongly advised to apply the provided patches to mitigate this risk ESB-2023.6234 – ALERT BIG-IP Configuration Utility: CVSS (Max): 9.8 A control plane issue which allows the attacker to execute arbitrary system commands has been fixed in BIG-IP Configuration Utility component Stay safe, stay patched and have a good weekend! The AUSCERT team

Greetings, Yesterday we successfully launched our new Cyber Resilience for Senior Executives training course in Brisbane. Conducted by one of our most experienced Principal Analysts and a highly knowledgeable industry partner, participants had the valuable opportunity to grasp key concepts through real-world examples. Senior executives play a key role in making strategic decisions that impact their organisations’ risk management. Understanding the importance of cyber resilience allows them to factor cyber security considerations into long-term planning, investment, and resource allocation decisions. This course empowers leaders on the importance of adapting and evolving their approach to cyber security risk management to ensure organisational resilience. Ransomware continues to be a persistent threat, disrupting critical services, businesses, and communities on a global scale. Alarmingly, a significant number of these incidents are carried out by ransomware actors exploiting well-documented vulnerabilities. Because of this, it’s essential to acknowledge that organisations may be unaware of the existence of these vulnerabilities within their networks. CISA identifies and documents vulnerabilities that are known to be used by ransomware operators. Recently they have also updated their KEV catalogue to include a new entry that identifies if the vulnerability has been exploited in ransomware attacks. This information has been incorporated into AUSCERT Security Bulletins. CISA have also released a second resource that serves as a companion to the KEV; a list of misconfigurations and weaknesses exploited by ransomware operators that are not CVE-based. To conclude we would like to bring your attention to an exciting upcoming event that is being held jointly by AWSN, Queensland Police and APIO – “Brisbane’s Hacking the Human: Understanding Social Attacks. This session is designed to unveil the secrets behind social engineering attacks and instruct participants on the tactics employed by cyber-criminals to exploit human vulnerabilities. Our Principal Analyst, Mark Carey-Smith, will be among the experts who will guide you through the fundamental aspects of these attacks. Additionally, you’ll gain insights into the legal aspects associated and the role of law enforcement in combatting cybercrime. By the end of this session, you’ll be equipped to identify common social engineering tactics and develop effective defence strategies to protect your personal and professional data. Threat Actors Exploit Atlassian Confluence CVE-2023-22515 for Initial Access to Networks Date: 2023-10-16 Author: CISA The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC) are releasing this joint Cybersecurity Advisory (CSA) in response to the active exploitation of CVE-2023-22515. This recently disclosed vulnerability affects certain versions of Atlassian Confluence Data Center and Server, enabling malicious cyber threat actors to obtain initial access to Confluence instances by creating unauthorized Confluence administrator accounts. Threat actors exploited CVE-2023-22515 as a zero-day to obtain access to victim systems and continue active exploitation post-patch. Atlassian has rated this vulnerability as critical; CISA, FBI, and MS-ISAC expect widespread, continued exploitation due to ease of exploitation. CISA Now Flagging Vulnerabilities, Misconfigurations Exploited by Ransomware Date: 2023-10-13 Author: SecurityWeek The US cybersecurity agency CISA is stepping up its efforts to prevent ransomware by making it easier for organizations to learn about vulnerabilities and misconfigurations exploited in these attacks. The first of these resources is a new column in the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, which flags flaws that CISA is aware of being associated with ransomware campaigns. The other new resource CISA is offering now is a new table on the StopRansomware project’s website, which lists information on the misconfigurations and weaknesses that ransomware operators have been observed targeting in their attacks. Over 10,000 Cisco devices hacked in IOS XE zero-day attacks Date: 2023-10-17 Author: Bleeping Computer Attackers have exploited a recently disclosed critical zero-day bug to compromise and infect more than 10,000 Cisco IOS XE devices with malicious implants. The list of products running Cisco IOS XE software includes enterprise switches, aggregation and industrial routers, access points, wireless controllers, and more. Ransomware Attacks Double: Are Companies Prepared for 2024’s Cyber Threats? Date: 2023-10-13 Author: The Hacker News Ransomware attacks have only increased in sophistication and capabilities over the past year. From new evasion and anti-analysis techniques to stealthier variants coded in new languages, ransomware groups have adapted their tactics to effectively bypass common defense strategies. Russia and China-linked hackers exploit WinRAR bug Date: 2023-10-19 Author: The Record Hackers connected to the governments of Russia and China are allegedly using a vulnerability in a popular Windows tool to attack targets around the world, including in Ukraine and Papua New Guinea. Google’s Threat Analysis Group’s said that in recent weeks it has seen multiple government-backed groups exploiting CVE-2023-38831, a vulnerability affecting the Windows file archiver tool WinRAR. The bug, which has been patched, was initially exploited by criminal groups throughout early 2023. ESB-2023.6043 – ALERT Cisco iOS XE Software: CVSS (Max): 10.0 A Critical vulnerability has been identified in Cisco IOS XE software. AUSCERT has sent MSINs to the affected members regarding this vulnerability. ESB-2023.6064 – Jira Service Management Server and Data Center: CVSS (Max): 8.4 An XXE vulnerability in Jira products has been addressed by Atlassian ESB-2023.6078 – Google Chrome: CVSS (Max): None Google has released updates to Chrome which includes 1 security fix ASB-2023.0192 – ALERT Oracle PeopleSoft: CVSS (Max): 9.8 This critical patch update contains 5 new security patches for Oracle PeopleSoft Stay safe, stay patched and have a good weekend! The AUSCERT team

Greetings, This week was an eventful one for AUSCERT as part of our team journeyed to Melbourne to connect with our members and participate in the prestigious Women in Security Awards ceremony. The 2023 Australian Women in Security Awards was a night filled with grace and charm, as it embraced an enchanting masquerade theme this year. This event served as a wonderful occasion for members of the industry to come together and celebrate the achievements and contributions of both men and women who have played pivotal roles in this field. AUSCERT is a proud sponsor of the Women in Security Awards, endorsing their initiatives to foster greater diversity and break down gender-related barriers. These awards honour champions who are committed to dismantling gender discrimination in their workplace while advocating for equality within the cyber security industry. Additionally, they acknowledge organisations that are dedicated to fostering a more inclusive and empowering workplace culture. The Women in Security Awards does a great job of shining a spotlight on those who go above and beyond to create an environment that genuinely celebrates all voices and contributes to shaping a brighter and more equitable future for all. In recent developments, the National Security Agency (NSA) and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) have jointly released a cyber security advisory (CSA) that highlights the most common misconfigurations found in large organisations, detailing the tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) employed by malicious actors to exploit these misconfigurations. The CSA outlines the top 10 misconfigurations which reveal a prevailing trend of systemic vulnerabilities within many organisations, even those with well-established cyber security practices. They also provide mitigation advice to reduce vulnerabilities, including the importance of secure-by-design principles in the software supply chain. This proactive approach can alleviate the strain on defenders, making it essential in the ongoing effort to enhance cyber security resilience. In conclusion, if you’re seeking something engaging to listen to during your commute, be sure to tune in to our newest episode of our Share Today, Save Tomorrow podcast – Episode 27, Celebrating Neurodiversity! Anthony sits down with Shelly and Trinity to discuss neurodiversity and share their advice and experience on creating the best work environment for people who might see and feel the world differently. Bek and our Principal Analyst Mark Carey-Smith, sit down in the second half of the episode to discuss our new Cyber Resilience for Executives course and preparations for AUSCERT2024. HTTP/2 Rapid Reset Zero-Day Vulnerability Exploited to Launch Record DDoS Attacks Date: 2023-10-10 Author: The Hacker News [Please see AUSCERT bulletin: ASB-2023.0189] Amazon Web Services (AWS), Cloudflare, and Google on Tuesday said they took steps to mitigate record-breaking distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks that relied on a novel technique called HTTP/2 Rapid Reset. The layer 7 attacks were detected in late August 2023, the companies said in a coordinated disclosure. The cumulative susceptibility to this attack is being tracked as CVE-2023-44487, and carries a CVSS score of 7.5 out of a maximum of 10. New critical Citrix NetScaler flaw exposes 'sensitive' data Date: 2023-10-10 Author: Bleeping Computer [Please see AUSCERT bulletin: ESB-2023.5826] [AUSCERT has also identified the impacted members (where possible) and contacted them via email] Citrix NetScaler ADC and NetScaler Gateway are impacted by a critical severity flaw that allows the disclosure of sensitive information from vulnerable appliances. The flaw is tracked as CVE-2023-4966 and has received a CVSS rating of 9.4, being remotely exploitable without requiring high privileges, user interaction, or high complexity. However, there's the prerequisite of the appliance to be configured as a Gateway (VPN virtual server, ICA Proxy, CVPN, RDP Proxy) or an AAA virtual server for it to be vulnerable to attacks. curl vulnerabilities ironed out with patches after week-long tease Date: 2023-10-11 Author: The Register [See AUSCERT bulletin: ASB-2023.0190] Updated After a week of rampant speculation about the nature of the security issues in curl, the latest version of the command line transfer tool was finally released today. Described by curl project founder and lead developer Daniel Stenberg as "probably the worst curl security flaw in a long time," the patches address two separate vulnerabilities: CVE-2023-38545 and CVE-2023-38546. We now know the first vulnerability, CVE-2023-38545, is a heap-based buffer overflow flaw that affects both libcurl and the curl tool, carrying a severity rating of "high." Australia’s home affairs department hit by DDoS attack claimed by pro-Russia hackers Date: 2023-10-06 Author: The Guardian The department responsible for Australia’s cybersecurity, national security and immigration has confirmed it was hit with a distributed denial-of-service attack on Thursday night that took its website offline for five hours, after a pro-Russia hacker group said it would target the site over Australia’s support for Ukraine. The group posted on Telegram on Thursday night that it was targeting the home affairs department with a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack after Australia announced this week that Slinger technology aimed at combating drones would be sent to Ukraine in the push back against the Russian invasion. GNOME Linux systems exposed to RCE attacks via file downloads Date: 2023-10-09 Author: Bleeping Computer A memory corruption vulnerability in the open-source libcue library can let attackers execute arbitrary code on Linux systems running the GNOME desktop environment. libcue, a library designed for parsing cue sheet files, is integrated into the Tracker Miners file metadata indexer, which is included by default in the latest GNOME versions. Cue sheets (or CUE files) are plain text files containing the layout of audio tracks on a CD, such as length, name of song, and musician, and are also typically paired with the FLAC audio file format. Thousands of WordPress sites have been hacked through tagDiv plugin vulnerability Date: 2023-10-10 Author: Ars Technica Thousands of sites running the WordPress content management system have been hacked by a prolific threat actor that exploited a recently patched vulnerability in a widely used plugin. The vulnerable plugin, known as tagDiv Composer, is a mandatory requirement for using two WordPress themes: Newspaper and Newsmag. The themes are available through the Theme Forest and Envato marketplaces and have more than 155,000 downloads. ASB-2023.0187 – ALERT Microsoft Office, Office Services and Web Apps: CVSS (Max): 8.4 Microsoft's most recent security patch update resolves vulnerabilities across Microsoft Office, Office Services and Web Apps. ASB-2023.0182 – ALERT Microsoft Windows: CVSS (Max): 9.8* Microsoft patched 80 vulnerabilities in Windows and Windows Server in its October 2023 Patch Tuesday release. ESB-2023.5866 – ALERT BIG-IP Configuration utility: CVSS (Max): 9.9 F5 Networks has introduced fixes to resolve a directory traversal vulnerability found in BIG-IP. These fixes are designed to address and mitigate the potential risks associated with this vulnerability. ESB-2023.5861 – ALERT FortiWLM: CVSS (Max): 9.6 Fortinet has issued patches to address a critical vulnerability in FortiWLM, related to unauthenticated command injection. ESB-2023.5878 – Adobe Photoshop: CVSS (Max): 7.8 Adobe has recently launched an update for Photoshop for both Windows and macOS operating systems. This update specifically addresses a critical vulnerability that, if exploited successfully, could potentially result in the execution of arbitrary code. ESB-2023.5917 – IBM Security QRadar SIEM: CVSS (Max): 9.8 IBM QRadar SIEM contains components that have been identified as vulnerable and can potentially be exploited using automated tools. However, IBM QRadar SIEM has taken the necessary steps to address the relevant CVEs. Stay safe, stay patched and have a good weekend! The AUSCERT team

Greetings, This month is Cyber Security Awareness Month, an important time for all to enhance their knowledge of cyber security and to take proactive steps to safeguard their information and devices. At AUSCERT, we hold the belief that cyber security should be an integral part of our everyday routines and should be considered as an enabler in every organisation. Yet we recognize that for the broader public who may not be as immersed in the cyber security world, this month serves as a timely reminder of its crucial role in our lives. We’d like to emphasize the role of cyber leaders in extending their expertise and advocating everyone within their organisation, community, or home to adopt the following simple tips. Click here to read our blog for some shareable tips. Engaging in regular training is crucial for staying ahead in the field of cyber security. AUSCERT offers a diverse range of training courses that are specifically designed to provide you with the most relevant and up-to-date knowledge and skills. With experienced practitioners offering real-world advice and solutions, you can ensure you are well-equipped. In particular, the importance of data governance is continually growing in today’s data-centric business landscape. Many industries and organisations are subject to regulatory requirements regarding data management and privacy, making it a pivotal component in an effective organisation. Our Data Governance Principles and Practices training course equips participants with the fundamental skills and knowledge required to develop a structured framework that your organisation can follow to ensure it is managing data effectively. The course also includes information about how effective data governance contributes to cyber security initiatives. Hurry, this is the last opportunity for this year to register for our training course. For more information click here. In conclusion, let’s lead our community towards being safer online! With improved knowledge, we can ensure that we are cyber-wise and better prepared to protect ourselves and organisations from cyber threats. Together we can make a safer cyber world! Millions of Exim mail servers exposed to zero-day RCE attacks Date: 2023-09-29 Author: Bleeping Computer [AUSCERT has identified the impacted members (where possible) and contacted them via email] A critical zero-day vulnerability in all versions of Exim mail transfer agent (MTA) software can let unauthenticated attackers gain remote code execution (RCE) on Internet-exposed servers. Found by an anonymous security researcher and disclosed through Trend Micro's Zero Day Initiative (ZDI), the security bug (CVE-2023-42115) is due to an Out-of-bounds Write weakness found in the SMTP service. Atlassian patches critical Confluence zero-day exploited in attacks Date: 2023-10-04 Author: Bleeping Computer [AUSCERT has identified the impacted members (where possible) and contacted them via email] Australian software company Atlassian released emergency security updates to fix a maximum severity zero-day vulnerability in its Confluence Data Center and Server software, which has been exploited in attacks. "Atlassian has been made aware of an issue reported by a handful of customers where external attackers may have exploited a previously unknown vulnerability in publicly accessible Confluence Data Center and Server instances to create unauthorized Confluence administrator accounts and access Confluence instances," the company said. Apple Warns of Newly Exploited iOS 17 Kernel Zero-Day Date: 2023-10-04 Author: Security Week [See AUSCERT Security Bulletin 05 October 2023: ESB-2023.5703] Apple’s cat-and-mouse struggles with zero-day exploits on its flagship iOS platform is showing no signs of slowing down. The Cupertino device maker on Wednesday rushed out a new patch to cover a pair of serious vulnerabilities and warned that one of the issues has already been exploited as zero-day in the wild. In a barebones advisory, Apple said the exploited CVE-2023-42824 kernel vulnerability allows a local attacker to elevate privileges, suggesting it was used in an exploit chain in observed attacks. The biggest hack of 2023 keeps getting bigger Date: 2023-10-02 Author: Wired In a field of shocking, opportunistic espionage campaigns and high-profile digital attacks on popular businesses, the biggest hack of 2023 isn’t a single incident, but a juggernaut of related attacks that keeps adding victims to its score. In the coming months, more people, as many as tens of millions, could find out that their sensitive information has been compromised. But more still will likely never learn of the situation or its impact on them. New 'Looney Tunables' Linux bug gives root on major distros Date: 2023-10-03 Author: Bleeping Computer A new Linux vulnerability known as 'Looney Tunables' enables local attackers to gain root privileges by exploiting a buffer overflow weakness in the GNU C Library's ld.so dynamic loader. The GNU C Library (glibc) is the GNU system's C library and is in most Linux kernel-based systems. It provides essential functionality, including system calls like open, malloc, printf, exit, and others, necessary for typical program execution. ESB-2023.5669 – ALERT Cisco Emergency Responder: CVSS (Max): 9.8 A vulnerability in Cisco Emergency Responder could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to log in to an affected device using the root account, which has default, static credentials that cannot be changed or deleted ESB-2023.5668 – ALERT Confluence Data Center and Confluence Server: CVSS (Max): 10.0 Privilege Escalation Vulnerability in Confluence Data Center and Server ESB-2023.5632 – firefox-esr: CVSS (Max): 9.8 Multiple security issues have been found in the Mozilla Firefox web browser, which could potentially result in the execution of arbitrary code ESB-2023.5637 – exim4: CVSS (Max): 9.8 Several vulnerabilities were discovered in Exim, a mail transport agent, which could result in remote code execution if the EXTERNAL or SPA/NTLM authenticators are used Stay safe, stay patched and have a good weekend! The AUSCERT team

Greetings, As the long weekend approaches, and we eagerly anticipate time away from work and the daily grind, it's important to remain aware that holidays can create opportunities for cyber criminals to exploit vulnerabilities and launch phishing scams. Attacks tend to increase during holiday season when people are often more distracted and may be expecting various online communications and transactions related to holiday shopping, travel plans and gifts from friends and family Recently a persistent gift card phishing campaign has been circulating, leaving unsuspecting individuals vulnerable to cyber attacks. This ongoing gift card scam continues to evolve, recently employing random email accounts from Gmail or compromised domains. It typically impersonates company CEOs and targets both employees’ personal and work email addresses. Some of the deceptive Gmail accounts include aliases like “teamrecognition@gmail.com” or “ceo.name@gmail.com” making it increasingly challenging to detect. Even emails with innocent subject lines like “Recognizing Excellence” – Prompt Response!! Could be part of the scam. To say safe here’s what you can do: Know the Danger: Make sure your constituents are aware that this phishing scam is common, explain how it works and why it’s a threat. Any requests that ask for gift cards to be purchased are highly likely to be malicious. This is a great ‘red flag’ to be used in awareness messaging. Check Emails Carefully: Look closely at the sender’s email address, especially if they’re asking you to buy gift cards or give out personal information. If anything seems suspicious, contact the person using a different communications method (not using the reply-to address in the original email) to check. Using the phone is usually very effective. Have a plan: Know what to do if you think you’ve been tricked by this scam of if you spot something suspicious. Have a plan to act quickly. Stay vigilant during holidays and be cautious when receiving unsolicited requests for gift cards or any form of payment. Always verify the legitimacy of the request, especially if it seems unusual or urgent. For more information on how to stay ahead of these scams visit Avoiding and Reporting Gift Card Scams & Protecting yourself from Gift Card Scams New Cisco IOS Zero-Day Delivers a Double Punch Date: 2023-09-29 Author: Dark Reading A vulnerability affecting Cisco operating systems could enable attackers to take full control of affected devices, execute arbitrary code, and cause reloads that trigger denial of service (DoS) conditions. And at least one attempt at exploitation has already occurred in the wild. Progress warns of maximum severity WS_FTP Server vulnerability Date: 2023-09-28 Author: Bleeping Computer [AUSCERT has identified the impacted members (where possible) and contacted them via email] Progress Software, the maker of the MOVEit Transfer file-sharing platform recently exploited in widespread data theft attacks, warned customers to patch a maximum severity vulnerability in its WS_FTP Server software. The company says thousands of IT teams worldwide use its enterprise-grade WS_FTP Server secure file transfer software. In-the-Wild Exploitation Expected for Critical TeamCity Flaw Allowing Server Takeover Date: 2023-09-25 Author: Security Week [AUSCERT has identified the impacted members (where possible) and contacted them via email] A critical vulnerability in the TeamCity CI/CD server could be exploited remotely, without authentication, to execute arbitrary code and gain administrative control over a vulnerable server. Developed by JetBrains, TeamCity is a general-purpose build management and continuous integration platform available both for on-premises installation and as a cloud service. The recently identified critical flaw, tracked as CVE-2023-42793 (CVSS score of 9.8), is described as an authentication bypass impacting the on-premises version of TeamCity. Google assigns new maximum rated CVE to libwebp bug exploited in attacks Date: 2023-09-26 Author: Bleeping Computer Google has assigned a new CVE ID (CVE-2023-5129) to a libwebp security vulnerability exploited as a zero-day in attacks and patched two weeks ago. The company initially disclosed the flaw as a Chrome weakness, tracked as CVE-2023-4863, rather than assigning it to the open-source libwebp library used to encode and decode images in WebP format. Hackers actively exploiting Openfire flaw to encrypt servers Date: 2023-09-26 Author: Bleeping Computer [AUSCERT has identified the impacted members (where possible) and contacted them via email] Hackers are actively exploiting a high-severity vulnerability in Openfire messaging servers to encrypt servers with ransomware and deploy cryptominers. Openfire is a widely used Java-based open-source chat (XMPP) server downloaded 9 million times and used extensively for secure, multi-platform chat communications. ESB-2023.5513 – macOS Sonoma 14: CVSS (Max): 9.8* Apple released macOS 14 Sonoma and the latest version of the operating system patches over 60 vulnerabilities. ESB-2023.5533 – Mozilla Firefox: CVSS (Max): None Mozilla released Firefox 118 with patches for nine vulnerabilities,including high-severity flaws. ESB-2023.5538 – Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Manager: CVSS (Max): 9.8 Cisco has patched vulnerabilities in several versions of its Catalyst SD-WAN software.The most critical is an unauthorised access vulnerability in Catalyst SD-WAN’s security assertion markup language (SAML) APIs. ESB-2023.5547 – Cisco IOS and IOS XE Software: CVSS (Max): 6.6 Cisco has released patches for multiple vulnerabilities impacting its products, including a zero-day IOS and IOS XE software vulnerability targeted by attackers in the wild. Stay safe, stay patched and have a good weekend! The AUSCERT team