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Morpho Hacker Group Targets Intellectual Property

With the highly-publicized rise in cyberbreaches, we have seen hackers break into systems for a variety of reasons: criminal enterprises simply stealing money, thieves gathering Social Security or credit card numbers to sell on the black market, state-sponsored groups taking confidential information, and malicious actors taking passwords or personal data to use to hit more valuable targets. Now, another group of financially-motivated hackers has emerged with a different agenda that may have even riskier implications for businesses.

According to a new report from computer security company Symantec, a group it calls Morpho has attacked multiple multibillion-dollar companies across an array of industries in pursuit of one thing: intellectual property. While it is not entirely clear what they do with this information, they may aim to sell it to competitors or nation states, the firm reports. “The group may be operating as ‘hackers for hire,’ targeting corporations on request,” Symantec reported. “Alternatively, it may select its own targets and either sell stolen information to the highest bidder or use it for insider trading purposes.”

Victimized businesses have spanned the Internet, software, pharmaceutical, legal and commodities fields, and the researchers believe the Morpho group is the same one that breached Facebook, Twitter, Apple and Microsoft in 2013.

Symantec does not believe the group is affiliated with or acting on behalf of any particular country as they have attacked businesses without regard for the nationality of its targets. But, as the New York Times reported, ” the researchers said there were clues that the hackers might be English speakers — their malicious code is written in fluent English — and they named their encryption keys after memes in American pop culture and gaming. Researchers also said the attackers worked during United States working hours, though they conceded that might just be because that is when their targets are most active.”

The researchers have tied Morpho to attacks against 49 different organizations in more than 20 countries, deploying custom hacking tools that are able to break into both Windows and Apple computers, suggesting it has plenty of resources and expertise. The group has been active since at least March 2012, the report said, and their attacks have not only continued to the present day, but have increased in number. “Over time, a picture has emerged of a cybercrime gang systematically targeting large corporations in order to steal confidential data,” Symantec said.

Morpho hacking victims by industry

Morpho hackers have also been exceptionally careful, from preliminary reconnaissance to cleaning up evidence.

In some cases, to help best determine the valuable trade secrets they would steal, the group intercepted company emails as well as business databases containing legal and policy documents, financial records, product descriptions and training documents. In one case, they were able to compromise a physical security system that monitors employee and visitor movements in corporate buildings. After getting the data they wanted, they scrubbed their tracks, even making sure the servers they used to orchestrate the attacks were rented using the anonymous digital currency Bitcoin.

In short, the hackers are really good, according to Vikram Thakur, a senior manager of the attack investigations team at Symantec. “Who they are? We don’t know. They are virtually impossible to track,” he said.

Cyberattacks Targeting Big Companies Up 40%

Five out of six companies with more than 2,500 employees were targeted in cyberattacks in 2014, representing a 40% increase last year, according to Symantec’s annual Internet Security Threat Report. But by no means does that imply big businesses are the primary target: 60% of all targeted attacks struck small- and medium-sized organizations.

The spear-fishing and fraudulent email scams deployed in these hacks have also become more effective. Overall, 14% less email was used to infiltrate an organization’s network, yet 2014 saw a 13% increase in attackers as the cause of a data breach, and the total number of breaches rose from 253 in 2013 to 312 in 2014. This notable increase in precision is a clear indication that companies are not updating their defenses to match current threats.

Fortifying against cyberbreach continues to demand even more concerted effort as malicious actors grow more sophisticated, introducing more and better malware to their campaigns. “While advanced targeted attacks may grab the headlines, non-targeted attacks still make up a majority of malware, which increased by 26% in 2014,” Symantec reported. More than 317 million new pieces of malware were created last year, meaning almost a million new threats were released daily.

Changes in the top causes of data breach offer both good and bad news. While 13% more cyberbreaches were caused by attackers and breaches due to insider theft increased 3%, Symantec found that 15% fewer were due to accidental exposure, theft or loss.

Check out the infographics below for more of Symantec’s findings and insights on how hackers operate:

Symantec 2015 Internet Security Threat Report

Symantec Path of a Cyber Attacker

 

Home Depot Confirms Massive Data Breach

Home Depot Data Breach

On Monday, Home Depot confirmed that a breach of its payment data systems may have exposed customer card data across the United States and Canada. The breach appears to have begun in April, allowing hackers to steal an untold amount of shopper information including credit card numbers.

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The home improvement giant disclosed on Sept. 2 that it was investigating reports of “unusual activity” and, a week later, determined that any customers who used a card in the U.S. or Canada is at risk, though the breach does not appear to impact shoppers online or at retail stores in Mexico. In an official statement, the company assured that no one would be held responsible for fraudulent charges and offered free identity protection services, including credit monitoring, to anyone who has shopped at one of its locations since April.

As with the massive Target data breach, the Home Depot news was first broken by cybersecurity journalist Brian Krebs. The data went up for sale on rescator. So, the same underground store that sold credit card information from the Target and P.

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F. Chang’s breaches, and may have been stolen by the same group of hackers. Krebs reported, “In what can only be interpreted as intended retribution for U.S. and European sanctions against Russia for its aggressive actions in Ukraine, this crime shop has named its newest batch of cards ‘American Sanctions.’ Stolen cards issued by European banks that were used in compromised U.S. store locations are being sold under a new batch of cards labeled ‘European Sanctions.'”

Given the five-month duration, this breach may be many times larger than the Target attack, which exposed 40 million credit and debit cards and the personal data of 70 million customers in three weeks. The Target breach led to the resignation of its CEO and cost the company almost $150 million in the second quarter alone, according to the New York Times. In fact, the toll may reach ever higher. “I don’t see how they’re getting out of this for under a billion, over time,” John Kindervag, the vice president and principal analyst with Forrester Research, told the Times, adding, “$150 million in a quarter seems almost like a bargain.” Beyond the company itself, Javelin Strategy and Research reported at the time that total damage to banks and retailers could surpass billion, and consumers could be liable for more than billion in uncovered losses and other costs.

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One of the most promising ways to increase point-of-sale security is through the adaptation of EMV chip technology, as discussed in the March issue of Risk Management. In Europe, 81% of cards have EMV chips, and countries that have adopted the technology saw sharp declines in credit card fraud. In England, for example, the amount of fraud per transaction has dropped 57% since 2002, while it has risen almost 70% in the United States over the same period, according to consulting firm Celent. As part of its breach response, Home Depot announced plans to escalate adoption of EMV, installing “chip and PIN” checkout terminals throughout its U.S. stores by the end of the year. Target made a similar move in April, saying that it will issue its branded REDcard credit, debit and co-branded credit cards with MasterCard chip technology beginning next year.

What Motivates Hackers?

At Black Hat USA 2014, the preeminent global information security conference for self-identified “black hat” hackers, IT security firm Thycotic surveyed 127 participants to determine what makes hackers tick. “Understanding why hackers do what they do is the first step toward better protecting your sensitive data from unsanctioned access,” the firm explained.

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Most are motivated by thrill, Thycotic found, and profoundly few are worried about getting caught. What’s more, despite extensive media coverage, companies’ internal education efforts and all the security measures implemented by IT departments, 99% of hackers report that basic tactics like phishing are still effective.

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And almost half of them are working on more sophisticated approaches.

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Check out the highlights from the firm’s Black Hat 2014 Survey:

Thycotic Hacker Infographic