A new form of cyberattack is enabling its perpetrators to conduct espionage and steal data by using readily available software tools. This eliminates the need to deploy advanced malware. This interesting information came to us from ZDNet in their article, “Hackers are reusing free online tools as part of their cyberespionage campaigns.”
Cyberattackers have been discovered re-purposing freeware tools in order to steal information, and using techniques including key-logging, file stealing, and password and cookie theft. These nefarious efforts have been focused on government agencies thus far.
The attackers are using legitimate recovery tools that are inexpenive to use, readily available, and proven to be functional. Additionally, they don’t possess distinctive elements which allow forensic experts to trace the origin of the threat. At least 500 computers in target organizations across the globe have already been compromised in this way.
Melody K. Smith
Sponsored by Access Innovations, the world leader in thesaurus, ontology, and taxonomy creation and metadata application.
