Topic: social engineering
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Fake Windows BSOD Screens Deliver ClickFix Malware
A sophisticated phishing campaign targets the European hospitality industry by impersonating Booking.com, using a fake website and a fabricated Windows Blue Screen of Death error to trick users into manually installing malware. The attack deploys the DCRAT remote access trojan, which gains persis...
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Beware: Fake Windows Update Pushes Malware in ClickFix Attack
A deceptive cyberattack called ClickFix tricks users by mimicking a Windows security update, using a full-screen browser animation to install malware like LummaC2 and Rhadamanthys to steal sensitive information. The attack employs social engineering and steganography, hiding malware within a PNG ...
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The $400M Password Problem: Can You Get a New One?
A social engineering attack on Clorox, executed by impersonating employees and manipulating an outsourced service desk, led to an estimated $380 million in damages by exploiting weak password and MFA reset procedures. The breach caused severe operational disruptions, including halted production a...
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98% of Cyberattacks Exploit Human Error, UAE Council Warns
98% of successful cyberattacks are due to human error, with criminals increasingly using psychological manipulation rather than technical exploits. Attackers employ social engineering tactics like impersonation, fake rewards, and urgency to trick individuals into revealing sensitive information. ...
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AI-Powered Hacking: How Clickfix Tools Are Breaching Systems
A 500% surge in Clickfix attacks in early 2025 highlights a shift toward AI-enhanced social engineering, where attackers use fake alerts to trick users into executing malicious commands, bypassing traditional security. AI is revolutionizing Business Email Compromise (BEC) by generating fabricated...
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Don't Paste That TikTok Code! The Dangerous Scam Explained
A dangerous scam on TikTok, known as ClickFix, tricks users into installing information-stealing malware by posing as helpful tech support or free software guides, convincing them to run malicious commands on their own computers. These fraudulent videos, which promote fake methods for accessing p...
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Phishing Happens: You're Only Human
Phishing exploits human psychology, using urgency and emotional timing to bypass rational thought and target individuals during vulnerable moments, making anyone susceptible regardless of expertise. The attack method has industrialized, with phishing-as-a-service platforms and AI tools enabling h...
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Beware: Fake LastPass Emails Mimic Backup Alerts
A new phishing campaign is impersonating LastPass with urgent emails, using deceptive subject lines and links to malicious sites designed to steal master passwords and compromise password vaults. LastPass has confirmed the campaign is fraudulent, stating it never asks for master passwords or urge...
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2026 Cybersecurity Forecast: Key Trends to Watch
Cybercriminals are increasingly targeting people over software vulnerabilities, using tactics like phishing and deceptive applications to breach networks, as seen in the 2025 Salesforce attack by Shiny Hunters. Artificial intelligence tools are creating more sophisticated threats, such as advance...
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Cybercriminals Upgrade ClickFix with E-commerce Tricks
Cybercriminals are enhancing the ClickFix malware delivery method by using persuasive design elements like tutorial videos and countdown timers to rush users into executing harmful commands, making pages appear legitimate. The fraudulent pages dynamically adapt to the victim's operating system an...
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University of Pennsylvania Data Stolen in Cyberattack
The University of Pennsylvania experienced a cybersecurity breach where hackers used stolen credentials via social engineering to access systems, stealing sensitive data and sending fraudulent emails. Attackers exfiltrated approximately 1.71 GB of internal documents and a donor database with 1.2 ...
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Ransomware Groups Pivot as Victims Stop Paying
Ransomware payment rates have plummeted to just 23% in Q3 2025, significantly undermining the financial model of cybercriminals and marking a victory for cybersecurity efforts. Attackers are increasingly relying on social engineering tactics like insider threats, helpdesk impersonation, and callb...
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Can Your Phishing Detection Stop 2025's Security Threats?
Social engineering attacks like Clickfix surged 500% in early 2025, with cybercriminals increasingly using AI to create sophisticated Business Email Compromise scams that exploit human psychology rather than technical vulnerabilities. Clickfix bypasses traditional defenses by tricking users into ...
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North Korean Hackers Stole $2 Billion in Crypto This Year
North Korean hackers have stolen over $2 billion in cryptocurrency in 2025, primarily through a major breach at Bybit and numerous other attributed attacks, with the actual total likely higher due to unreported incidents. The groups have shifted tactics to focus on social engineering, targeting h...
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Microsoft: Hackers Steal University Payroll in Pirate Attacks
Storm-2657, a cybercrime group, has been targeting U.S. university payroll systems since March 2025, primarily compromising Workday accounts through sophisticated social engineering and exploiting weak multifactor authentication. The attackers use highly customized phishing emails, such as fake c...
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Two-Thirds of Firms Hit by Deepfake Attacks
A majority of organizations (62%) experienced a deepfake attack in the past year, often using social engineering to impersonate leaders or manipulate automated verification systems. The threat is growing as deepfake technology becomes more accessible, with the combination of deepfakes and social ...
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M&S hit by ransomware attack due to social engineering
M&S suffered a ransomware attack after cybercriminals used social engineering to impersonate an employee, gaining access via a third-party provider and deploying DragonForce ransomware. The attack involved detailed impersonation tactics, potentially facilitated by Tata Consultancy Services, and e...
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Russian Hackers Bypass Two-Factor Authentication in New Attack
Russian hackers bypassed two-factor authentication (2FA) using social engineering, exploiting legitimate account features like Gmail's "app password" to target high-profile individuals. A British researcher, Keir Giles, was tricked by hackers posing as U.S. officials, who used forged documents an...
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ClickFix Exploits MHSTA to Evade Security for Infostealers
ClickFix is a growing social engineering tactic that tricks users into executing harmful commands by pretending to fix system issues, often through deceptive pop-ups. ClickFix has driven a 10% increase in drive-by compromises and is now the second most common evasion technique, often exploiting t...
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New MacOS Malware 'DigitStealer' Targets Apple M2/M3 Chips
DigitStealer is a sophisticated malware targeting macOS systems with Apple M2 and M3 chips, disguising itself as legitimate tools like DynamicLake or Google Drive to trick users into installation. The malware employs a multi-stage delivery process, checking system location and hardware to avoid v...
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ShinyHunters Breach Okta, Microsoft SSO in Major Data Theft
The ShinyHunters gang is conducting a sophisticated voice phishing campaign, using social engineering to steal credentials and MFA codes by impersonating IT support and using real-time, interactive phishing kits. Attackers exploit compromised SSO accounts (e.g., Okta, Microsoft Entra, Google) to ...
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Microsoft Teams Adds Caller ID to Combat Brand Impersonation
Microsoft is launching a default-enabled feature called Brand Impersonation Protection for Teams, which scans first-time external calls for signs of impersonation and warns users before they answer. The feature, rolling out from mid-February, aims to prevent social engineering scams and data thef...
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Olympic Cybersecurity: A Prime Target for Attackers
The immense scale and rapid deployment of temporary digital infrastructure for the Olympics creates a uniquely vulnerable target for cyberattacks, driven by financial gain, espionage, and public disruption. Financially motivated threats include ransomware targeting critical systems and widespread...
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Beware: Fake Booking.com Emails and BSODs Target Hotels
A sophisticated phishing campaign targets the European hospitality industry using convincing fake Booking.com emails to deliver the DCRat malware, which steals data and provides attackers with persistent remote access. The attack employs advanced social engineering, including a fake Windows error...
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North Korean Hackers Lead 2025 Crypto Theft Surge
North Korean state-sponsored hackers stole over $2 billion in cryptocurrency in 2025, a 51% increase, by pivoting to fewer, more sophisticated attacks on high-value targets. Their evolved tactics include sophisticated social engineering, posing as recruiters or investors to compromise employees a...
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Insider Threats: Protecting Your Team from Cyber Attacks
Cybercriminals are now infiltrating companies by impersonating IT professionals during hiring, using fabricated personas and deepfakes to gain trusted, privileged access to sensitive systems. The primary goals of these "fake workers" include severe data theft, financial fraud, and cyber espionage...
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Beware: Fake Windows Update Screens Spread ClickFix Malware
A deceptive malware campaign uses a fake Windows Update screen to trick users into manually executing malicious commands, leading to the installation of information-stealing software. The attack employs advanced techniques like steganography to hide malicious code in PNG images and operates in me...
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Google: AI Will Fuel a Cybercrime Surge by 2026
AI is dramatically transforming cybersecurity by fueling a surge in automated cybercrime, including sophisticated phishing, voice cloning, and prompt injection attacks, while also enabling new defense mechanisms. The rise of AI agents and unauthorized tools complicates security management, requir...
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Europe's Phone Networks Flooded by Fake Calls
Caller ID spoofing is a primary tool used by cybercriminals in Europe, leading to an estimated €850 million in annual losses and overwhelming phone networks with fraudulent calls. Criminals exploit legal and jurisdictional differences, using spoofing to impersonate trusted entities and facilitate...
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Delete These 12 Android Apps Spying on Your Conversations
ESET security researchers discovered twelve apps containing VajraSpy spyware, which can secretly record conversations and steal sensitive data through deceptive tactics. The malware spreads via fake profiles on messaging platforms that build fake romantic relationships to trick users into install...
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Salesforce Refuses to Pay Ransom in Massive Data Breach
Salesforce has refused to pay a ransom after a data breach allegedly exposed nearly one billion customer records, emphasizing its policy against negotiating with cybercriminals despite the risk of data exposure. The attack, initiated in May, involved English-speaking operatives tricking employees...
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FileFix Attack Evades Security with Cache Smuggling
A new FileFix social engineering attack uses cache smuggling to deliver malware undetected by disguising itself as a Fortinet VPN Compliance Checker and tricking users into executing hidden PowerShell commands. The attack involves copying a text string that secretly contains a script to search br...
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ClickFix Phishing Kit Exposed by Cybersecurity Experts
Palo Alto Networks has identified the IUAM ClickFix Generator, a phishing toolkit that enables even novice cybercriminals to create convincing fake browser verification pages to deploy malware. The toolkit allows customization of phishing pages, detects the user's device and OS to tailor maliciou...
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Is Your SOC Ready for Business Email Compromise?
Business email compromise (BEC) attacks use psychological manipulation rather than technical exploits, bypassing traditional security by mimicking trusted communications and requiring intensive manual investigation. These scams evade detection because they lack malicious code, making them invisib...
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70,000 Fake Bank Scam Emails Target Australians
A sophisticated callback scam impersonating major Australian banks has targeted tens of thousands of businesses, with over 70,000 detected attempts in one month, particularly affecting sectors like education, legal, and insurance. Scammers send hyper-realistic emails with fabricated transaction d...
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Salesforce Blames Social Engineering for Ransomware Breaches
The hacker group Shiny Hunters claims to have stolen nearly one billion records from Salesforce and is demanding ransom from 39 companies, threatening to release the data by October 10, 2025, if not paid. Salesforce denies its platform was breached, attributing the data loss to social engineering...
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Bolster Defenses Against Scattered Spider Attacks, Experts Warn
The Scattered Spider hacking group poses a severe threat to businesses by using sophisticated methods like social engineering and ransomware, requiring immediate improvements in identity management, security processes, and third-party risk management. Their attack strategy often starts with vishi...
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Insight Partners Warns Thousands Following Ransomware Attack
Insight Partners suffered a cybersecurity breach due to a sophisticated social engineering attack, exposing sensitive personal and financial data of thousands. The breach occurred from October 2024 to January 2025, compromising banking details, employee records, and information on partners and po...
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From ClickFix to MetaStealer: How Cyber Threats Are Evolving
Cybersecurity attacks are evolving with threat actors combining social engineering and technical methods, such as using disguised installers and legitimate tools to deploy malware like MetaStealer. Recent incidents involve deceptive techniques, including fake verification pages and malicious file...
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ScamAgent: How AI Is Fueling a New Era of Fraudulent Calls
AI-driven scams are evolving to use multi-turn conversations that bypass traditional safety systems by breaking malicious intent into incremental, seemingly harmless steps. These advanced scams can adapt their approach based on victim responses, altering tone and tactics, and are increasingly rea...
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Okta Users Targeted by Advanced Phishing & Vishing Kits
New phishing kits enable real-time credential interception and control of authentication flows, targeting users of major identity platforms like Google and Microsoft. These attacks combine voice phishing with dynamic, convincing fake login pages that bypass multi-factor authentication methods lik...
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Top Cybersecurity Breaches and Attacks of 2025
Sophisticated social engineering and malware campaigns, such as ClickFix and its variants, expanded across operating systems, tricking users into self-inflicted infections and becoming commercialized through paid platforms. The cryptocurrency sector and enterprise software faced massive breaches,...
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Security Can't Keep Up with Modern Attackers
Cyber threats are evolving faster than defenses, with attackers constantly refining their tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs), creating a widening gap between their innovation and traditional security coverage. Zero-day exploits are now widely used by criminal groups, not just nation-state...
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Criminal Networks Are Industrializing Payment Fraud
Criminal syndicates now operate like modern corporations, using automation, reusable infrastructure, and scalable methods to create persistent threats that financial institutions struggle to counter. Fraud networks employ organized, repeatable strategies such as AI-powered social engineering and ...
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Microsoft Teams Targeted by Fake IT Support Scams
A new wave of phishing attacks is exploiting Microsoft Teams, using fake IT support accounts to trick employees into installing malware that gives attackers full network control. Attackers are shifting from email to Teams due to its trusted role in business, impersonating IT staff to deploy remot...
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Okta SSO accounts targeted in vishing data theft attacks
A new wave of sophisticated phishing attacks uses real-time voice calls and adversary-in-the-middle platforms to steal employee Okta credentials and bypass multi-factor authentication (MFA) by manipulating victims during live conversations. Attackers conduct detailed reconnaissance, spoof interna...
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Peruvian Scam Steals Card Details with Fake Loan Apps
A sophisticated loan scam in Peru uses fake bank websites and social media ads to harvest high-quality credit card details and banking passwords through a multi-stage verification process. The fraud employs psychological manipulation and technical checks, like real-time card number validation, to...
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Chrome Extension Backdoor Disguised as Fake Crash Alerts
The malicious "NexShield" browser extension, a copy of a legitimate ad blocker, uses social engineering to trick users into running a harmful PowerShell command, deploying a remote access trojan that specifically targets corporate domain-joined computers. A separate, coordinated campaign involved...
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Fortune 100 Firm Hit by New PDFSider Windows Malware
A Fortune 100 company was compromised by a novel, stealthy malware called PDFSider, delivered via social engineering and a spearphishing email that used a legitimate, signed PDF24 Creator executable to side-load malicious code. The PDFSider backdoor exhibits advanced persistent threat (APT) chara...
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Ransomware Never Dies, It Multiplies
Ransomware attacks reached a record high in 2025, with over 6,100 total extortion incidents, as criminal groups rapidly adapted despite law enforcement takedowns of major operations. The threat landscape saw a significant reshuffle among prominent ransomware gangs, with groups like Akira and Qili...
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