New phishing campaign disguised as Ukraine’s Security Service targeting government computers


A new phishing campaign has been discovered targeting the computers of Ukraine’s government disguising itself as the Security Service of Ukraine.
The campaign was brought to light by the Computer Emergency Response Team of Ukraine (CERT-UA), in a warning that disclosed that, if successful, the attack could deploy malware enabling remote desktop access.
So far, over 100 computers have been infected by the campaign since July 2024.
ANONVNC malware
CERT-UA has labelled the activity as UAC-0198, with the malware in use by the attackers being a modification of the MeshAgent remote management system. The attackers will send an email that appears to be from the Security Service of Ukraine which contains a ZIP file containing an MSI installer which is loaded with the malware named ANONVNC.
CERT-UA also warned that an additional threat actor tracked as UAC-0057 has been distributing PicassoLoader malware via phishing attacks, which eventually leads to the deployment of Cobalt Strike Beacon software.
In a statement on the attacks, CERT-UA warned, “It is reasonable to assume that the objects of interest of UAC-0057 could be both specialists of project offices and their ‘contractors’ from among the employees of the relevant local governments of Ukraine.”
A further threat actor, UAC-0102 has been running a campaign using phishing emails containing HTML attachments that appear to be the UKR.NET login page, but any credentials entered are stolen by the attackers.
Sign up to the TechRadar Pro newsletter to get all the top news, opinion, features and guidance your business needs to succeed!
Ukraine has been increasingly targeted by cyber attacks since Russia’s invasion in February 2022, with several attempts to knock out key infrastructure such as mobile networks and internet service providers proving successful.
Via TheHackerNews
More from TechRadar Pro
A new phishing campaign has been discovered targeting the computers of Ukraine’s government disguising itself as the Security Service of Ukraine. The campaign was brought to light by the Computer Emergency Response Team of Ukraine (CERT-UA), in a warning that disclosed that, if successful, the attack could deploy malware enabling…
Recent Posts
- I tried ChatGPT’s Dall-E 3 image generator and these 5 tips will help you get the most from your AI creations
- Gabby Petito murder documentary sparks viewer backlash after it uses fake AI voiceover
- The quirky Alarmo clock is no longer exclusive to Nintendo’s online store
- The government is still threatening to ‘semi-fire’ workers who don’t answer an email from Elon Musk
- Sigma’s latest camera is so minimalist it doesn’t have a memory card slot
Archives
- February 2025
- January 2025
- December 2024
- November 2024
- October 2024
- September 2024
- August 2024
- July 2024
- June 2024
- May 2024
- April 2024
- March 2024
- February 2024
- January 2024
- December 2023
- November 2023
- October 2023
- September 2023
- August 2023
- July 2023
- June 2023
- May 2023
- April 2023
- March 2023
- February 2023
- January 2023
- December 2022
- November 2022
- October 2022
- September 2022
- August 2022
- July 2022
- June 2022
- May 2022
- April 2022
- March 2022
- February 2022
- January 2022
- December 2021
- November 2021
- October 2021
- September 2021
- August 2021
- July 2021
- June 2021
- May 2021
- April 2021
- March 2021
- February 2021
- January 2021
- December 2020
- November 2020
- October 2020
- September 2020
- August 2020
- July 2020
- June 2020
- May 2020
- April 2020
- March 2020
- February 2020
- January 2020
- December 2019
- November 2019
- September 2018
- October 2017
- December 2011
- August 2010