DDoS Archives

Tech Optimizer

December 3, 2025

Wacatac Trojan: What Is It And How To Remove It

The Wacatac Trojan is a type of malware first documented in January 2020, known for disguising itself as benign software to trick users into installation. It operates under various aliases, including Trojan:Script/Wacatac and Trojan:Win32/Wacatac, and can connect to Command-and-Control (C2) servers for remote manipulation. Its capabilities include stealing credentials, evading antivirus detection, creating or joining botnets, causing system damage, enabling spyware functions, acting as Remote Access Tools (RATs), and downloading additional malware. Symptoms of infection include sluggish performance, program failures, unexplained storage reductions, and unfamiliar processes. Wacatac spreads through unofficial software, malicious web pages, and phishing emails. Removal is best achieved using reputable antivirus software, while prevention involves avoiding questionable downloads, practicing good digital hygiene, keeping software updated, backing up data, and using quality antivirus solutions. False positives can occur, where legitimate programs are mistakenly flagged as Wacatac.

AppWizard

December 1, 2025

SmartTube YouTube app for Android TV breached to push malicious update

An attacker gained access to the developer's signing keys for SmartTube, an open-source YouTube client for Android TV, leading to a malicious update being distributed. The developer, Yuriy Yuliskov, confirmed the compromise and plans to release a new version with a different app ID. Users reported that Play Protect flagged SmartTube as a potential threat. A reverse-engineered version, identified as 30.51, contained a hidden library named libalphasdk.so, which was not part of the public source code and collected device fingerprints without user knowledge. There is currently no evidence linking the malware to account theft or DDoS attacks, but concerns remain. Yuliskov has announced safe beta and stable test builds on Telegram, but they are not yet on GitHub. Users are advised to stay on older verified builds, avoid logging in with premium accounts, and disable auto-updates. Version 30.19 does not trigger Play Protect warnings, suggesting it may be safer.

AppWizard

November 27, 2025

Epic Games Store Down Right Now? Why The PC Launcher Is Having Issues

The Epic Games Store is experiencing significant disruptions, with many PC players unable to log in, access their game libraries, or launch titles due to issues with Epic Online Services (EOS) login systems. An active incident titled “EOS Login Issues” has been logged for November 26, 2025, affecting not only the Epic Games Store but also popular games like Fortnite, Rocket League, and Fall Guys. Epic has acknowledged the problems and is investigating, but no timeline for resolution has been provided. Reports indicate that thousands of players are facing launcher errors and login loops. The root cause appears to be a malfunction within EOS, which is responsible for user authentication. Players are advised to check Epic’s status page and avoid local troubleshooting measures. The outage disrupts free game claims, store sales, and access to online titles, but players should not lose their games or purchases as they are linked to their Epic accounts.

Winsage

November 17, 2025

Windows 10 update failure, autonomous AI cyberattack, Feds fumble Cisco patches

Microsoft has acknowledged an issue with the Windows 10 KB5068781 extended security update, which is failing to apply after installation for users with corporate licenses, resulting in a rollback. A group of hackers believed to be backed by China executed a large-scale cyberattack using Claude Code AI, targeting 30 organizations across various sectors. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) reported that U.S. government agencies are struggling to patch critical vulnerabilities in Cisco devices amid the “Arcane Door” hacking campaign. Five individuals pleaded guilty to charges related to helping North Korean IT workers infiltrate 136 companies in the U.S. from September 2019 to November 2022. Port Alliance, a Russian port operator, reported disruptions due to a DDoS cyberattack targeting its operations related to coal and mineral fertilizer exports. DoorDash experienced a data breach on October 25, potentially affecting personal details of customers, Dashers, and merchants across the U.S. and Canada, traced back to a social engineering scam. North Korean hackers are using JSON storage services to host and deliver malware, approaching victims with job offers on platforms like LinkedIn. Jaguar Land Rover reported a financial impact of £196 million (0 million) from a cyberattack in September that forced production halts and compromised data.

Winsage

October 23, 2025

Russian hackers replace malware with new tools, Windows updates cause login issues, campaign targets high-profile servers

Mark your calendars for this Friday's Super Cyber Friday, featuring the session titled "Hacking the Death of EDR." Russian state-sponsored hacking group Coldriver has introduced three new malware strains: NOROBOT, YESROBOT, and MAYBEROBOT, following the exposure of their previous tool, LostKeys. The new malware is designed to evade detection and extract sensitive data from high-value targets. Microsoft has acknowledged that Windows updates released since August 29th are causing login failures on systems with duplicate Security Identifiers (SIDs), leading to authentication failures. Microsoft recommends rebuilding affected systems or contacting support for a temporary fix. Kaspersky researchers have identified a likely Chinese-speaking threat actor behind the “PassiveNeuron” campaign, targeting government, financial, and industrial servers across Asia, Africa, and Latin America since 2024, using custom implants and Cobalt Strike. CISA has added high-severity vulnerabilities in Oracle E-Business Suite, Microsoft Windows SMB Client, Kentico Xperience CMS, and Apple JavaScriptCore to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, requiring federal agencies to patch by November 10th. Researchers from France's CEA and Soitec have unveiled a new chip architecture called Fully Depleted Silicon-on-Insulator, designed to defend against laser fault injection attacks on automotive microcontrollers. During Pwn2Own Ireland 2025, researchers exploited 34 zero-days across various devices, earning a total of 2,500 in rewards, with Team DDOS chaining eight zero-days to compromise a QNAP router and NAS. Koi Security researchers discovered a new self-propagating malware named GlassWorm, which has infected approximately 36,000 developer systems by exploiting Visual Studio Code extensions, pilfering credentials, and installing remote access tools. PolarEdge is a botnet malware targeting Cisco, ASUS, QNAP, and Synology routers, first detected in February, which installs a TLS-based backdoor to fingerprint hosts and execute tasks while employing anti-analysis techniques.

AppWizard

October 12, 2025

EA Sports FC 26 players get a red card for cheating the system with VPNs

Players of EA Sports FC 26 discovered a pricing anomaly that allowed them to purchase FC points at a significantly reduced rate by using a VPN. The error occurred on Indonesian servers, where 2,000 rupiah was mistakenly listed instead of 2 million rupiah. This led to players exploiting the glitch, prompting EA to suspend or ban those who took advantage of it. The incident was criticized by the community, with some attributing the issue to Apple Pay's payment process.

Tech Optimizer

October 10, 2025

From infostealer to full RAT: dissecting the PureRAT attack chain

An investigation revealed that a Python-based infostealer campaign led to the deployment of PureRAT, a sophisticated remote access trojan (RAT). The campaign began with a phishing email containing a ZIP archive that included a legitimate PDF reader executable and a malicious DLL. The DLL executed a series of payloads, including a Python info-stealer that harvested sensitive data and exfiltrated it via the Telegram API. The attack progressed to a .NET executable, which employed techniques like process hollowing and evasion tactics to load additional payloads. The final payload, Mhgljosy.dll, was identified as PureRAT, which established an encrypted command-and-control (C2) channel and allowed for extensive control over the compromised host. The C2 server was traced to Vietnam, suggesting a connection to the PXA group. The malware's functionality included host fingerprinting, command execution, and potential access to sensitive information and resources. Indicators of compromise included specific file hashes, registry keys, and IP addresses associated with the C2 server.

TrendTechie

October 4, 2025

Пять лет дали админу торрент-трекера, прекратившего работу 10 лет назад

Греческий суд отклонил апелляцию жителя страны, признанного виновным в администрировании пиратского торрент-трекера P2PLanet, и назначил ему пять лет тюремного заключения и значительный штраф. Арест произошел в 2014 году после взлома сайта, на котором было 44,342 зарегистрированных пользователя и 14,000 файлов в формате torrent. P2Planet, начавший свою деятельность в 2011 году, использовал уязвимое программное обеспечение TorrentStrike. Решение апелляционного суда указывает на ужесточение мер против нарушителей авторского права в Греции. В 2019 году аналогичное дело завершилось пятилетним сроком для другого обвиняемого.

Tech Optimizer

September 27, 2025

Antivirus Statistics 2025: Revealing Growth & Usage

The global antivirus software market is projected to reach approximately billion by 2025 and grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of around 6.9% through 2029. By 2025, 84% of users are expected to have antivirus software installed on their computers, and approximately 68% will have antivirus protection on their smartphones. In recent testing, antivirus products were evaluated against 212 test cases, with 560,000 new malware variants detected globally each day. Microsoft Defender and Norton achieved perfect protection scores of 100% in evaluations conducted in June 2025. Microsoft is redesigning Windows to relocate antivirus and Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) applications out of the kernel. In 2024, the U.S. government prohibited the sale of Kaspersky antivirus software due to national security concerns. Gen Digital anticipates revenue between .70 billion and .80 billion for 2026. The integration of AI into malware frameworks is pushing antivirus vendors to adopt machine learning-driven threat detection models. Antivirus plans are predominantly priced between and , with 32.1% of plans falling within this range. Only 3.6% of antivirus options are free, and 93% of products offer a 30+ day money-back guarantee. 79% include defenses against ransomware and phishing attacks, and 61% come with a built-in firewall. The average maximum coverage per antivirus subscription extends to 24 devices. In 2024, around 121 million Americans used third-party antivirus software, with 17 million adults intending to adopt antivirus software within six months. Among users of commercial antivirus software, 74% reported encountering malware in the past year. Detection effectiveness in malware tests often surpasses 99% for leading antivirus products, while false positive rates vary significantly. Symantec leads the Windows antivirus market with a share of 13.81%, followed by AVAST Software (11.93%) and ESET (11.03%). Approximately 560,000 new malware variants are identified daily, and there are over 1 billion documented malware samples worldwide. Ransomware attacks targeting Windows constitute around 93% of all enterprise ransomware incidents. In 2024, 17% of U.S. adults reported using antivirus software on mobile phones, with 73% opting for paid versions. Free antivirus solutions typically offer basic features but lack advanced modules. The enterprise antivirus market is projected to reach approximately .0 billion by 2024, with significant growth expected in the coming years. North America holds approximately 48.3% of the global antivirus market share, while Europe experiences growth due to regulations. IoT devices are increasingly targeted, with unpatched firmware responsible for about 60% of IoT breaches. The average cost of an IoT security failure incident is approximately 0,000. Typical antivirus subscriptions range from to 0 per year, with many vendors offering multi-device bundles.

AppWizard

August 24, 2025

Week in review: Covertly connected and insecure Android VPN apps, Apple fixes exploited zero-day

A study by Arizona State University and Citizen Lab found that three families of Android VPN apps, with over 700 million downloads, have significant security vulnerabilities. Apple has released a fix for a zero-day vulnerability (CVE-2025-43300) that was being exploited in targeted attacks. Researchers from the University of Melbourne and Imperial College London developed a method using lightweight large language models to improve incident response planning. The FBI and Cisco warned about a Russian threat group exploiting an old Cisco vulnerability (CVE-2018-0171) to compromise critical infrastructure. Fog Security researchers discovered a flaw in AWS’s Trusted Advisor tool that could mislead users about the security of their data. AI is now being used in security operations centers to reduce alert noise and assist analysts. U.S. federal prosecutors charged an individual linked to the Rapper Bot DDoS botnet. Nikoloz Kokhreidze discussed the strategic choice between hiring a fractional or full-time Chief Information Security Officer for B2B companies. Commvault patched four vulnerabilities that risked remote code execution. Jacob Ideskog highlighted security risks posed by AI agents. VX Underground released an exploit for two SAP Netweaver vulnerabilities (CVE-2025-31324, CVE-2025-42999). Healthcare organizations are preparing for new password security risks in 2025 that may threaten HIPAA compliance. Researchers identified a spear-phishing campaign using the Noodlophile infostealer. Financial institutions are increasingly using open-source intelligence tools to combat money laundering. Greg Bak discussed security risks for DevOps teams in the cloud. NIST released guidelines for detecting morph attacks. Organizations face six challenges in implementing machine learning and AI security. Recep Ozdag discussed vulnerabilities in airport and airline systems. Google introduced new AI and cloud security capabilities at the Cloud Security Summit 2025. Cybersecurity myths continue to complicate the security landscape. LudusHound is an open-source tool that replicates an Active Directory environment for testing. Buttercup is an AI-powered platform for automated vulnerability management in open-source software. The book "Data Engineering for Cybersecurity" addresses challenges in managing logs and telemetry data. A selection of current cybersecurity job openings has been compiled. A forthcoming webinar will discuss AI and SaaS security risks. The iStorage datAshur PRO+C is a USB-C flash drive with AES-XTS 256-bit hardware encryption. New infosec products were released by companies such as Doppel, Druva, LastPass, and StackHawk.