February 17, Softpedia – (International) Firmware of over a dozen hard drive brands altered to lodge malware. Kaspersky researchers discovered that a cyber-espionage group calling itself Equation modified hard drive firmware in over 12 brands to potentially infect tens of thousands of computers worldwide, including those in sectors such as government and military institutions, nuclear research, oil and gas, telecommunications, transportation, and the financial sector, among others. Reprogramming the firmware allowed attackers to create persistent hidden storage spaces accessible only through specific methods known to them. Source
February 17, Softpedia – (International) Ongoing cyber attack on banks worldwide creates billion dollar loss. Kaspersky security researchers discovered that cyber criminals robbed over 100 financial institutions worldwide of up to $1 billion by using spear-phishing attacks exploiting 2 vulnerabilities in Microsoft Office and 1 vulnerability in Microsoft Word to install malware and infiltrate institutions’ networks. The attackers cashed in by instructing ATMs to dispense money at specific times without payment cards, opening accounts with fake balances, and artificially inflating account balances of bank customers and then transferring the surplus to their accounts in China and the U.S. Source