Threat Intelligence

DNS Deep Dive: Peeking into Back Doors to Abandoned but Live Backdoors

watchTowr Labs investigated thousands of abandoned but live backdoors installed on various compromised sites to determine what data the original backdoor owners have stolen. They published their findings in "Backdooring Your Backdoors -- Another $20 Domain, More Governments" and, in the process, identified 34 domains as indicators of compromise (IoCs).

DNS Insights on a Free Form Builder Service Phishing Campaign

Unit 42 of Palo Alto Networks recently uncovered a phishing campaign targeting European companies to harvest victims' account credentials and take over their Microsoft Azure cloud infrastructure. According to their report, the phishing attempts leveraging the HubSpot Free Form Builder service peaked in June 2024.

More Signs of the more_eggs Backdoor Found in the DNS

Using resumes to fake job applications is not a novel social engineering lure for run-of-the-mill phishing campaigns. But utilizing the same tactic to launch a targeted attack isn't that common.

Illuminating Lumma Stealer DNS Facts and Findings

The Lumma Stealer, known for using the malware-as-a-service (MaaS) model, has figured in various campaigns targeting victims in countries like Argentina, Colombia, the U.S., the Philippines, and others since 2022.

The MOONSHINE Exploit Kit and the DarkNimbus Backdoor in the DNS Spotlight

The Earth Minotaur threat group recently revived the MOONSHINE exploit kit, first discovered in 2019. According to Trend Micro's in-depth analysis, MOONSHINE had more than 55 servers in 2024 and has been updated with more exploits and functions compared with its 2019 version.

Peering Into Midnight Blizzard’s DNS Footprint

Thousands of people working for organizations in the public, academia, and defense sectors are being targeted by spear-phishing attacks operated by a threat group called "Midnight Blizzard." The messages contained a Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) configuration file connected to the malicious actor's server.

Global Domain Activity Trends Seen in Q4 2024

Our research team analyzed 24.4+ million domains registered between 1 October and 31 December 2024 from the Newly Registered Domains (NRD) Data Feed.

Tracking Down APT Group WIRTE’s DNS Movements

The WIRTE advanced persistent threat (APT) group has been active since at least August 2018. It has targeted government, diplomatic, financial, military, legal, and technology organizations in the Middle East and Europe.

WhoisXML API Launches First Watch Malicious Domains Data Feed with 97% Predictive Precision

Los Angeles, California, U.S., Jan 16, 2025 -- WhoisXML API is thrilled to announce the launch of First Watch Malicious Domains Data Feed. This innovative release delivers daily predictive threat intelligence, detecting malicious intent in domain registrations ahead of weaponization.

New Year, Old Threats: What Does the DNS Reveal About 2025?

2025 is barely a few weeks old, but we've already heard reports of advanced phishing attacks leveraging generative artificial intelligence (AI). It's scary but not exactly surprising. Threat actors are expectedly using more sophisticated and modern attack techniques and will likely continue to rely on domain names as phishing vehicles.