The Hacker News

"Threats Day Bulletin:  GhostAd draining, macOS attack, Proxy botnets, and Cloud exploits."

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Russ Roberts (https://www.hawaiicybersecurityjournal.net).

ThreatsDay Bulletin: GhostAd Drain, macOS Attacks, Proxy Botnets, Cloud Exploits, and 12+ Stories

Jan 01, 2026Cybersecurity / Hacking News

The first ThreatsDay Bulletin of 2026 lands on a day that already feels symbolic — new year, new breaches, new tricks. If the past twelve months taught defenders anything, it's that threat actors don't pause for holidays or resolutions. They just evolve faster. This week's round-up shows how subtle shifts in behavior, from code tweaks to job scams, are rewriting what "cybercrime" looks like in practice. Across the landscape, big players are being tested, familiar threats are mutating, and smaller stories are quietly signaling bigger patterns ahead. The trend isn't about one big breach anymore; it's about many small openings that attackers exploit with precision. The pace of exploitation, deception, and persistence hasn't slowed; it's only become more calculated. Each update in this edition highlights how the line between normal operations and compromise is getting thinner by the week. Here's a sharp look at what's moving beneath the surface of the cybersecurity world as 2026 begin...

The Breach You Didn't Expect: Your AppSec Stack

JFrogAppSec / DevSecOps

In a market undergoing mergers and acquisitions, vendor instability can put you in serious risk.

RondoDox Botnet Exploits Critical React2Shell Flaw to Hijack IoT Devices and Web Servers

Jan 01, 2026Network Security / Vulnerability

Cybersecurity researchers have disclosed details of a persistent nine-month-long campaign that has targeted Internet of Things (IoT) devices and web applications to enroll them into a botnet known as RondoDox. As of December 2025, the activity has been observed leveraging the recently disclosed React2Shell (CVE-2025-55182, CVSS score: 10.0) flaw as an initial access vector, CloudSEK said in an analysis. React2Shell is the name assigned to a critical security vulnerability in React Server Components (RSC) and Next.js that could allow unauthenticated attackers to achieve remote code execution on susceptible devices. According to statistics from the Shadowserver Foundation, there are about 90,300 instances that remain susceptible to the vulnerability as of December 31, 2025, out of which 68,400 instances are located in the U.S., followed by Germany (4,300), France (2,800), and India (1,500). RondoDox, which emerged in early 2025, has broadened its scale by adding new N-day secur...

How To Browse Faster and Get More Done Using Adapt Browser

Jan 01, 2026Web Browser / Technology

As web browsers evolve into all-purpose platforms, performance and productivity often suffer.  Feature overload, excessive background processes, and fragmented workflows can slow down browsing sessions and introduce unnecessary friction, especially for users who rely on the browser as a primary work environment. This article explores how adopting a lightweight, task-focused browser, like Adapt Browser , can help users browse faster, reduce distractions, and complete everyday tasks more efficiently, without relying on heavy extensions or complex configurations. The Productivity Problem With Modern Browsing For many professionals, the browser functions as a central hub for research, communication, content consumption, and operational work. However, common challenges persist: High CPU and memory usage caused by background services Excessive tab proliferation leading to loss of context Frequent switching between browser tabs and external applications Reliance on extensions t...

Trust Wallet Chrome Extension Hack Drains $8.5M via Shai-Hulud Supply Chain Attack

Dec 31, 2026Software Security / Data Breach

Trust Wallet on Tuesday revealed that the second iteration of the Shai-Hulud (aka Sha1-Hulud) supply chain outbreak in November 2025 was likely responsible for the hack of its Google Chrome extension, ultimately resulting in the theft of approximately $8.5 million in assets. "Our Developer GitHub secrets were exposed in the attack, which gave the attacker access to our browser extension source code and the Chrome Web Store (CWS) API key," the company said in a post-mortem published Tuesday. "The attacker obtained full CWS API access via the leaked key, allowing builds to be uploaded directly without Trust Wallet's standard release process, which requires internal approval/manual review." Subsequently, the attacker is said to have registered the domain "metrics-trustwallet[.]com" and pushed a trojanized version of the extension with a backdoor that's capable of harvesting users' wallet mnemonic phrases to the sub-domain "api.metrics-...

DarkSpectre Browser Extension Campaigns Exposed After Impacting 8.8 Million Users Worldwide

Dec 31, 2026Malware / Ad Fraud

The threat actor behind two malicious browser extension campaigns, ShadyPanda and GhostPoster , has been attributed to a third attack campaign codenamed DarkSpectre that has impacted 2.2 million users of Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, and Mozilla Firefox. The activity is assessed to be the work of a Chinese threat actor that Koi Security is tracking under the moniker DarkSpectre . In all, the campaigns have collectively affected over 8.8 million users spanning a period of more than seven years. ShadyPanda was first unmasked by the cybersecurity company earlier this month as targeting all three browser users to facilitate data theft, search query hijacking, and affiliate fraud. It has been found to affect 5.6 million users, including 1.3 newly identified victims stemming from over 100 extensions flagged as connected to the same cluster. This also includes an Edge add-on named "New Tab - Customized Dashboard" that features a logic bomb that waits for three days prior to t...

How AI and Zero Trust Work Together to Catch Attacks With No Files or Indicators

THN WebinarZero Trust / Cloud Security

Modern cyberattacks hide in trusted tools and workflows, evading traditional defenses. Zero Trust and AI-powered cloud security give you the visibility and control to stop these invisible threats early.

Critical CVSS 9.8 Flaw Found in IBM API Connect Authentication System

Dec 31, 2026API Security / Vulnerability

IBM has disclosed details of a critical security flaw in API Connect that could allow attackers to gain remote access to the application. The vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2025-13915 , is rated 9.8 out of a maximum of 10.0 on the CVSS scoring system. It has been described as an authentication bypass flaw. "IBM API Connect could allow a remote attacker to bypass authentication mechanisms and gain unauthorized access to the application," the tech giant said in a bulletin. The shortcoming affects the following versions of IBM API Connect - 10.0.8.0 through 10.0.8.5 10.0.11.0 Customers are advised to follow the steps outlined below - Download the fix from Fix Central Extract the files: Readme.md and ibm-apiconnect-<version>-ifix.13195.tar.gz Apply the fix based on the appropriate API Connect version "Customers unable to install the interim fix should disable self-service sign-up on their Developer Portal if enabled, which will help minimise their exp...

Researchers Spot Modified Shai-Hulud Worm Testing Payload on npm Registry

Dec 31, 2026Cybersecurity / Malware

Cybersecurity researchers have disclosed details of what appears to be a new strain of Shai Hulud on the npm registry with slight modifications from the previous wave observed last month. The npm package that embeds the novel Shai Hulud strain is " @vietmoney/react-big-calendar ," which was uploaded to npm back in March 2021 by a user named "hoquocdat." It was updated for the first time on December 28, 2025, to version 0.26.2. The package has been downloaded 698 times since its initial publication. The latest version has been downloaded 197 times. Aikido, which spotted the package, said it has not spotted any major spread or infections following the release of the package. "This suggests we may have caught the attackers testing their payload," security researcher Charlie Eriksen said . "The differences in the code suggests that this was obfuscated again from the original source, not modified in place. This makes it highly unlikely to be a copy-ca...

U.S. Treasury Lifts Sanctions on Three Individuals Linked to Intellexa and Predator Spyware

Dec 31, 2026Spyware / Mobile Security

The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on Tuesday removed three individuals linked to the Intellexa Consortium, the holding company behind a commercial spyware known as Predator , from the specially designated nationals list. The names of the individuals are as follows - Merom Harpaz Andrea Nicola Constantino Hermes Gambazzi Sara Aleksandra Fayssal Hamou Hamou was sanctioned by OFAC in March 2024, and Harpaz and Gambazzi were targeted in September 2024 in connection with developing, operating, and distributing Predator. The Treasury's press release does not give any reason as to why they were removed from the list. However, in a statement shared with Reuters, it said the removal "was done as part of the normal administrative process in response to a petition request for reconsideration." The department added that the individuals had "demonstrated measures to separate themselves from the Intellexa Consortium....

CSA Issues Alert on Critical SmarterMail Bug Allowing Remote Code Execution

Dec 30, 2026Vulnerability / Email Security

The Cyber Security Agency of Singapore (CSA) has issued a bulletin warning of a maximum-severity security flaw in SmarterTools SmarterMail email software that could be exploited to achieve remote code execution. The vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2025-52691 , carries a CVSS score of 10.0. It relates to a case of arbitrary file upload that could enable code execution without requiring any authentication. "Successful exploitation of the vulnerability could allow an unauthenticated attacker to upload arbitrary files to any location on the mail server, potentially enabling remote code execution," CSA said. Vulnerabilities of this kind allow the upload of dangerous file types that are automatically processed within an application's environment. This could pave the way for code execution if the uploaded file is interpreted and executed as code, as is the case with PHP files. In a hypothetical attack scenario, a bad actor could weaponize this vulnerability to place malici...

Silver Fox Targets Indian Users With Tax-Themed Emails Delivering ValleyRAT Malware

Dec 30, 2026Phishing / Malware

The threat actor known as Silver Fox has turned its focus to India, using income tax-themed lures in phishing campaigns to distribute a modular remote access trojan called ValleyRAT (aka Winos 4.0). "This sophisticated attack leverages a complex kill chain involving DLL hijacking and the modular Valley RAT to ensure persistence," CloudSEK researchers Prajwal Awasthi and Koushik Pal said in an analysis published last week. Also tracked as SwimSnake, The Great Thief of Valley (or Valley Thief), UTG-Q-1000, and Void Arachne, Silver Fox is the name assigned to an aggressive cybercrime group from China that has been active since 2022. It has a track record of orchestrating a variety of campaigns whose motives range from espionage and intelligence collection to financial gain, cryptocurrency mining, and operational disruption, making it one of the few hacking crews with a multi-pronged approach to their intrusion activity. Primarily focused on Chinese-speaking individuals...

How to Integrate AI into Modern SOC Workflows

Dec 30, 2026Threat Hunting / Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence (AI) is making its way into security operations quickly, but many practitioners are still struggling to turn early experimentation into consistent operational value. This is because SOCs are adopting AI without an intentional approach to operational integration. Some teams treat it as a shortcut for broken processes. Others attempt to apply machine learning to problems that are not well defined. Findings from our 2025 SANS SOC Survey reinforce that disconnect. A significant portion of organizations are already experimenting with AI, yet 40 percent of SOCs use AI or ML tools without making them a defined part of operations, and 42 percent rely on AI/ML tools "out of the box" with no customization at all. The result is a familiar pattern. AI is present inside the SOC but not operationalized. Analysts use it informally, often with mixed reliability, while leadership has not yet established a consistent model for where AI belongs, how its output should be valida...

Mustang Panda Uses Signed Kernel-Mode Rootkit to Load TONESHELL Backdoor

Dec 30, 2026Malware / Cyber Espionage

The Chinese hacking group known as Mustang Panda has leveraged a previously undocumented kernel-mode rootkit driver to deliver a new variant of backdoor dubbed TONESHELL in a cyber attack detected in mid-2025 targeting an unspecified entity in Asia. The findings come from Kaspersky, which observed the new backdoor variant in cyber espionage campaigns mounted by the hacking group targeting government organizations in Southeast and East Asia, primarily Myanmar and Thailand. "The driver file is signed with an old, stolen, or leaked digital certificate and registers as a minifilter driver on infected machines," the Russian cybersecurity company said . "Its end-goal is to inject a backdoor trojan into the system processes and provide protection for malicious files, user-mode processes, and registry keys." The final payload deployed as part of the attack is TONESHELL, an implant with reverse shell and downloader capabilities to fetch next-stage malware onto compromi...

⚡ Weekly Recap: MongoDB Attacks, Wallet Breaches, Android Spyware, Insider Crime & More

Dec 29, 2026Hacking News / Cybersecurity

Last week's cyber news in 2025 was not about one big incident. It was about many small cracks opening at the same time. Tools people trust every day behave in unexpected ways. Old flaws resurfaced. New ones were used almost immediately. A common theme ran through it all in 2025. Attackers moved faster than fixes. Access meant for work, updates, or support kept getting abused. And damage did not stop when an incident was "over" — it continued to surface months or even years later. This weekly recap brings those stories together in one place. No overload, no noise. Read on to see what shaped the threat landscape in the final stretch of 2025 and what deserves your attention now. ⚡ Threat of the Week MongoDB Vulnerability Comes Under Attack — A newly disclosed security vulnerability in MongoDB has come under active exploitation in the wild, with over 87,000 potentially susceptible instances identified across the world. The vulnerability in question is CVE-2025-14847 (CVSS score: 8.7)...