Who Got Hacked This Week? Dec. 17 Edition

Note: Each week we bring you the latest hacking news on the internet. Read on to find out who and what was hacked this week.

Hackers Stole Data From 1 Billion Yahoo Users

This past week Yahoo admitted to yet another serious cyberattack.

Unconnected from the recent attack that compromised 500 million accounts, Yahoo says that a separate attack that was likely carried out in 2013 has compromised 1 billion accounts.

The company says that hackers were able to forge authentication cookies, meaning they didn’t need passwords to access user accounts. Names, email IDs, phone numbers, hashed passwords and encrypted and unencrypted security questions and answers may have been stolen in the attack.

According to the New York Times, the database was sold on the Dark Web last August for $300,000.

 

5-Year-Old Skype Backdoor Discovered

Apple’s macOS and Mac OS X operating systems could be used to spy on communications without user knowledge thanks to a recently discovered hidden backdoor in Skype.

The backdoor resided in the desktop API that allows third-party plugins and apps to communicate with Skype.

The backdoor could allow any malicious third-party app to bypass authentication procedure and give almost total access to Skype. It is believed to have been around since 2010.

 

Mac Encryption Password Can Be Hacked in 30 Seconds

An attacker only requires a $300 device called PCILeech to seize full control of a Mac or MacBook by stealing the Mac FileVault2 password.

 

Backdoor Found in Low-Cost Android Phones

Low-cost Android smartphones and tablets are being shipped with malicious firmware that gathers data about the devises, displays advertisements on top of applications, and downloads unwanted APK files.

Mostly marketed in Russia, two types of downloader Trojans have been incorporated into the firmware of these devices operating on the MediaTek platform.

The Trojans are capable of collecting data, contacting command-and-control servers, automatically updating, covertly downloading and installing apps based on instructions from the server, and running whenever the device in restarted or turned on.

The Hacker News provides a full list of affected device models.

Lenovo A319, Lenovo A6000, MegaFon Login 4 LTE, Bravis NB85, Bravis NB105, Irbis TZ85, Irbis TX97, Irbis TZ43, Irbis tz56, Pixus Touch 7.85 3G, SUPRA M72KG, SUPRA M729G, SUPRA V2N10, Itell K3300, Digma Plane 9.7 3G, General Satellite GS700, Nomi C07000, Optima 10.1 3G TT1040MG, Marshal ME-711, 7 MID, Explay Imperium 8, Perfeo 9032_3G, Prestigio MultiPad Wize 3021 3G, Prestigio MultiPad PMT5001 3G, Ritmix RMD-1121, Oysters T72HM 3G, Irbis tz70, and Jeka JK103.

 

Hackers Using Malware to Use Computers as Zcash Mining Machines

Hackers are using malware to corrupt computers and turn them into Zcash mining machines.

Zcash is a new form of cryptocurrency similar to BitCoin, although Zcash is more anonymous and therefore more attractive to cyber criminals.

Mining is essentially solving math problems in exchange for a reward in the virtual currency. Legal software is available to turn a computer into a dedicated mining machine. However, cyber criminals are using malware to turn foreign computers into mining machines unknown to the owner or user. The computers are forced to mine Zcash and transfer funds to the attacker.

Up to 1,000 infected computers have been detected so far. The malware is distributed through links for pirated software. Mining can use large amounts of electricity, use up to 90 percent of a system’s RAM, and will restart when a computer is restarted or turned on.

 

Bug Allows Hackers to Read Facebook Messenger Chats

A critical vulnerability in Facebook Messenger, dubbed “Originull,” allows an attacker to read all private messages, view photos and attachments sent through Facebook Messenger. All an attacker needs to do is trick a user into visiting a malicious website to exploit the vulnerability.

 

Hacker Breaches US Agency that Certifies Voting Machines

The US Election Assistance Commission was recently breached by a hacker attempting to sell accounts that have accessed the agency.

Going by the name of Rasputin, the hacker was trying to sell an unpatched system vulnerability. More than one hundred logins were compromised.

The hacker used an SQL injection to obtain lists of logins and passwords. One could access testing plans and results for various machines with that information.

The EAC does not store voter’s personal information or vote totals.

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