Alerts Archives - Demysti5

Urgent Online Safety Alert: Update Apple Devices NOW Against Pegasus Spyware!

Demysti5 — Fri, 15 Sep 2023 04:18:45 +0000

Reading Time: 2 minutes

September 15, 2023

Key Facts:

Discovery: Citizen Lab of the University of Toronto detected Pegasus spyware on an Apple device belonging to an employee of a Washington-based organization.
Modus Operandi: Pegasus deploys concealed codes via iMessage, named “BLASTPASS” by Citizen Lab, overtaking devices without the user’s knowledge.
Response: Apple, emphasizing online safety, has swiftly rolled out an emergency software update. We recommend using “Lockdown Mode” for enhanced protection if you feel your device is compromised.

Also Read

Over 31,000 Australian Bank Passwords Leaked: All You Need to Know and Do

Published on: April 30, 2025

Massive X (Twitter) Data Leak Raises Major Online Safety Concerns

Published on: April 2, 2025

Download the demysti5 | Online Safety App and follow us on digital and social media platforms

Published on: March 10, 2025

Urgent Next Steps for Apple Device Users:

Immediate Update: Swiftly update to the latest software version containing vital security patches.

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT213905

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201222

Activate Lockdown Mode: Familiarize and activate Lockdown Mode for added protection if you feel your device is compromised.
Review Permissions: Regularly assess app permissions, limiting access to trusted sources.
Stay Informed: Monitor tech news and Apple’s announcements for continued safety.
Spread the Word: Share the urgency with peers, ensuring they’re protected too.

Background: Originating from the Israel-based NSO Group, Pegasus has been a contentious figure in the cybersecurity realm. This elusive spyware can silently access photos, videos, messages, and even encrypted data. Historically, it has been implicated in unauthorized surveillance activities, targeting journalists, world leaders, and other dignitaries globally.

By 2021, the backlash against Pegasus intensified, leading to the U.S. government blacklisting NSO Group. A separate incident revealed Pegasus exploiting a vulnerability in WhatsApp, prompting Meta (WhatsApp’s parent company) and other tech giants like Apple and Amazon to initiate legal action against NSO.

Also Read

Exploring the Metaverse: The Exciting (and Risky) World of Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality
about it

Published on: February 11, 2023

Phishing Attacks: Understanding the Psychological Tactics Used to Trick You

Published on: February 11, 2023

Inside the World of Cyber Criminals: Motives, Methods, and Targets

Published on: February 12, 2023

More Information: Pegasus’s stealth allows real-time device monitoring, making detection challenging and elevating concerns surrounding online safety. While NSO asserts its products serve government agencies in crime and terrorism prevention, allegations of its tools being used for potential human rights violations are rife.

Lockdown Mode: A feature on Apple devices, Lockdown Mode offers a security layer against potential cyberattacks. When activated, it restricts external access and safeguards data. Given the Pegasus threat, users are advised to familiarize themselves with and activate Lockdown Mode as an additional precaution.

The post Urgent Online Safety Alert: Update Apple Devices NOW Against Pegasus Spyware! appeared first on Demysti5.

Latitude Financial Services Cyber Attack: Your Personal Information May Be Compromised, Here’s What You Need to Know and Do

Demysti5 — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 12:12:39 +0000

Reading Time: 2 minutes

March 22, 2023

What is it:

Latitude Financial Services is an Aussie finance company based in Melbourne, with a branch in New Zealand called Gem Finance. They offer various financial products like Personal Loans, Credit Cards, Car Loans, Personal Insurance, and Interest Free Retail Finance.

Also Read

Over 31,000 Australian Bank Passwords Leaked: All You Need to Know and Do

Published on: April 30, 2025

Massive X (Twitter) Data Leak Raises Major Online Safety Concerns

Published on: April 2, 2025

Download the demysti5 | Online Safety App and follow us on digital and social media platforms

Published on: March 10, 2025

Latitude recently suffered a cyber-attack which has led to compromise of Latitude financial customer data:

Images of driver licence which, where applicable, included customers photograph, name, address, date of birth, licence number, card number and expiry date.
The personal information customers supplied during your application or quote request which, where applicable, included your full name, address, date of birth, your email and your phone number.
A photograph of customers face provided as part of Latitude’s identity verification process.

The company said [pdf] it has isolated some of its systems and taken them offline to thwart further attacks.

Who does it apply to?

If you have applied for a product or are a customer of Latitude Financial Services and gave personal information.

What should you do about it?

Latitude Financial Services has personally contacted customers whose information has been compromised in the cyber attack. Please keep an eye out for an email from them. However, it’s unclear if your details have been affected if you haven’t received an email yet.

Urgent: Your Apple Devices at Risk, Update Now!: Critical Security Update Released to Prevent Active Hacking Attempts

Demysti5 — Wed, 15 Feb 2023 22:36:20 +0000

Reading Time: 2 minutes

February 15, 2023

What is it:

Apple has released an emergency update to fix a vulnerability that can be used to hack iPhones, iPads, and Macs. This vulnerability is called a “zero-day,” which is a flaw that hackers can exploit because it’s unknown to the software developers. The bug could allow attackers to execute code on devices running vulnerable iOS, iPadOS, and macOS versions after opening a malicious web page. To fix this issue, Apple has released an updated version of their software and recommends that all users update their devices to avoid potential attacks.

Also Read

Exploring the Metaverse: The Exciting (and Risky) World of Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality
about it

Published on: February 11, 2023

Phishing Attacks: Understanding the Psychological Tactics Used to Trick You

Published on: February 11, 2023

Inside the World of Cyber Criminals: Motives, Methods, and Targets

Published on: February 12, 2023

Technical Details

Apple has issued an emergency security update to address a zero-day vulnerability that is actively being used to exploit iPhones, iPads, and Macs. The vulnerability, which is being tracked as CVE-2023-23529, is a WebKit confusion issue that allows an attacker to trigger an operating system crash and gain code execution on targeted devices. The vulnerability can be exploited by a specially crafted webpage, and successful exploitation can enable an attacker to execute arbitrary code, thereby taking control of the device, stealing data or installing malware.

Sources:

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT213635

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT213597

https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/apple/apple-fixes-actively-exploited-ios-zero-day-on-older-iphones-ipads/

https://thehackernews.com/2023/02/patch-now-apples-ios-ipados-macos-and.html

The post Urgent: Your Apple Devices at Risk, Update Now!: Critical Security Update Released to Prevent Active Hacking Attempts appeared first on Demysti5.

Microsoft discovered Major Security Vulnerability in macOS: How Hackers are Bypassing Apple’s Gatekeeper

Demysti5 — Mon, 13 Feb 2023 00:41:27 +0000

Reading Time: 2 minutes

February 13, 2023

What is it:

Microsoft recently discovered a vulnerability in Apple’s Gatekeeper security mechanism, which could allow malicious apps disguised as valid apps, such as flash player or PDF files, to bypass Gatekeeper’s checks and potentially put a user’s device at risk of malware infection, data loss, or even ransomware infections.

Apple’s Gatekeeper is a security feature in the macOS operating system that helps protect users from downloading and installing malicious software. It does this by verifying the identity and reputation of apps before they are run on a user’s Mac. When an app is downloaded from the internet or transferred from another device, Gatekeeper checks the app for a valid signature from a registered developer. If the app is not signed or the signature is not valid, Gatekeeper will prevent the app from being opened and will display a warning to the user. In addition, Gatekeeper checks apps against a list of known malware to help protect against malicious software. It also allows users to specify which types of apps they want to allow on their Mac, such as only allowing apps that are downloaded from the Mac App Store or that are signed by a developer with a valid Developer ID.

Also Read

Over 31,000 Australian Bank Passwords Leaked: All You Need to Know and Do

Published on: April 30, 2025

Massive X (Twitter) Data Leak Raises Major Online Safety Concerns

Published on: April 2, 2025

Download the demysti5 | Online Safety App and follow us on digital and social media platforms

Published on: March 10, 2025

Who does it apply to?

At the time of writing this affected below macOS versions:

macOS Monterey
macOS Big Sur

What should you do about it?

Apple has addressed this software flaw with security updates. To protect your device, please make sure to update your macOS with the updates provided by Apple
- https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201222
- https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT213533
- https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT213534
It is always recommended to keep your OS updated
To protect yourself from this software flaw, it is important to only download and install applications from trusted and verified sources. This will prevent cybercriminals from taking advantage of the flaw through the installation of malicious apps without your knowledge
If you believe you have installed any application from unverified sources, uninstall the application ASAP
Do a full malware scan of the machine

Technical Details

When you install an app on macOS, it is typically checked by a security feature called Gatekeeper to ensure that it has a valid signature approved by Apple. If the app passes this verification, it will ask for your permission to launch. However, if the app does not have a genuine signature, Gatekeeper will prevent it from running and alert you that the app is untrusted.

This software flaw can bypass Gatekeeper’s ability to verify the authenticity of an app, allowing potentially malicious apps to be installed on your macOS without your knowledge. These apps could compromise your machine and potentially perform harmful activities such as data theft, ransomware, spying, or stealing credentials.

Sources:

https://www.darkreading.com/vulnerabilities-threats/microsoft-warns-on-achilles-macos-gatekeeper-bypass

Gatekeeper’s Achilles heel: Unearthing a macOS vulnerability

The post Microsoft discovered Major Security Vulnerability in macOS: How Hackers are Bypassing Apple’s Gatekeeper appeared first on Demysti5.

Urgent Security Alert: Update Your Apple Safari Browser to Fix Critical Flaw

Demysti5 — Mon, 13 Feb 2023 00:34:04 +0000

Reading Time: < 1 minute

February 13, 2023

What is it:

There is a security flaw in the Apple Safari internet browser that potentially lets Cybercriminals to have unauthorized access and see sensitive information on systems where Safari is installed. In order for the weakness to be used, the person using Safari must visit a harmful website or open a harmful file. This weakness is related to the DFG JIT feature and is caused by a failure to check if an object exists before using it. If an attacker is able to use this weakness along with other weaknesses, they may be able to run harmful code on the affected system.

Foxit PDF Reader Security Flaw: Update Your Software to Protect Your Data

Demysti5 — Mon, 13 Feb 2023 00:31:21 +0000

Reading Time: < 1 minute

February 13, 2023

What is it?

Multiple security flaws have been reported in the Foxit PDF Reader software that allows cybercriminals who may potentially gain unauthorised access and see sensitive information on systems where Foxit PDF Reader is installed.

In order for the weakness to be used, the person using the software must visit a harmful website or open a harmful file.

Security Flaw – CVE-2022-43639 – There is a problem with the way a software processes U3D files that allows an attacker to run harmful code on the affected system. The issue is caused by the software not checking if an object exists before using it. If an attacker is able to use this weakness, they may be able to run harmful code on the affected system.

Also Read

Over 31,000 Australian Bank Passwords Leaked: All You Need to Know and Do

Published on: April 30, 2025

Massive X (Twitter) Data Leak Raises Major Online Safety Concerns

Published on: April 2, 2025

Download the demysti5 | Online Safety App and follow us on digital and social media platforms

Published on: March 10, 2025

Security Flaw – CVE-2022-43640 – There is a problem with the way a software processes PDF files that allows an attacker to run harmful code on the affected system. The issue is caused by data in a PDF file that can cause the software to read past the end of a memory area that has been set aside for it. If an attacker is able to use this weakness along with other weaknesses, they may be able to run harmful code on the affected system.

Who does it apply to?

If you use Foxit PDF Reader

What should you do about it?

Foxit PDF Reader has fixed this security flaw, Update your Foxit PDF Reader now

https://www.foxit.com/support/security-bulletins.html

It is always best practice to verify the genuineness of the website before clicking on a link or downloading apps

Sources:

https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-22-1660/

https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-22-1659/

https://www.foxit.com/support/security-bulletins.html

The post Foxit PDF Reader Security Flaw: Update Your Software to Protect Your Data appeared first on Demysti5.

The Godfather Malware Strikes Again: Protect Your Android Devices from this Sophisticated Threat

Demysti5 — Mon, 13 Feb 2023 00:29:11 +0000

Reading Time: 2 minutes

February 13, 2023

What is it?

Android malware, which was targeting banking users worldwide since March, the malware has reappeared and is using more advanced ways to hide itself as legitimate app on Google store.

Godfather, A banking Trojan that is specifically designed to target the online banking systems and financial information of individuals and organizations. It is called a Trojan because it typically disguises itself as a legitimate piece of software or application and is able to infiltrate a victim’s device by tricking the user into installing it. Once it is installed, the Trojan can collect sensitive information such as login credentials, account numbers, and financial transactions, and send this information to the attacker. It can also take control of the victim’s device and perform actions such as transferring money or making purchases without the victim’s knowledge or consent.

Also Read

Over 31,000 Australian Bank Passwords Leaked: All You Need to Know and Do

Published on: April 30, 2025

Massive X (Twitter) Data Leak Raises Major Online Safety Concerns

Published on: April 2, 2025

Download the demysti5 | Online Safety App and follow us on digital and social media platforms

Published on: March 10, 2025

This is how the malware operates:

Victim installs the malicious app on their device.
The app asks for various permissions, such as access to contacts, SMS messages, call functions, and the device’s file system.
Once the user grants these permissions, the app infects the device.
The malware can then potentially steal sensitive data, such as SMS messages from banks, device information such as make, model and Android version, and details about apps installed on victim’s device and send this data to the cybercriminal.
The cybercriminal may potentially redirect incoming calls to a phone number of their choosing.
The cybercriminal may potentially be able to control the device remotely in order to carry out various banking transactions and make calls without the user’s knowledge

Who does it apply to?

Currently, this banking Trojan app is targeting users in Turkey and Europe.

What should you do about it?

The general advice is to install apps from authorised play stores like google play store, however despite efforts from Google, such malicious apps can still be downloaded from Google.
If you believe that you have accidentally installed a malicious or suspicious app on your device, it is important to uninstall it as soon as possible. This will help to protect your device and personal information from any potential harm caused by the app
Do a complete device scan for malware or any suspicious activity
If you believe you are being harassed or targeted by cybercriminals, it is important to report this to your local authorities
To protect your privacy and security, it is generally recommended to only grant app permissions that are needed “only while using the app,” rather than granting “always” permissions. This includes permissions for the camera, microphone, file manager, photos, and any other app permissions that may be requested. By limiting app permissions to the minimum required, you can help to reduce the risk of unauthorized access to your device or personal information.
This goes to prove that securing all aspects of digital is extremely important. To take control of your digital security, consider signing up for Demysti5’s improve plan

Uncovering the “MoneyMonger” Malware: How Fake Money Lending Apps are Stealing Your Data

Demysti5 — Mon, 13 Feb 2023 00:25:06 +0000

Reading Time: 2 minutes

February 13, 2023

What is it?

A new data stealing, spy malware campaign dubbed “MoneyMonger” has been found hidden in fake money lending apps. Once users install these malicious applications on their devices, it starts asking for various permissions on the device promising quick loan approval.

Also Read

Over 31,000 Australian Bank Passwords Leaked: All You Need to Know and Do

Published on: April 30, 2025

Massive X (Twitter) Data Leak Raises Major Online Safety Concerns

Published on: April 2, 2025

Download the demysti5 | Online Safety App and follow us on digital and social media platforms

Published on: March 10, 2025

Here is how it works:

User installs the malicious apps.
The app then presents users with loan schemes, promising quick processing of the loan if they grant permissions on their local device.
Once the permissions for the camera, microphone, files, photos, calling service, and SMS are granted, the app infects the device.
After the device is infected, the malware has complete control over the user’s device, and the cybercriminal can directly communicate with the user.
The fake app then starts harassing the user to pay, threatening to send photos to their contacts, and there have been some instances, according to third party research, in which users may also be given a loan with very high interest rates and harassed for payments or targeted with false claims about not receiving the monthly payment.

The app is distributed through third party app stores and there is no instance of such a fake app found on the Google Play Store at the time of writing.

Who does it apply to?

Currently at the time of writing this is mostly targeting Android users based in India and Peru who need quick cash.

What should you do about it?

If you believe that you have accidentally installed a malicious or suspicious app on your device, it is important to uninstall it as soon as possible. This will help to protect your device and personal information from any potential harm caused by the app
Do a complete device scan for malware or any suspicious activity
If you believe you are being harassed or targeted by cybercriminals, it is important to report this to your local authorities
To protect your privacy and security, it is generally recommended to download and install apps only from official app stores, such as the Google Play store. Before installing an app, it is also a good idea to review the app’s privacy and security permissions to ensure that you are comfortable with the level of access the app will have to your device and personal information.
To protect your privacy and security, it is generally recommended to only grant app permissions that are needed “only while using the app,” rather than granting “always” permissions. This includes permissions for the camera, microphone, file manager, photos, and any other app permissions that may be requested. By limiting app permissions to the minimum required, you can help to reduce the risk of unauthorized access to your device or personal information.

Also Read

Exploring the Metaverse: The Exciting (and Risky) World of Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality
about it

Published on: February 11, 2023

Phishing Attacks: Understanding the Psychological Tactics Used to Trick You

Published on: February 11, 2023

Inside the World of Cyber Criminals: Motives, Methods, and Targets

Published on: February 12, 2023

Technical Details

Cybercriminals are using Flutter, a free and open-source mobile application development framework created by Google, to develop fake apps that distribute malware. Flutter’s features allow the malicious code to be hidden behind its framework, making it difficult to detect. Flutter enables developers to build natively compiled applications for mobile, web, and desktop from a single codebase

Sources

https://www.zimperium.com/blog/

https://www.darkreading.com/vulnerabilities-threats/blackmailing-moneymonger-malware-hides-flutter-mobile-apps

https://labs.k7computing.com/index.php/steer-clear-of-instant-loan-apps/

The post Uncovering the “MoneyMonger” Malware: How Fake Money Lending Apps are Stealing Your Data appeared first on Demysti5.