Microsoft has recently discovered another type of malware, named FoggyWeb by Microsoft, that hackers are currently using to remotely steal network admin credentials. The credentials allow the attacker group, which the company has called Nobelium, to hack into admin accounts of the Active Directory Federation Services’ (AD FS) servers and control users’ access to various resources.
Microsoft claims that this is the same group behind the SolarWinds software supply chain attack that was revealed in December.
The malware acts as a backdoor for the hackers and facilitates their remote theft of tokens and certificates from Microsoft’s identity platform.
The newly discovered malware is used by the attackers once the server they’re targeting has already been compromised in terms of security. The hacker group uses several tactics to access users’ identities and the necessary infrastructure that is required to take control of their app usage.
Ramin Nafisi of the Microsoft Threat Intelligence Center says: “Nobelium uses FoggyWeb to remotely exfiltrate the configuration database of compromised AD FS servers, decrypted token-signing certificate, and token-decryption certificate, as well as to download and execute additional components”.
“FoggyWeb is a passive and highly targeted backdoor capable of remotely exfiltrating sensitive information from a compromised AD FS server. It can also receive additional malicious components from a command-and-control (C2) server and execute them on the compromised server,” Microsoft adds.
The backdoor that Nobelium manages to get past allows the hacker to access the Security Assertion Markup Language (SAML) token. This token is for assisting users to authenticate apps. Hacking the token permits the attackers to stay inside the network even after regular cleanups. In fact, according to Microsoft, FoggyWeb has been in use since April 2021.
Microsoft has uncovered a number of modules used by Nobelium. These include the GoldMax, GoldFinder, and Sibot components. These were built with the help of other malware that the same group was found guilty of using. These include Sunburst, Solarigate, Teardrop, and Sunspot.
For people who fall prey to the attack, Microsoft recommends auditing on-premise and cloud infrastructure for configurations, and per-user and per-app settings; removing user and app access, reviewing configurations, and reissuing new, strong credentials; and using a hardware security module to prevent FoggyWeb from stealing secrets from AD FS servers.
The absolutely absurd idea of putting a touchscreen display on a mouse isn't exactly new. Turtle Beach already did it with its Command Series MC7, which features a 2.25-inch control screen. But apparently, even that wasn't ridiculous enough for Arctic Fox Technologies. Its new Super Mouse looks like someone took the chunky old Atari ST mouse, slapped a touchscreen and scroll wheel on it, and called it an upgrade.
The result is a rather unusual-looking mouse that is now on Kickstarter, starting at $199. And as ridiculous as it looks, some of its features are genuinely intriguing.
Apple is less than a day away from launching its highly anticipated OLED MacBook Pro with a touch-sensitive screen. But it appears that the upgrade is going to cost a pretty penny. According to a report by Bloomberg, Apple is reportedly eyeing a starting price of $2,899 for the 14-inch MacBook Pro, while the 16-inch version could start at $3,399 in the US.
"At $2,899, the 14-inch model would mark the highest starting price for a new MacBook Pro model, surpassing the $2,799 Apple charged for a 17-inch version introduced in 2006," says the report. The report claims that Apple is targeting a minimum price hike of $400 for its upcoming redesigned 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models.
I've spent a good amount of time digging into the spec sheet of the new M6 MacBook Pro (14-inch), and for all intents and purposes, this is a classic Apple "chip and connectivity" refresh. It's not a full redesign. The chassis, Liquid Retina XDR panel, speakers, ports, and battery, all of them carry over unchanged.
However, the M6 brings more cores, stronger on-device AI, higher memory bandwidth on the larger configs, and modern wireless. Here’s the practical rundown of what actually improved, and whether those gains are worth your money.