NSA hacking tools being used to attack thousands of computers
It’s been over a year since many of NSA’s exploits leaked online and as a result, over hundreds of thousands of computers remain unpatched and vulnerable to date. These exploits were initially used to spread ransomware and cryptocurrency mining attacks but now, it seems hackers are using the leaked tools to create an even larger malicious proxy network, reports TechCrunch. Akamai, the American content delivery network, did some digging around and found that the previously reported UPnProxy vulnerability, which misuses the common Universal Plug and Play network protocol, is now capable of targeting unpatched computers behind the router’s firewall. “While it is unfortunate to see UPnProxy being actively leveraged to attack systems previously shielded behind the NAT, it was bound to happen eventually,” commented Akamai’s Chad Seaman, the author of the report. The new injection attacks use two exploits: EternalBlue (for Windows computers) and EternalRed (for Linux machines), which are bac...
