US-CERT Current Activity

The US-CERT Current Activity web page is a regularly updated summary of the most frequent, high-impact types of security incidents currently being reported to the US-CERT.

Last reviewed: February 2, 2012 12:35:20 EST

Apple Releases Multiple Security Updates

Apple has released security updates for Apple OS X Lion 10.7 to 10.7.2, OS X Lion Server 10.7 to 10.7.2, Mac OS 10.6.8, and Mac OS X Server v 10.6.8 to address multiple vulnerabilities. These vulnerabilities may allow an attacker to execute arbitrary code, cause a denial-of-service condition, obtain sensitive information, and bypass security restrictions.

US-CERT encourages users and administrators to review Apple Support Article HT5130 and apply any necessary updates to help mitigate the risks.

Additional information regarding CVE-2011-3449 can be found in US-CERT Vulnerability Note VU#410281.

Additional information regarding CVE-2011-3446 can be found in US-CERT Vulnerability Note VU#403593.

Mozilla Releases Firefox 10 and 3.6.26

The Mozilla Foundation has released Firefox 10 and Firefox 3.6.26 to address multiple vulnerabilities. These vulnerabilities may allow an attacker to execute arbitrary code, cause a denial-of-service condition, obtain sensitive information, or perform a cross-site scripting attack.

US-CERT encourages users and administrators to review the Mozilla Foundation Advisories for Firefox 10 and Firefox 3.6.26 and apply any necessary updates to help mitigate the risk.

Denial-of-Service Malware Campaign

US-CERT is aware of public reports of ongoing distributed denial-of-service attacks against entities in the government and private sector. According to the reports, these attacks are being attributed to the hacker group Anonymous.

US-CERT encourages users and administrators to do the following to reduce the risk associated with this and other malware campaigns:

• Do not open attachments in email messages from unknown sources.
• Install anti-virus software and keep virus signatures files up to date.
• Refer to the Recognizing and Avoiding Email Scams (pdf) document for more information on avoiding email scams.
• Refer to the Avoiding Social Engineering and Phishing Attacks document for information on social engineering attacks. 
• Refer to the Recovering from Viruses, Worms, and Trojan Horses document for additional information on how to recover from malware. 
• Refer to the Continuing Denial of Service Threats Posed by DNS recursion (v2.0) (pdf) document and Understanding Denial-of-Service Attacks document for additional information on denial-of-service attacks.

Google Releases Chrome 16.0.912.77

Google has released Chrome 16.0.912.77 for Linux, Mac, Windows, and Chrome Frame to address multiple vulnerabilities. These vulnerabilities may allow an attacker to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial-of-service condition.

US-CERT encourages users and administrators to review the Google Chrome Release blog entry and update to Chrome 16.0.912.77

Symantec pcAnywhere Hotfix

Symantec has released an update for pcAnywhere to address multiple vulnerabilities for the following software versions running on Windows:

• pcAnywhere 12.5 SP3
• pcAnywhere Solutions 7.1 GA, SP 1, and SP 2

US-CERT encourages users and administrators to review the Symantec pcAnywhere hot fix and apply any necessary updates to help mitigate the risk.

Best Practices for Recovery from the Malicious Erasure of Files

There are many ways in which cyber criminals can damage computer systems and data, including changing or deleting files, wiping hard drives, and erasing backups to hide their malicious activity.

Hard drives are wiped, or "zeroed out," when the original data is overwritten with zeros or different characters. This allows malicious actors to alter or even erase existing data. In addition to impeding the restoration of the original data, this type of criminal activity makes it difficult to determine whether criminals merely accessed the network, stole information, or altered network access and configuration files. Restoring networks and assessing the damage to a business can be hindered when the full extent of malicious activity is unclear.

DHS and the FBI encourage businesses and individuals to employ mitigation strategies and best practices to effectively recover maliciously erased files, such as:

• Implementing a data backup and recovery plan. A copy of the sensitive data should be kept in a separate and secure location. Make sure this backup copy is not readily accessible from local networks.
  
• Regularly mirroring and maintaining an image of critical system files.
• Encrypting and securing sensitive information.
• Using strong passwords, implementing a frequent schedule for changing passwords, and making sure passwords are not reused for multiple accounts.
  
• Enabling network monitoring and logging (when feasible).
• Being on guard against social engineering tactics aimed at obtaining sensitive information, such as phishing.
  
• Ensuring that sensitive files are securely eliminated from hard drives when no longer needed or required.
  

There are many resources available on the US-CERT website to protect users from this type of malicious activity, including these suggested readings from the National Cyber Alert System:

• Cyber Security Tip ST04-002: Choosing and protecting Passwords
• Cyber Security Tip ST04-014: Avoiding Social Engineering and Phishing Attacks
• Cyber Security Tip ST05-011: Effectively Erasing Files

Oracle Releases Critical Patch Update for January 2012

Oracle has released its Critical Patch Update for January 2012 to address 78 vulnerabilities across multiple products. This update contains the following security fixes:

• 2 for Oracle Database Server
• 1 for Oracle Fusion Middleware
• 3 for Oracle E-Business Suite
  
• 1 for Oracle Supply Chain Products Suite
• 6 for Oracle PeopleSoft Products
• 8 for Oracle JD Edwards Products
• 17 for Oracle Sun Products Suite
• 3 for Oracle Virtualization
• 27 for Oracle MySQL

US-CERT encourages users and administrators to review the January 2012 Critical Patch Update and apply any necessary updates to help mitigate the risks.

Additional information regarding CVE-2012-0110 can be found in US-CERT Vulnerability Note VU#738961.

Phishing Campaign Using Spoofed US-CERT Email Addresses

On January 10, 2012, US-CERT received reports of a phishing campaign that is spoofing US-CERT email to deliver a variant of the Zeus/Zbot Trojan known as Ice-IX. This campaign appears to be targeting a large number of private sector organizations as well as federal, state, and local governments.

US-CERT advises that users do not open the email or any of the attachments and promptly delete the email from their inboxes.

Reports indicate that SOC@US-CERT.GOV is the primary email address being spoofed but other invalid email addresses are also being used.

The subject of the phishing email is: "Phishing incident report call number: PH000000XXXXXXX" with the "X" containing an incident report number that varies.

The attached zip file is titled "US-CERT Operation Center Report XXXXXXX.zip", with "X" indicating a random value or string. The zip attachment contains an executable file with the name "US-CERT Operation CENTER Reports.eml.exe", which is a variant of the Zeus/Zbot Trojan known as Ice-IX.

US-CERT encourages users to do the following to reduce the risks associated with this and other phishing campaigns.

• Do not open the attachments in email messages from unknown sources.
• Install anti-virus software and keep virus signatures files up to date.
• Refer to Recognizing and Avoiding Email Scams (pdf) documents for more information on avoiding email scams.
• Refer to the Avoiding Social Engineering and Phishing Attacks document for information on social engineering attacks.
• Refer to Recovering from Viruses, Worms, and Trojan Horses document for additional information on how to recover from malware.

Microsoft Releases January Security Bulletin

Microsoft has released updates to address vulnerabilities in Microsoft Windows and Microsoft Developer Tools and Software as part of the Microsoft Security Bulletin Summary for January 2012. These vulnerabilities may allow an attacker to execute arbitrary code, operate with elevated privileges, obtain sensitive information, and bypass security restrictions.

US-CERT encourages users and administrators to review the bulletin and follow best practice security policies to determine which updates should be applied.

Adobe Releases Security Advisory for Adobe Reader and Acrobat

Adobe has released a Security Advisory for Adobe Reader and Acrobat to address multiple vulnerabilities affecting the following software versions:

• Adobe Reader X (10.1.1) and earlier 10.x versions for Windows and Macintosh
• Adobe Reader 9.4.7 and earlier 9.x versions for Windows
• Adobe Reader 9.4.6 and earlier 9.x versions for Macintosh
• Adobe Acrobat X (10.1.1) and earlier 10.x versions for Windows and Macintosh
• Adobe Acrobat 9.4.7 and earlier 9.x versions for Windows
• Acrobat 9.4.6 and earlier 9.x versions for Macintosh