Formbook Malware Deployed in Phishing Campaigns Targeting Eurasian Organizations

A rapidly spreading phishing campaign is targeting Windows users worldwide, stealing credentials and deploying various remote access trojans (RATs) using malicious JavaScript files. The campaign affects multiple sectors, including manufacturing, technology, healthcare, construction, and retail/hospitality. The attackers use personalized phishing pages and socially engineered scenarios to lure victims into downloading the malware. The campaign involves multiple stages, including an initial obfuscated script, a spoofed site, and the deployment of RATs such as PureHVNC, DCRat, and Babylon RAT. The attackers employ sophisticated techniques to evade detection and maintain long-term access to compromised networks. The campaign has been observed in countries including Austria, Belarus, Canada, Egypt, India, and Pakistan. The phishing emails use themes related to voicemail messages and purchases to deceive recipients into clicking on malicious links. The initial payload is a ZIP archive containing an obfuscated JavaScript file that acts as a dropper for UpCrypter, which functions as a conduit for various RATs. The malware uses steganography to embed the final payload within a harmless-looking image and includes anti-analysis and anti-virtual machine checks to evade detection. The malware is executed without writing to the file system, minimizing forensic traces. The campaign is part of a larger trend where threat actors abuse legitimate services for phishing attacks. A new campaign impersonates Ukrainian government agencies to deliver CountLoader, which drops Amatera Stealer and PureMiner. The phishing emails contain malicious SVG files designed to trick recipients into opening harmful attachments. The SVG files initiate the download of a password-protected ZIP archive containing a CHM file, which activates CountLoader. CountLoader drops various payloads, including Cobalt Strike, AdaptixC2, and PureHVNC RAT, and in this case, Amatera Stealer and PureMiner. Amatera Stealer gathers system information, collects files, and harvests data from various applications and browsers. A Vietnamese-speaking threat group uses phishing emails with copyright infringement notice themes to deploy PXA Stealer, which evolves into PureRAT. PureRAT is a modular, professionally developed backdoor that gives attackers complete control over a compromised host. The campaign demonstrates a progression from simple phishing lures to multi-layered infection sequences involving defense evasion and credential theft.

The Python Package Index (PyPI) has implemented a new security measure to check for expired domains, blocking over 1,800 email addresses tied to expired domains since June 2025. This update targets domain resurrection attacks, where malicious actors exploit expired domains to gain unauthorized access to PyPI accounts. PyPI uses Domainr's Status API to determine a domain's lifecycle stage and mark email addresses as unverified, preventing password resets and other account recovery actions. Users are advised to enable two-factor authentication (2FA) and add a secondary verified email address from a notable domain to enhance security. Additionally, PyPI has warned of a new wave of phishing attacks using fake websites to steal user credentials, advising users to change passwords and use phishing-resistant 2FA methods.

The North Korean threat group Scarcruft (APT37) has launched a campaign targeting South Korea with a combination of infostealers, backdoors, and ransomware. The campaign, dubbed ChinopuNK, began in July 2025 and includes multiple malware tools designed for espionage and financial gain. The attacks start with phishing emails containing decoy documents about postal code updates. Once opened, these documents download NubSpy, a backdoor that uses the PubNub cloud service for command-and-control (C2) communication. The group also deploys ChillyChino, a PowerShell backdoor rewritten in Rust, and VCD ransomware, which encrypts specific file paths tailored to individual targets. In September 2025, a new phishing campaign, Operation HanKook Phantom, was discovered. This campaign targets individuals associated with the National Intelligence Research Association, including academic figures, former government officials, and researchers. The campaign uses spear-phishing emails with a lure for a "National Intelligence Research Society Newsletter" containing a ZIP archive attachment with a Windows shortcut (LNK) masquerading as a PDF document. The LNK file drops RokRAT malware, which is capable of collecting system information, executing arbitrary commands, enumerating the file system, capturing screenshots, and downloading additional payloads. RokRAT exfiltrates data via Dropbox, Google Cloud, pCloud, and Yandex Cloud. The campaign also involves a PowerShell script that deploys a dropper, which then runs a next-stage payload to steal sensitive data while concealing network traffic as a Chrome file upload. The lure document used in this instance is a statement issued by Kim Yo Jong, the Deputy Director of the Publicity and Information Department of the Workers' Party of Korea, rejecting Seoul's efforts at reconciliation. Additionally, a modular backdoor malware for the macOS platform, ChillyHell, has resurfaced with a new version. This malware gives attackers remote access and allows them to drop payloads or brute-force passwords. The new ChillyHell sample was uploaded to VirusTotal on May 2, 2025, and was notarized by Apple in 2021. The malware has multiple persistence mechanisms and can exfiltrate data, drop additional payloads, enumerate user accounts, and perform local password cracking. Apple revoked notarization of the developer certificates associated with the malware once notified by Jamf. A new malware family, ZynorRAT, has been discovered, targeting Windows, Linux, and macOS systems. ZynorRAT uses a Telegram bot for command and control and supports a wide range of functions, including file exfiltration, system enumeration, and arbitrary command execution. The North Korea-linked threat actors associated with the Contagious Interview campaign have been attributed to a previously undocumented backdoor called AkdoorTea, along with tools like TsunamiKit and Tropidoor. The campaign targets software developers across all operating systems, Windows, Linux, and macOS, particularly those involved in cryptocurrency and Web3 projects. The campaign involves impersonated recruiters offering lucrative job roles over platforms like LinkedIn, Upwork, Freelancer, and Crypto Jobs List. The attacks deliver several pieces of malware such as BeaverTail, InvisibleFerret, OtterCookie, GolangGhost, and PylangGhost. WeaselStore's functionality is similar to BeaverTail and InvisibleFerret, focusing on exfiltration of sensitive data from browsers and cryptocurrency wallets. TsunamiKit is a malware toolkit designed for information and cryptocurrency theft, first discovered in November 2024. TsunamiKit comprises several components, including TsunamiLoader, TsunamiInjector, TsunamiInstaller, TsunamiHardener, and TsunamiClient. TsunamiClient incorporates a .NET spyware and drops cryptocurrency miners like XMRig and NBMiner. Tropidoor is a sophisticated payload linked to the DeceptiveDevelopment group, sharing code with PostNapTea and LightlessCan. AkdoorTea is a remote access trojan delivered by a Windows batch script, sharing commonalities with Akdoor and NukeSped (Manuscrypt). The DeceptiveDevelopment campaign targets developers associated with cryptocurrency and decentralized finance projects with fake job offers aimed at information theft and malware infection. The campaign supplies stolen developer information to North Korea’s fraudulent IT workers, who use it to pose as job seekers and land remote work at unsuspecting companies. The campaign involves tight collaboration with North Korea’s network of fraudulent IT workers, tracked as WageMole. The North Korean IT workers operate in teams, focusing on obtaining work in Western countries, particularly the US, and in Europe, targeting France, Poland, Ukraine, and Albania. The North Korean IT workers impersonate real companies and engineers, producing engineering drawings with falsified approval stamps, and focus on self-education in web programming, blockchain, English, and AI integration.