Research Saturday

N2K Networks

Every Saturday, we sit down with cybersecurity researchers to talk shop about the latest threats, vulnerabilities, and technical discoveries.

  1. 6D AGO

    Stealer in the status bar.

    Today we have Ziv Mador, VP of Security Research from LevelBlue SpiderLabs discussing their work on "SpiderLabs IDs New Banking Trojan Distributed Through WhatsApp." Researchers at LevelBlue SpiderLabs have identified a new Brazilian banking Trojan dubbed Eternidade Stealer, spread through WhatsApp hijacking and social engineering campaigns that use a Python-based worm to steal contacts and distribute malicious MSI installers. The Delphi-compiled malware targets Brazilian victims, profiles infected systems, dynamically retrieves its command-and-control server via IMAP email, and deploys banking overlays to harvest credentials from financial institutions and cryptocurrency platforms. The campaign reflects the continued evolution of Brazil’s cybercrime ecosystem, combining WhatsApp propagation, geofencing, encrypted C2 communications, and process injection to maintain stealth and persistence. The research can be found here: SpiderLabs IDs New Banking Trojan Distributed Through WhatsApp Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    16 min

  2. FEB 7

    The phishing kit that thinks like a human.

    Piotr Wojtyla, Head of Threat Intel and Platform at Abnormal AI, is discussing their work on "InboxPrime AI: New Phishing Kit Fueling Scalable, AI-Powered Cybercrime." A new AI-powered phishing kit called InboxPrime AI is rapidly gaining traction in underground forums, automating the creation and delivery of highly believable phishing emails that mimic legitimate business communications and leverage Gmail’s web interface to evade detection. First spotted in October 2025, the kit combines AI-generated content, template variation, sender identity spoofing, and built-in spam checks to maximize inbox placement and dramatically lower the barrier to running large-scale phishing campaigns. Its shift to a one-time $1,000 purchase and growing user base underscore the industrialization of phishing and highlight how quickly AI-driven attack tools are outpacing legacy email defenses. The research can be found here: ⁠⁠⁠InboxPrime AI: New Phishing Kit Fueling Scalable, AI-Powered Cybercrime Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    26 min

  3. JAN 31

    The link knows all.

    Muhammad Danish, University of New Mexico lead author and cybersecurity researcher, discussing his team's work on "Private Links, Public Leaks: Consequences of Frictionless User Experience on the Security and Privacy Posture of SMS-Delivered URLs". This paper examines how the push for frictionless user experiences has led many services to rely on SMS-delivered, single-click URLs—an inherently insecure channel that can be intercepted or leaked. Analyzing more than 322,000 unique URLs from 33 million messages, the researchers found widespread security failures, including exposed PII across 701 endpoints at 177 services due to weak, token-based authentication that treats possession of a link as sufficient authorization. The study also identified low-entropy tokens enabling mass URL enumeration and data overfetching issues, though disclosures prompted 18 services to fix flaws, improving privacy protections for at least 120 million users. The research can be found here: ⁠Private Links, Public Leaks: Consequences of Frictionless User Experience on the Security and Privacy Posture of SMS-Delivered URLs Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    22 min

  4. JAN 24

    Caught in the funnel.

    Today we have Andrew Northern, Principal Security Researcher at Censys, discussing "From Evasion to Evidence: Exploiting the Funneling Behavior of Injects". This research explains how modern web malware campaigns use multi-stage JavaScript injections, redirects, and fake CAPTCHAs to selectively deliver payloads and evade detection. It shows that these attack chains rely on stable redirect and traffic-distribution chokepoints that can be monitored at scale. Using the SmartApe campaign as a case study, the report demonstrates how defenders can turn those chokepoints into high-confidence detection and tracking opportunities. The research can be found here: From Evasion to Evidence: Exploiting the Funneling Behavior of Injects Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    24 min

  5. JAN 17

    Picture perfect deception.

    Today we are joined by Ben Folland, Security Operations Analyst from Huntress, discussing their work on "ClickFix Gets Creative: Malware Buried in Images." This analysis covers a ClickFix campaign that uses fake human verification checks and a realistic Windows Update screen to trick users into manually running malicious commands. The multi-stage attack chain leverages mshta.exe, PowerShell, and .NET loaders, ultimately delivering infostealers like LummaC2 and Rhadamanthys, with payloads hidden inside PNG images using steganography. While technically sophisticated, the campaign hinges on simple user interaction, underscoring the importance of user awareness and controls around command execution. The research can be found here: ClickFix Gets Creative: Malware Buried in Images Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    20 min

  6. JAN 10

    Walking on EggStremes.

    This week, we are joined by Martin Zugec, Technical Solutions Director from Bitdefender, sharing their work and findings on "EggStreme Malware: Unpacking a New APT Framework Targeting a Philippine Military Company." Built for long-term espionage, the campaign uses DLL sideloading, in-memory execution, and abused Windows services to stay stealthy and persistent. We walk through how the multi-stage framework delivers a powerful backdoor with reconnaissance, lateral movement, data theft, and keylogging capabilities—and what this operation reveals about the evolving tactics defenders need to watch for. The research can be found here: EggStreme Malware: Unpacking a New APT Framework Targeting a Philippine Military Company Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    28 min

  7. JAN 3

    Don’t trust that app!

    While our team is out on winter break, please enjoy this episode of Research Saturday. Today we are joined by ⁠⁠Selena Larson⁠⁠, co-host of ⁠⁠Only Malware in the Building⁠⁠ and Staff Threat Researcher and Lead Intelligence Analysis and Strategy at ⁠⁠Proofpoint⁠⁠, sharing their work on "Microsoft OAuth App Impersonation Campaign Leads to MFA Phishing." Proofpoint researchers have identified campaigns where threat actors use fake Microsoft OAuth apps to impersonate services like Adobe, DocuSign, and SharePoint, stealing credentials and bypassing MFA via attacker-in-the-middle phishing kits, mainly Tycoon. These attacks redirect users to fake Microsoft login pages to capture credentials, 2FA tokens, and session cookies, targeting nearly 3,000 Microsoft 365 accounts across 900 environments in 2025. Microsoft’s upcoming security changes and strengthened email, cloud, and web defenses, along with user education, are recommended to reduce these risks. The research can be found here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Microsoft OAuth App Impersonation Campaign Leads to MFA Phishing Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    21 min

  8. 12/27/2025

    Excel-lerating cyberattacks.

    While our team is out on winter break, please enjoy this episode of Research Saturday. This week, we are joined by ⁠Tom Hegel⁠, Principal Threat Researcher from ⁠SentinelLabs⁠ research team, to discuss their work on "Ghostwriter | New Campaign Targets Ukrainian Government and Belarusian Opposition." The latest Ghostwriter campaign, linked to Belarusian government espionage, is actively targeting Ukrainian military and government entities as well as Belarusian opposition activists using weaponized Excel documents. SentinelLabs identified new malware variants and tactics, including obfuscated VBA macros that deploy malware via DLL files, with payload delivery seemingly controlled based on a target’s location and system profile. The campaign, which began preparation in mid-2024 and became active by late 2024, appears to be an evolution of previous Ghostwriter operations, combining disinformation with cyberattacks to further political and military objectives. The research can be found here: ⁠Ghostwriter | New Campaign Targets Ukrainian Government and Belarusian Opposition Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    24 min
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About

Every Saturday, we sit down with cybersecurity researchers to talk shop about the latest threats, vulnerabilities, and technical discoveries.

Information

  • Creator
    N2K Networks
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
    435
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2024 N2K Networks, Inc. 706761
  • Show Website
    Research Saturday

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