December 14, 2023 at 06:24AM
Russian cyberespionage group APT29 exploited a recent TeamCity vulnerability, impacting on-premises instances, to conduct large-scale cyberattacks since September 2023. US, UK, and Polish government agencies confirm APT29’s exploitation, linking the group to the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service. The exploitation enabled the group to access networks, deploy backdoors, and exfiltrate sensitive data, raising concerns about potential supply chain attacks. Organizations are urged to update their TeamCity instances and review provided indicators-of-compromise (IoCs) for malicious activity detection.
Key takeaways from the meeting notes:
– Russian cyberespionage group APT29 exploited the TeamCity vulnerability CVE-2023-42793 on a large scale since September 2023, with government agencies in the US, UK, and Poland confirming the exploitation.
– APT29, also known as CozyBear, the Dukes, Midnight Blizzard, Nobelium, and Yttrium, is believed to be sponsored by the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) and has a history of high-profile cyberattacks, including the 2016 US election hack and the 2020 SolarWinds attack.
– The SVR has been observed using the initial access obtained through exploiting the TeamCity vulnerability to escalate privileges, move laterally, deploy additional backdoors, and ensure long-term access to compromised networks.
– APT29 used a variety of tools and backdoors in their cyber espionage activities, including the GraphicalProton malware, and targeted sensitive data through reconnaissance and exfiltration, showing an interest in SQL servers.
– Organizations are advised to review JetBrains’ advisory on CVE-2023-42793, update their TeamCity instances to a patched release, and review indicators of compromise (IoCs) released by government agencies and Fortinet to identify malicious activity in their environments.
– There is an emphasis on the need for organizations to be vigilant and take necessary steps to protect their systems from potential exploitation by APT29 and other threat actors.
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