Cybercrims steal $1m from firms; Europe may prosecute Google; Telstra's eHealth purchase

A group of cybercriminals has stolen more than US$1 million from targeted enterprise organisations in a campaign that relies on a variant of Dyre malware, according to IBM Security. The company’s researchers have dubbed the campaign ‘The Dyre Wolf’.

Since its emergence in 2014, the Dyre malware “has evolved to become simultaneously sophisticated and easy to use”, according to IBM. In October last year, IBM’s Trusteer team reported a dramatic increase in the infection rate of Dyre malware - from 500 instances to almost 3500.

“There seems to be a direct relationship between the development advancements within the Dyre project and this uptick,” a statement from IBM Security said.

In addition to Dyre malware, the recently identified campaign also adds social engineering tactics.

“From an initial infection via the Upatre malware through a spear-phishing email to a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack, the criminals carrying out this latest string of attacks are using numerous sophisticated techniques. However, social engineering and the resulting banking credentials theft is the focus of this new campaign and is ultimately what is used to illicitly transfer money from victims’ accounts,” IBM Security said.

The firm said that an “experienced and resource-backed cybercrime gang” operates Dyre.

“The infrastructure, the manpower, and the knowledge of banking systems and their websites clearly demonstrate that this group is well-funded, experienced and intelligent,” an IBM MSS (Managed Security Services) report said.

The attackers behind Dyre Wolf are targeting organisations that frequently conduct wire transfers involving large sums of money, IBM Security said.

According to a report from IBM MSS, the Dyre Wolf campaign has a “formidable success rate”.

The firm said it is tracking several Dyre Wolf incidents across multiple industries and verticals.

More information on Dyre Wolf is available here.

Europe may lay antitrust charges against Google

Europe’s competition regulator is preparing to make a move against Google in the coming weeks, and antitrust charges may be laid against the search giant, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Citing multiple anonymous sources, the WSJ reported that the European Commission has been asking companies that filed complaints against Google for permission to publish information that these companies previously submitted confidentially.

The paper did not name the companies the commission had apparently been contacting, but did suggest they included “[s]hopping, local and travel companies”.

According to WSJ sources, these requests from the European Commission suggest that formal antitrust charges were being prepared.

If charges were filed, Google may be able to reach a settlement with the EU, the paper said. But according to the WSJ, the EU’s antitrust chief - Margrethe Vestager - has previously made statements indicating that in competition cases, she prefers the legal certainty of formal charges to negotiated settlements.

Telstra Health to acquire Anywhere Healthcare

Telstra Health will acquire the business assets of telemedicine provider Anywhere Healthcare from health insurance company Medibank under a new deal announced last week.

Telstra Health is an e-health solution provider and a business division of Telstra.

Medibank established the Anywhere Healthcare product in 2013. The product is intended to give people in remote areas or with physical constraints the ability to contact specialist medical practitioners and allied health professionals via videoconferencing.

The deal follows last year’s announcement of Telstra Health’s GP telemedicine service, ReadyCare, which the company said “will see patients talk directly to GPs over video or phone to receive advice, diagnosis, prescriptions and referrals”.

Telstra Group Executive of Retail Gordon Ballantyne, said: “We recognise the central role of GPs in managing the care of their patients. Anywhere Healthcare provides a patient’s regular GP the option of referring them to a specialist for a videoconference, providing more convenient access to specialist care that can otherwise be difficult to reach because of distance or in circumstances such as for patients in nursing homes.”

Anywhere Healthcare is expected to transfer to Telstra Health in early May.

Image courtesy Adam Cleaver under CC