Cybercrime & Darknet - Red Hot Cyber

Red Hot Cyber

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Category: Cybercrime and Darknet

Mistral AI Unveils Powerful Open Source Models for Advanced AI Applications

Redazione RHC 03/12/2025

French company Mistral AI has unveiled its Mistral 3 line of models, making them fully open source under the Apache 2.0 license . The series includes several compact and dense models with 3, 8, and 14 billion parameters , as well as the flagship Mistral Large 3 model. This is a ” Mixture-of-Experts ” model with 41 billion active parameters and 675 billion shared parameters , which the company calls its most powerful solution to date. Mistral Large 3 was trained from scratch on approximately 3,000 NVIDIA H200 GPUs. After further training, the model achieved the level of the best open-source training

Maha Grass APT Group Unleashes StreamSpy Malware Attacks

Redazione RHC 03/12/2025

The Patchwork cyber espionage group — also known as Hangover or Dropping Elephant and internally tracked by QiAnXin as APT-Q-36 — has been active since 2009 and is believed to be close to South Asia. Over the years, it has targeted government agencies, the military, research institutions, diplomacy, industry, and educational institutions in several Asian countries, conducting large-scale intelligence gathering operations. The QiAnXin Threat Intelligence Center has identified a new Trojan attributed to the Maha Grass organization, which uses a combination of WebSocket and HTTP protocols to communicate with command and control servers. The malware, dubbed StreamSpy , retrieves instructions via a

Digital Crime Among Teenagers: Temporary Involvement

Redazione RHC 02/12/2025

Dutch authorities have published data showing that adolescents’ involvement in cybercrime is usually temporary. An analysis prepared by the House of Representatives indicates that early interest in hacking often fades by age 20, and only a few maintain a lasting interest. The report highlights that adolescents begin committing various types of crimes at roughly the same age . Cybercrime is no more common than gun or drug crime , and significantly less common than property crime. Furthermore, the path to their first attempts typically passes through game simulations that allow them to develop technical skills. According to data collected over the years,

Porsche Russia Alarm Issues Spark Widespread Vehicle Immobilization

Redazione RHC 02/12/2025

Porsche owners in Russia are increasingly experiencing problems with factory alarms, making it impossible to use their cars. Their cars won’t start, stall immediately after starting, or display engine-related errors . Managers at the Rolf dealership told RBC that they’ve noticed an increase in service calls since November 28 due to the satellite alarms being blocked. According to the company’s customer service manager, Yulia Trushkova, there is currently no correlation between models and types of engines, and in theory, any vehicle can be immobilized. Currently, immobilization can be bypassed by resetting the factory alarm unit and removing it. The cause of the

Cryptomixer Shut Down: Europol Cracks Down on $1.3B Bitcoin Mixing Service

Redazione RHC 02/12/2025

Law enforcement agencies in Switzerland and Germany have reported the dismantling of Cryptomixer , a major mixing service operating since 2016 that helped criminals launder illicitly obtained funds. According to Europol, the service has processed over €1.3 billion in Bitcoin (about $1.5 billion) in recent years. Operation Olympia took place in Zurich in late November. During the raids, which lasted from November 24 to 28, law enforcement agencies, with the support of Europol and Eurojust, seized three servers containing over 12 terabytes of data , blocked domains on the traditional internet and the Tor network, and confiscated €24 million (approximately $29 million)

888 Data Leaker: Ryanair Breach Exposed

Luca Stivali 02/12/2025

In the underground forum landscape, there are actors who operate episodically, seeking a single media hit, and others who build an almost industrial pipeline of compromises over time, releasing technical datasets and internal information from companies around the world. Among these, one of the most recognizable profiles is the one who presents himself with the simple alias “888.” Active since at least 2024, 888 is now considered one of the most prolific data leakers on the scene , with over a hundred claimed breaches and a constant presence on the most popular English-language cybercrime forums. Unlike structured ransomware groups, it does not

WiFi Network Security: Protect Against Hacking with WPA3 and ARP Spoofing

Francesco Demarcus 02/12/2025

In today’s environment, securing a network requires much more than setting a complex password. A cyber attack against a wireless network follows a structured path that evolves from passive monitoring to active traffic manipulation. . We will analyze this process in three distinct phases: gaining access, post-connection maneuvers, and the necessary defensive countermeasures. . 1. Pre-connection Phase: Surveillance and Access Penetration testing of a wireless network begins by analyzing its attack surface: visible identifiers are observed and weak or insecure configurations are evaluated. . Target Monitoring and Identification The first step is to use tools in “monitor” mode to collect detailed information

ShadyPanda Malware Infects 4.3M Browsers with Chrome Edge Extensions

Redazione RHC 02/12/2025

Researchers at Koi Security described a multi-stage operation called ShadyPanda . Over the course of seven years, attackers released seemingly useful extensions for Chrome and Edge, built up an audience with positive comments and reviews. They then released an update containing malicious code . Researchers estimate that the total number of installations reached a remarkable 4.3 million downloads . The scheme is simple and unpleasant: “legitimate” extensions accumulate ratings, reviews, and trust badges for years, only to receive an update that contains malware, extracts arbitrary JavaScript, and executes it with full access to the browser . The code is obfuscated and becomes

The Dark Side of Internet Control: Durov’s Warning

Sandro Sana 02/12/2025

Post 462 on Durov’s official channel immediately went into “scream mode”: “ The end of the free internet. The free internet is becoming a tool of control .” No birthday wishes. Durov explains that he doesn’t feel like celebrating because, in his opinion, his generation “is running out of time to save the free Internet our fathers built for us.” What until recently seemed like the promise of an open and free web, a place for sharing, exchange, and information, is now turning into the “most powerful tool of control ever created.” Durov doesn’t go easy: he names Western governments and states

Phishing Attacks Surge in Black Friday Season: Stay Vigilant

Redazione RHC 02/12/2025

This year, too, cybercriminals are taking advantage of seasonal shopping periods to spread phishing websites and fraudulent promotions, aiming to steal personal information and payment details . Gaming platforms remain a prime target throughout the year. In Spain, this trend is also reflected in the latest Cyber Security Report 2024 published by the National Institute for Cyber Security (INCIBE). Increase in fraud in the last 2 years According to this report, 2,122 cases related to fraudulent online stores were handled, in which users were redirected to websites imitating legitimate companies to steal personal or banking information. Additionally, the 017 cybersecurity helpline received