Researchers at Bitdefender have identified a new Android malware titled, Triout which acts as a framework for turning legitimate applications into spyware. It is used to inject extensive surveillance capabilities into seemingly benign applications. Triout is found bundled with a repackaged app; with capabilities including recording phone calls, logging incoming text messages, recoding videos, taking pictures and collecting GPS coordinates. Then broadcasting all of that back to an attacker-controlled C2 (command and control) server. The sample’s first appearance seems to be 15 May 2018, when it was uploaded to VirusTotal.
To read the full article and find an archive of related reporting follow this link to READBOARD.
The Autonomous Noncommercial Organization Professional Association of Designers of Data Processing Systems (ANO PO KSI) was sanctioned by the U.S. in response to Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. Presidential election. The company works with the Russian Defense Ministry, FSB, and other government organizations. They produce election ballot and census form scanners, and aero-surveillance cameras...READ MORE
Wapack Labs has extensively reported on election interference in the past. An archive of related reporting can be found in the Red Sky Alliance portal.
TLP: GREEN
ACTOR TYPE: (V)
SERIAL: TAR-17
COUNTRIES: RU, U.S.
INDUSTRIES: Military, Political
REPORT DATE: 20170306
The use of common mobile apps by Chinese authorities is a double-edged sword; supporting both public services as well as enhanced surveillance activities. As an example, Chinese authorities recovered over 660 missing children in 2016 using the "Tuan Yuan" (“reunion”) app. App users near the location where a child is reported missing receive push notifications, including photos and descriptions of the lost child. Notifications are sent to app users farther and farther from the location of the disappearance if the child is not immediately found. Chinese police use of apps like Tuan Yuan, ride sharing, and even shopping apps, significantly accelerate efforts to find persons of interest.
