Microsoft Teams becomes a gateway to malware

Cybercriminals are discovering that teams are the perfect vehicle for introducing malware into operational IT. This is what security firm Avanan wrote in a recent blog post. […]

Microsoft Cooperat-a tool Divide It enjoys increasing popularity. Like Microsoft recently Advertise on TwitterThe service has 270 million monthly active users.

Looks like they’re doing that too now cyber criminals I noticed. At least that’s what Check Point affiliate Avanan says In a blog postThat hackers are increasingly using Divide-Abuse platform for malware distribution.

Since January 2022, hackers have been observed injecting malicious executables into files Divide-Enter conversations, Avanan reports. Files injected in this way will write data to the Windows registry, install DLL files, and create links that the program can then use to manage itself. According to Avanan, she has seen thousands of such attacks per month.

In their summary report on the attacks security researcher From Afanan pointed out that cyber criminals The site can still be accessed with the help of phishing emails Divide– Get victims’ accounts. In this way, they usually spoof access data for Microsoft 365 / Office 365, and therefore usually also for teams, which are becoming more integrated into the cloud platform of Office Microsoft Integrated (see also Computerworld article “Attacks on Azure and Office 365”).

Insufficient protection in teams

To make matters worse, according to Avanan’s blog report, the default protection of Divide not enough. So the search for malicious links and files is limited, they say. “Furthermore, many email security solutions do not provide robust protection for teams,” Avanane researchers continue, warning that hackers who successfully break into teams have “a carte blanche to attack millions of unsuspecting users.”

in the end will Divide It is still seen as trustworthy by most users. In this context, Avanan is referring to her own analysis of hospitals that use teams. It is common here for clinicians to share patient data across teams. Avanan notes that “medical staff generally are aware of the dangers of sharing information via email, but ignore them when it comes to teams.”