Month: September 2025

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, in collaboration with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United Kingdom’s National Cyber Security Centre, and other international partners, released new Joint Cybersecurity Guidance: Creating and Maintaining a Definitive View of Your Operational Technology (OT) Architecture.

Building on the recent Foundations for OT Cybersecurity: Asset Inventory Guidance for Owners and Operators, this guidance explains how organizations can leverage data sources, such as asset inventories, and manufacturer-provided resources, such as  software bill of materials , to establish and maintain an accurate, up-to-date view of their OT systems.

A definitive OT record enables organizations to conduct more comprehensive risk assessments, prioritize critical and exposed systems, and implement appropriate security controls. The guidance also addresses managing third-party risks, securing OT information, and designing effective architectural controls.

Key recommendations include:

Collaborating Across Teams: Foster coordination between OT and IT teams; Aligning with Standards: Follow international standards such as IEC 62443 and ISO/IEC 27001.

Organizations are encouraged to use this guidance to strengthen their OT security posture and reduce risks. For additional details, review the full guidance.

To learn more about developing an OT Asset Inventory, attend CISA’s webinar on September 30 at 2:00 p.m. (ET).

Event Date/Time: October 21, 2025 | 10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. ET 

The NCCoE is making progress in accelerating the adoption of mobile driver’s license (mDL) standards and best practices. Join us for a webinar where we’ll be sharing newly available project resources and announcing our second project use case. 

Discover the Latest mDL Project Updates 

During this virtual event, our mDL project team will provide an overview of recently published resources that can aid financial institutions in adopting mDLs to meet Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements.  

These resources include: 

• Building Assurance in the mDL Ecosystem – This document highlights security and trust considerations related to the enrollment, issuance and presentation of mDLs and includes NIST 800-63-4 controls that can be applied to the MDL issuance ceremony. 
• mDL Interaction Diagrams – These diagrams correspond to our previously published wireframes videos and illustrate how data flows between different components when a user interacts with our simulated bank using their mDL. 
• Privacy Risk Assessment Methodology (PRAM) – This tool is designed to help organizations assess and prioritize privacy risks associated with mDLs. It provides a tailored version of the NIST PRAM, a widely used framework for managing privacy risk. 

The mDL Project team will also announce the start of the NCCoE’s second mDL project use case which will demonstrate how mDLs can support identity verification to facilitate secure access to government applications. 

Save your spot for this informative webinar and stay ahead of the curve in mDL adoption. 

Register Now! 

We encourage you to register for this informative virtual event to learn about the latest NCCoE mDL project publications – secure your spot today! 

Register Now!

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) released this Alert to provide guidance in response to a widespread software supply chain compromise involving the world’s largest JavaScript registry, npmjs.com. A self-replicating worm—publicly known as Shai-Hulud—has compromised over 500 packages.

After gaining initial access, the malicious cyber actor deployed malware that scanned the environment for sensitive credentials. The cyber actor then targeted GitHub Personal Access Tokens (PATs) and application programming interface (API) keys for cloud services, including Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google Cloud Platform (GCP), and Microsoft Azure.

The malware then:

Exfiltrated the harvested credentials to an endpoint controlled by the actor. Uploaded the credentials to a public repository named Shai-Hulud via the GitHub/user/repos API. Leveraged an automated process to rapidly spread by authenticating to the npm registry as the compromised developer, injecting code into other packages, and publishing compromised versions to the registry.

CISA urges organizations to implement the recommendations found in the alert to detect and remediate this compromise.

The following resources provide additional guidance on this compromise:

GitHub: Our plan for a more secure npm supply chain Palo Alto Networks Unit 42: Shai-Hulud Worm Compromises npm Ecosystem in Supply Chain Attack (Updated September 18) Socket: Updated and Ongoing Supply Chain Attack Targets CrowdStrike npm Packages ReversingLabs: Malware found on npm infecting local package with reverse shell

The 2025 NY Metro Joint Cyber Security Conference is in the planning stage, celebrating our 12th year featuring keynotes, panels and sessions aimed at educating everyone on the various aspects of information security and technology. Workshops featuring in-depth extended classroom-style educational courses to expand your knowledge and foster security discussions will take place virtually post-conference. Call for speakers and sponsors in open. You can find out more at InfoSecurity.NYC

AS a Member of the advisory board I invite you to the Kentucky Cybersecurity and Forensics Conference (KCFC 2025), scheduled for Saturday, October 25, 2025, at Bluegrass Community and Technical College in Lexington, Kentucky.

KCFC brings together academia, industry, and government to collaborate in building awareness of cybersecurity and digital forensics. The conference provides a platform for professionals, educators, and students to exchange ideas, share research, and discuss the latest trends and challenges in cybersecurity.

Registration is now open at www.Ky-cfc.com. Please see our tentative agenda for this event.

We look forward to your participation in this important event and your contribution to advancing our shared mission of fostering a stronger and more secure digital environment.

We hope to see you there!

NIST has released the initial public draft (IPD) of Special Publication (SP) 1331, Quick-Start Guide for Using CSF 2.0 to Improve the Management of Emerging Cybersecurity Risks, for public comment. The document highlights the topic of emerging cybersecurity risks and explains how organizations can improve their ability to address such risks through existing practices within the cyber risk discipline in conjunction with the NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) 2.0. The guide also emphasizes the importance of integrating these practices with organizational enterprise risk management (ERM) to proactively address emerging risks before they occur. 

The comment period is open through September 21, 2025, at 11:59 PM. Please send your feedback about this draft publication to csf@nist.gov.

This publication is the most recent in a portfolio of CSF 2.0 Quick-Start Guides released since February 26, 2024. These resources provide different audiences with tailored pathways into the CSF 2.0 and make the Framework easier to put into action. View all CSF 2.0 quick-start guides here. 

Read the Quick-Start Guide

NIST has published the final version of Special Publication (SP) 800-227, Recommendations for Key-Encapsulation Mechanisms. A key-encapsulation mechanism (KEM) is a set of algorithms that can be used by two parties under certain conditions to securely establish a shared secret key over a public channel. This publication describes the basic definitions, properties, and applications of KEMs and provides recommendations for implementing and using KEMs securely.

NIST greatly appreciates all the feedback and discussion and has incorporated several updates to SP 800-227 based on the comments received. The public comment period on the initial public draft (IPD) was open through March 7, 2025, and the feedback received is now linked from the SP 800-227 publication details. NIST also held a virtual Workshop on Guidance for KEMs on February 25-26, 2025, to gather additional input on SP 800-227. Presentations and the recording of the workshop are available on the event web page.

Read More

The NJCCIC has observed an increase in the distribution of infostealing malware. This type of malware is popular among threat actors because of the kind and amount of information it can exfiltrate. Infostealers often have capabilities that allow threat actors to retrieve credentials, financial information, personally identifiable information (PII), messages, emails, and browser data.  Some infostealers, like Amatera, have the capacity to run secondary payloads.

Several popular infostealers are sold as malware-as-a-service (MaaS). This type of malware lowers the barrier to entry into cybercrime for individuals with limited or no coding skills, as they can purchase it via subscription, and it often features user-friendly interfaces. Amatera Stealer, a rebrand of ACR Stealer, has been among the many forms of malware distributed through Click Fix/Clear Fake attacks. Despite law enforcement taking down the core infrastructure of Lumma Stealer in early 2025, threat actors have utilized GitHub comments to trick users into downloading the infostealer, often claiming to be a fix for an undisclosed issue.

Phishing continues to be a common method for tricking users into downloading infostealers. Both XLoader and DarkCloud conduct phishing campaigns that involve a compressed .rar file that, when extracted, downloads and installs malicious software. Some campaigns start with a downloader, such as GuLoader, which, once installed, initiates the download of more malware that it typically stores on Google Drive. A current campaign ends with the download of SnakeKeylogger.

Recommendations

Avoid clicking links and opening attachments in unsolicited emails. Confirm requests from senders via contact information obtained from verified and official sources. Users should only submit account credentials on official websites. Users are advised to only download applications and software from official sources. Maintain robust and up-to-date endpoint detection tools on every endpoint. Consider leveraging behavior-based detection tools rather than signature-based tools. If you suspect an account has been compromised, change the account’s password immediately and ensure MFA is enabled for all online accounts. Review the Don’t Take the Bait! Phishing and Other Social Engineering Attacks  NJCCIC product for more information on common phishing and social engineering attacks. Report other malicious cyber activity to the NJCCIC and the FBI’s IC3.

The NJCCIC observed a malware campaign sent to New Jersey State employees, purporting to be proof of payment. The malicious emails contain a ZIP file labeled “Proof Of payment.001” with a SHA-256 hash. The ZIP file appears legitimate but includes a Microsoft EXE file labeled “u1ugeglmfc8xvoc” that drops several files, including a PowerShell script.

According to VirusTotal , the malware likely belongs to the Krypt or Kryptik Trojan family. Besides malicious email attachments, Trojan infections can also occur by downloading and executing files from untrusted and unsafe websites. They can perform malicious activities on infected systems without the target’s knowledge, such as creating backdoors, establishing remote connections with command and control (C2) servers, maintaining persistence, and dropping other malware. Some can also target and capture keyboard input, such as account credentials, financial information, and other sensitive data.

In a similar campaign, researchers discovered phishing emails using malicious RAR attachments labeled “Proof of Payment.” If clicked, it launches the included VBE file using wscript[.]exe and drops several files, including a PowerShell script and a JPG file embedded with the DarkCloud stealer . If executed, DarkCloud uses process injection, outbound connections to suspicious top-level domains (TLDs), persistence, and data exfiltration. DarkCloud is programmed to steal account credentials from email and FTP clients and data from web browsers. The researchers observed an uptick in DarkCloud stealers targeting financial organizations in August 2025. These recent malware campaigns highlight the importance of awareness and strengthening defenses to help prevent threat actors from infecting systems and exfiltrating data to commit identity theft and financial fraud.

Recommendations

Refrain from responding to unsolicited communications, opening attachments, or clicking links from unknown senders. Exercise caution with communications from known senders. Confirm requests from senders via contact information obtained from verified and official sources. Download software or files only from reputable sources or websites. Use strong, unique passwords for all accounts and enable multi-factor authentication (MFA) where available, choosing authentication apps or hardware tokens over SMS text-based codes. Keep systems up to date and apply patches after appropriate testing. Run updated and reputable anti-virus or anti-malware programs. Report malicious cyber activity to the NJCCIC and the FBI’s IC3.

To help organizations protect their data against possible future attacks from quantum computers, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has released a publication offering guidelines for implementing a class of post-quantum cryptography (PQC) algorithms known as key-encapsulation mechanisms, or KEMs.

A KEM is a set of algorithms that can be used by two parties to securely establish a shared secret key over a public channel — a sort of first handshake between parties that want to exchange confidential information. Recent examples of KEMs include ML-KEM and HQC.

The new publication, Recommendations for Key-Encapsulation Mechanisms (NIST Special Publication 800-227), describes the basic definitions, properties and applications of KEMs and provides recommendations for implementing and using KEMs securely.

The publication also offers guidelines for implementing “hybrid” setups that use both conventional and PQC algorithms together, requiring an attacker to break both. For those organizations that opt to use such hybrid setups during their transition to using PQC, the publication offers a way to implement them safely and securely.

The finalized publication reflects comments received on the initial public draft before the deadline on March 7, 2025, as well as input from NIST’s virtual Workshop on Guidance for KEMs held Feb. 25-26, 2025. Comments on the draft are available at the final version’s publication details. Presentations and the recording of the workshop are available on the event webpage.