Google accuses Russia of using exploits linked to spyware maker

Search engine giant Google on Monday claimed Russian government hackers exploited a complex vulnerability closely related to one used by notorious spyware makers Intellexa and NSO Group.

Russia’s APT29 has been observed using exploits identical or very similar to those used by NSO Group and Intellexa, according to researchers at Google TAG (Threat Analysis Group).

This unholy act by the Russian government suggests that state-backed actors and controversial surveillance software vendors may be purchasing tools from each other.

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Google researchers claim that APT29 has used a number of wild exploits that originated from an attack on a government website in Mongolia via a drinking establishment.

The campaign used a Chrome exploit chain against Android users running versions m121 through m123 after first delivering an iOS WebKit exploit affecting iOS versions older than 16.6.1.

Google TAG said: “This campaign delivers n-day exploits for which patches are available, but will still be effective against unpatched devices,” adding that the attackers used exploits that were very similar to, or identical to, those previously used by NSO Group and Intellexa in each iteration of the watering hole campaign.

Google accuses Russia of using exploits linked to spyware maker first appeared on Latest Nigeria News | Top Stories from Ripples Nigeria.