So the latest buzz going around is caused by a hacking group that appears to be Spanish and is called The Mask or Careto. <\/p>\n
The reason there is a fair amount of buzz is their next level espionage malware that has been targeting government institutions, diplomatic offices and embassies, energy, oil and gas companies, research organizations and activists.<\/p>\n
And the crazy part? It’s been in operation over SEVEN YEARS, without detection.<\/p>\n
A recently discovered hacking group called “The Mask” has set a new standard for malware used in sophisticated attacks against government agencies, industry and research organizations, experts say.<\/p>\n
On Monday, Kaspersky Lab reported discovering the advanced Spanish-speaking group that has been involved in cyberespionage since at least 2007.<\/p>\n
The Mask, aka Careto, has targeted government institutions, diplomatic offices and embassies, energy, oil and gas companies, research organizations and activists in 31 countries from the Middle East and Europe to Africa and the Americas.<\/p>\n
The hackers’ mission is to steal sensitive data, but the capabilities of their malware go far beyond pilfering documents. It can also take from networks various encryption keys and authentication keys used in machine-to-machine communications.<\/p>\n
“Basically, everything secured and confidential easily becomes available and in a plain text,” Dmitry Bestuzhen, head of the research center for Kaspersky Lab in Latin America, said Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Versions of the malware were found for Windows, Mac OS X and Linux. Other versions are believed to be capable of infecting Android and iOS mobile devices.<\/p>\n
The Mask has built malware that has set a new standard for other hackers to emulate, security experts say.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n