IoT devices and Linux-based systems targeted by OpenSSH trojan campaign

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Cyberattacker techniques, tools, and infrastructure Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Microsoft Defender for IoT Cryptojacking, the illicit use of computing resources to mine cryptocurrency, has become increasingly prevalent in recent years, with attackers building a cybercriminal economy around attack tools, infrastructure, and services to generate revenue from targeting a wide range of vulnerable systems, including Internet of Things (IoT) devices. Microsoft researchers have recently discovered an attack leveraging custom and open-source tools to target internet-facing Linux-based systems and IoT devices. The attack uses a patched version of OpenSSH to take control of impacted devices and install cryptomining malware. Utilizing an established criminal infrastructure that has incorporated the use of a Southeast Asian financial institution’s subdomain as a command and control (C2) server, the threat actors behind the attack use a backdoor that deploys a wide array of tools and components such as rootkits and an IRC bot to steal device resources for mining operations. The backdoor also installs a patched version of OpenSSH on affected devices, allowing threat actors to hijack SSH credentials, move laterally within the network, and conceal malicious SSH connections. The complexity and scope of this attack are indicative of the efforts attackers make to evade detection. In this blog post, we present our analysis of the tools and techniques used in this attack and the efforts made