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Sophos Warns of Alarming 51% Growth in Trusted App Exploits

business . 

Sophos, a global leader in delivering cybersecurity as a service, has unveiled its latest findings in a report titled “The Bite from Inside: The Sophos Active Adversary Report.” This comprehensive analysis sheds light on the evolving tactics and techniques used by adversaries in the first half of 2024, based on nearly 200 incident response cases handled by the Sophos X-Ops Incident Response (IR) and Managed Detection and Response (MDR) teams. The report provides a thorough examination of adversary behaviors, revealing key trends, challenges, and vulnerabilities that organizations face in the ever-changing cybersecurity landscape.

A central focus of the report is the increasing reliance of cybercriminals on “Living Off the Land” binaries, commonly referred to as LOLbins. These are legitimate Windows applications and tools that adversaries misuse to conduct reconnaissance, establish persistence, and avoid detection. The report highlights a dramatic surge in the abuse of LOLbins, with a 51% increase in 2024 compared to the previous year and an 83% rise since 2021. Sophos identified 187 unique LOLbins during its analysis, with Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) standing out as the most frequently abused tool. RDP exploitation was present in 89% of the cases examined, reflecting a continuation of the trend first observed in 2023, when 90% of incidents featured RDP misuse.

The increasing prevalence of LOLbins poses significant challenges for cybersecurity teams. These tools, being legitimate components of Windows systems, often do not trigger suspicion or alerts when misused. This enables attackers to blend their malicious activities seamlessly into routine system operations. As Sophos Field CTO John Shier explains, “Living-off-the-land not only offers stealth to an attacker’s activities but also provides a tacit endorsement of their activities.” He further emphasizes the importance of nuanced, contextual awareness among IT teams to distinguish between legitimate use and abuse of these tools. Without such vigilance, organizations risk overlooking critical threat activity that can lead to severe consequences, such as ransomware attacks.

Ransomware remains a persistent threat, with LockBit emerging as the most prominent ransomware group in the first half of 2024. Despite significant efforts by authorities, including the February takedown of LockBit’s primary leak website and infrastructure, the group accounted for 21% of infections in the cases analyzed by Sophos. This resilience highlights the adaptability of ransomware operators and the ongoing threat they pose to organizations globally.

The report also delves into the root causes of cyberattacks, identifying compromised credentials as the leading factor, responsible for 39% of incidents. While this marks a decline from the 56% reported in 2023, it underscores the critical need for robust password policies, multi-factor authentication, and proactive credential management. For cases handled by Sophos’ MDR teams, network breaches were the most common type of incident encountered, further reinforcing the importance of securing organizational networks against unauthorized access.

One encouraging finding from the report is the reduction in dwell times—the time between the start of an attack and its detection. Sophos MDR teams reported a median dwell time of just one day for all incidents and three days for ransomware-specific attacks. In contrast, Sophos IR cases showed a median dwell time of eight days. This disparity highlights the value of proactive monitoring and rapid response capabilities provided by MDR services in minimizing the impact of cyberattacks.

Another area of concern highlighted in the report is the vulnerability of outdated Active Directory (AD) server versions. The most frequently compromised versions in 2024 were AD servers from 2019, 2016, and 2012, all of which are now out of Microsoft’s mainstream support. These versions, nearing or already at end-of-life (EOL), pose significant security risks as they no longer receive regular updates and patches. Alarmingly, 21% of the compromised AD servers analyzed by Sophos were already EOL, underscoring the critical importance of keeping systems updated to reduce exposure to cyber threats.

Sophos’ report offers an in-depth view of the challenges posed by modern cyberattacks and underscores the necessity for organizations to adopt a proactive, informed approach to cybersecurity. By understanding adversary behaviors, addressing vulnerabilities, and leveraging advanced detection and response capabilities, businesses can better defend against evolving threats and safeguard their critical infrastructure.

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