UNC3944, which overlaps with public reporting on Scattered Spider, is a financially-motivated threat actor characterized by its persistent use of social engineering and brazen communications with victims. In early operations, UNC3944 largely targeted telecommunications-related organizations to support SIM swap operations. However, after shifting to ransomware and data theft extortion in early 2023, they impacted organizations in a broader range of industries. Since then, we have regularly observed UNC3944 conduct waves of targeting against a specific sector, such as financial services organizations in late 2023 and food services in May 2024. Notably, UNC3944 has also previously targeted prominent brands, possibly in an attempt to gain prestige and increased attention by news media.
Google Threat Intelligence Group (GTIG) observed a decline in UNC3944 activity after 2024 law enforcement actions against individuals allegedly associated with the group. Threat actors will often temporarily halt or significantly curtail operations after an arrest, possibly to reduce law enforcement attention, rebuild capabilities and/or partnerships, or shift to new tooling to evade detection. UNC3944’s existing ties to a broader community of threat actors could potentially help them recover from law enforcement actions more quickly.
Recent public reporting has suggested that threat actors used tactics consistent with Scattered Spider to target a UK retail organization and deploy DragonForce ransomware. Subsequent reporting by BBC News indicates that actors associated with DragonForce claimed responsibility for attempted attacks at multiple UK retailers. Notably, the operators of DragonForce ransomware recently claimed control of RansomHub, a ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) that seemingly ceased operations in March of this year. UNC3944 was a RansomHub affiliate in 2024, after the ALPHV (aka Blackcat) RaaS shut down. While GTIG has not independently confirmed the involvement of UNC3944 or the DragonForce RaaS, over the past few years, retail organizations have been increasingly posted on tracked data leak sites (DLS) used by extortion actors to pressure victims and/or leak stolen victim data. Retail organizations accounted for 11 percent of DLS victims in 2025 thus far, up from about 8.5 percent in 2024 and 6 percent in 2022 and 2023. It is plausible that threat actors including UNC3944 view retail organizations as attractive targets, given that they typically possess large quantities of personally identifiable information (PII) and financial data. Further, these companies may be more likely to pay a ransom demand if a ransomware attack impacts their ability to process financial transactions.
China has introduced guidelines to phase out U.S. microprocessors from Intel (INTC.O), opens new tab and AMD (AMD.O), opens new tab from government personal computers and servers, the Financial Times reported on Sunday.
The procurement guidance also seeks to sideline Microsoft's (MSFT.O), opens new tab Windows operating system and foreign-made database software in favour of domestic options, the report said.
This joint guide, Understanding and Responding to Distributed Denial-Of-Service Attacks, addresses the specific needs and challenges faced by organizations in defending against DDoS attacks. The guidance now includes detailed insight into three different types of DDoS techniques:
Volumetric, attacks aiming to consume available bandwidth.
Protocol, attacks which exploit vulnerabilities in network protocols.
Application, attacks targeting vulnerabilities in specific applications or running services.
The vision of the UK’s National Cyber Strategy (NCS) 2022 is that the UK will continue to be a leading, responsible and democratic cyber power, able to protect and promote its interests in and through cyberspace in support of national goals. The NCS 2022 set out how the UK will continue to adapt, innovate, and invest in order to pioneer a cyber future with the whole of the UK.
This guide provides steps organizations can take to assess whether users have been targeted or compromised by threat actors exploiting CVE-2023-23397.
The National Security Agency (NSA) and partner cybersecurity authorities released a Cybersecurity Information Sheet today recommending that Microsoft Windows® operators and administrators properly
On Monday May 30, 2022, Microsoft issued CVE-2022-30190 regarding the Microsoft Support Diagnostic Tool (MSDT) in Windows vulnerability.
The Danish data protection authority ('Datatilsynet') announced, on 9 March 2022, that it had published a new guide on the use of cloud services, as well as a short overview of frequently asked questions ('FAQs'). In particular, the Datatilsynet stated that the new guide is targeted at data controllers and notes the considerations which data controllers must keep in mind when using a cloud service, including an outline of the pitfalls, opportunities, and obligations that arise when using such technologies.
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The National Security Agency (NSA) has released a new Cybersecurity Technical Report (CTR): Network Infrastructure Security Guidance. The report captures best practices based on the depth and breadth of experience in supporting customers and responding to threats.
Recommendations include perimeter and internal network defenses to improve monitoring and access controls throughout the network.
