Number: AL20-028
Date: 9 December 2020
AUDIENCE
This Alert is intended for IT professionals and managers of notified organizations.
PURPOSE
An Alert is used to raise awareness of a recently identified cyber threat that may impact cyber information assets, and to provide additional detection and mitigation advice to recipients. The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security ("Cyber Centre") is also available to provide additional assistance regarding the content of this Alert to recipients as requested.
OVERVIEW
On 8 December 2020 FireEye disclosed that it was recently the victim of a targeted security breach by a highly sophisticated threat actor. [1]
DETAILS
In a blog post published 8 December 2020, FireEye reported an infiltration of its internal network, carried out by a “highly sophisticated threat actor.” FireEye reported that an investigation was ongoing and that, to date, it had not discovered any exfiltration of customer data. However, red team security assessment tools were stolen. While FireEye has stated it cannot confidently say whether these tools will be used or publicly disclosed by the threat actor, the company released methods of detecting the use of these tools in the event that they are leveraged. [2]
SUGGESTED ACTION
The Cyber Centre recommends that organizations and individuals:
- Review the CSE Top 10 Security Actions
(https://cyber.gc.ca/en/top-10-it-security-actions) - Review the signatures shared by FireEye and consider them for inclusion within security appliances. [2] Organizations are encouraged to contact vendors if tailored signatures are required for specific products.
- Consider measures to limit the amount of sensitive information that malicious actors can collect about their networks by performing security assessments on network systems for un-necessary or inadequately secured or patched services;
- Assess networks for the presence of vulnerable software, particularly where it is installed on devices exposed to the internet, and update as soon as possible to the latest version.
- Implement two-factor authentication (2FA) on all internet-facing remote access services, starting with perimeter security devices such as firewalls and remote access gateways for teleworkers and administrators.
Should organizations identify activity similar to that described in this Alert, recipients are encouraged to contact the Cyber Centre by email (contact@cyber.gc.ca) or by telephone (1-833-CYBER-88 or 1-833-292-3788).
REFERENCES
[1] FireEye Shares Details of Recent Cyber Attack, Actions to Protect Community:
https://www.fireeye.com/blog/products-and-services/2020/12/fireeye-shares-details-of-recent-cyber-attack-actions-to-protect-community.html
[2] FireEye Red Team Tool Countermeasures:
https://github.com/fireeye/red_team_tool_countermeasures
NOTE TO READERS
The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security (Cyber Centre) operates as part of the Communications Security Establishment. We are Canada's national authority on cyber security and we lead the government's response to cyber security events. As Canada's national computer security incident response team, the Cyber Centre works in close collaboration with government departments, critical infrastructure, Canadian businesses and international partners to prepare for, respond to, mitigate, and recover from cyber events. We do this by providing authoritative advice and support, and coordinating information sharing and incident response. The Cyber Centre is outward-facing, welcoming partnerships that help build a stronger, more resilient cyber space in Canada.