Microsoft Exchange has received a good bit of hacking attention recently, and ESET has a partial explanation. Turla, also known as Snake or Uroburos, a Trojan long used by Russian intelligence services, is back, and using what ZDNet calls "one hell of a clever backdoor." The backdoor is called "LightNeuron," and it functions as a mail transfer service, which is thought to be a first. It's been active since 2014, and it's hit targets in Brazil, Eastern Europe, and the Middle East. It's an espionage tool, not a conventionally criminal one.
SafeGuard Cyber says the bad actors never left the European elections' fields of influence. They've been tracking bots, trolls, and hybrids, all of which have been active against the electorates of Germany, Italy, France, Spain, Poland, and the United Kingdom.
In the US, outlines of Cyber Command's preparations to help secure the 2020 elections grow clearer. The Command seems likely to take a more active approach, hunting for cyber operators and influence campaigns in foreign networks, the Washington Post reports. Bot herders and troll masters can at the very least expect some stern talking-tos by direct message.
Another large cryptocurrency exchange has been looted. Binance, the world's leading alt-coin trading system by volume, lost some $41 million to hackers, Reuters reports. Binance, founded in China but now operating out of Japan and Taiwan, has suspended trading until it gets a handle on security.
Closer to home, Baltimore's city government was hit yesterday by ransomware, Fifth Domain and others report.