TL;DR

• [Critical Infrastructure] Pro‑Russia hacktivists exploit exposed OT VNC; GRU‑linked APT44 abuses edge devices to pivot into energy/telco/cloud environments.
• [Vulnerabilities] Actively exploited zero‑days: Microsoft December patches include a live priv‑esc; Chrome CVE‑2025‑14174 fixed in Stable—update urgently.
• [Espionage] Hamas‑linked Ashen Lepus (WIRTE) expands Middle East collection using AshTag backdoor delivered via DLL‑sideloading chains.

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Current Stories

TL;DR

• [Threat Actors] Joint US/intl advisory details pro‑Russia hacktivists (CARR, NoName057(16), Z‑Pentest, Sector16) abusing exposed OT VNC to disrupt water, food, aviation, and energy entities.

• [Vulnerabilities] December Microsoft Patch Tuesday fixes ~56+ flaws and three zero‑days across Windows/Office; at least one is actively exploited for privilege escalation.

• [Intrusion Sets] Hamas‑affiliated “Ashen Lepus” (WIRTE) expands long‑running Middle East espionage with new modular AshTag backdoor plus DLL‑sideloading AshenLoader chains.

• [Ransomware] INC ransomware breach at Pierce County Library (WA) impacts 340k+ patrons/staff, continuing a sustained pattern of disruptive ransomware hitting US local government services.

References

• (2025-12-09) Pro-Russia Hacktivists Conduct Opportunistic Attacks Against US and Global Critical Infrastructure (Joint CSA AA25-343A)

• (2025-12-09) Russia Threat Overview and Advisories – Pro-Russia Hacktivists Conduct Opportunistic Attacks Against US and Global Critical Infrastructure

• (2025-12-09) Microsoft’s last Patch Tuesday of 2025 addresses 57 defects, including one zero-day

• (2025-12-11) Microsoft Issues Security Fixes for 56 Flaws, Including Active Exploit and Two Zero-Days

• (2025-12-11) Hamas-Affiliated Ashen Lepus Targets Middle Eastern Diplomatic Entities With New AshTag Malware Suite

• (2025-12-11) WIRTE Leverages AshenLoader Sideloading to Install the AshTag Espionage Backdoor

• (2025-12-12) More than 340,000 impacted by cyberattack on library in large Washington county

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Suggested Pivots

How are pro-Russia hacktivist collectives operationally distinct from Russian state units in terms of tooling, targeting, and OT tradecraft?

• Why: Clarifying where “hacktivism” ends and state direction begins helps sharpen attribution and expectations for escalation against US critical infrastructure.
• What to expect: A comparison of infrastructure, malware reuse, victim selection, and messaging patterns that can guide threat modeling and tuning of OT/IT detections.

What detection and hardening patterns are most reusable across Ashen Lepus, other Hamas-linked clusters, and broader Middle East-focused espionage actors?

• Why: Many regional APTs share sideloading and document-lure tradecraft; understanding commonalities yields high-leverage defensive controls.
• What to expect: A cross-actor matrix of initial access vectors, loader patterns, C2 behaviors, and exfil methods ready to translate into hunts and rules.

Emerging Stories