The Relentless Tide: Understanding Global Cyber Attacks and Breaches

In an increasingly interconnected world, the threat of cyber attacks and data breaches casts a long shadow over organizations of all sizes, across every corner of the globe. It's no longer a question of if an attack will occur, but when and how prepared we are to face it. To truly safeguard our digital assets and ensure business continuity, a comprehensive understanding of the current global cyber threat landscape is paramount.

Recent research, such as the analysis conducted through a digital trap known as a honeypot, provides valuable real-world insights into the scale, methods, and origins of cyber threats. This approach, involving a fake system designed to lure cybercriminals, reveals that hackers don't just target big companies—they target everything.

The Sheer Volume of Attacks: A Stark Reality

The data from a recent seven-day reporting period paints a stark picture of the relentless nature of cyber attacks. In just one week, a single honeypot recorded over 570,000 cyber attacks. This staggering number underscores the automated and persistent nature of modern cyber threats, with attackers working around the clock to find vulnerabilities.

This high volume highlights that companies of all sizes are constantly under scrutiny. While large enterprises may attract more media attention when breaches occur, smaller organizations are equally susceptible and can suffer devastating consequences from successful attacks.

Attack Methods: A Diverse Arsenal

The analysis of these attacks reveals a diverse range of methods employed by cybercriminals. These include:

• Brute-force attempts: Persistent efforts to guess usernames and passwords. The honeypot data shows that attackers frequently target weak and default credentials, with common passwords like “123456,” “admin,” and “password” being among the most attempted. Default usernames such as “root,” “admin,” and “user” are also heavily targeted.
• Stolen credentials: Leveraging compromised usernames and passwords to gain unauthorized access.
• Automated bots: Utilizing scripts and programs to scan for vulnerabilities and launch attacks at scale.
• Known vulnerabilities: Exploiting weaknesses in software and systems that have publicly disclosed Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs). The honeypot recorded numerous attempts to exploit both legacy flaws, some dating back over two decades, and more recent critical vulnerabilities like Log4Shell (CVE-2021-44228). This highlights the critical need for strict patch management and routine vulnerability assessments.
• Sophisticated attacks: More complex and targeted attempts to infiltrate systems and achieve specific objectives. The report also identified 160,560 high-risk attacks and 485 successful exploits within the observed period, indicating the potential for significant damage.

Furthermore, the attacks observed targeted various services, including SSH, which saw 29,195 targeting attempts. High attack volumes also targeted Windows SMB, remote access (RDP/SSH), and web services. Specifically, the DoublePulsar backdoor saw 31,947 attempts, demonstrating the continued exploitation of older vulnerabilities like EternalBlue.

Geographical Origins and Attack Timing: Understanding the Threat Landscape

Understanding where attacks originate and when they are most likely to occur can provide valuable intelligence for threat preparedness. The honeypot data reveals that attack patterns show clear trends in both timing and geographic origin.

• Top Attack Locations: The U.S. accounted for the highest percentage of attacks (31%), followed by China (18%) and India (13%). Bangladesh (10%) and Vietnam (9%) also showed significant attack volumes. This data suggests a global distribution of threat actors and potentially highlights regions with a high number of compromised machines or proxy networks.
• Active Attack Times: The highest attack frequency occurred on Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday, with peak hours spanning 8 AM to 5 PM (WAT). The most intense period was 9 AM - 12 PM (WAT), accounting for 7.4% of total attacks. This suggests that attackers often operate during typical working hours, potentially indicating organized cybercrime operations or scheduled automated attacks. Attack activity also aligns with business hours (06:00-12:00 and 18:00-21:00), which could be an attempt by adversaries to blend in with normal user behavior.

Implications for Your Company: A Global Threat Requires Local Vigilance

The findings from this honeypot study, while representing a single digital trap over a short period, reflect the broader global reality of cyber threats. Your company, regardless of its size or industry, is a potential target. The sheer volume of attacks, the diverse methods employed, and the global distribution of threat actors underscore the urgent need for a robust and proactive cybersecurity strategy.

The continued success of attacks targeting weak passwords and unpatched vulnerabilities emphasizes that fundamental security practices remain crucial. The focus on common protocols like SSH and RDP highlights the importance of securing remote access points.

Strengthening Your Defenses: Actionable Steps

To mitigate the risks posed by these global cyber threats, your company should consider the following key actions, drawing from the recommendations highlighted in the report:

• Implement Strong Access Controls:
  • Enforce strict password policies that mandate complex and unique passwords.
  • Implement Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) for all critical services and accounts.
  • Conduct periodic credential audits and rotate passwords regularly.
  • Restrict SSH access to trusted networks and implement tools like fail2ban to block repeated failed login attempts.
• Prioritize Patch Management:
  • Address high-risk CVEs immediately, with a focus on frequently targeted vulnerabilities.
  • Establish a robust process for routine patching of all systems and software.
• Enhance Threat Detection and Monitoring:
  • Set up SIEM alerts for CVE exploitation attempts, brute-force attacks, and unusual authentication patterns.
  • Monitor network traffic for anomalies and review server logs regularly.
  • Investigate unusual HTTP and SSH activity.
  • Deploy intrusion detection systems (IDS) to identify suspicious activity.
• Strengthen Threat Intelligence Integration:
  • Continuously update blocklists based on threat intelligence feeds.
  • Cross-check attacking IPs and user-agents with threat intelligence feeds to identify known malicious actors.
• Refine Incident Response Capabilities:
  • Automate the blocking of high-volume attacking IPs at the firewall, WAF, and endpoint security level.
  • Develop and regularly update incident response playbooks for rapid containment and recovery.
  • Train your teams on incident response procedures and conduct red-team simulations to test preparedness.
• Secure Your Network Infrastructure:
  • Enforce network segmentation to limit the potential impact of a breach.
  • Disable unnecessary services and restrict outdated protocols.
• Educate Your Employees:
  • Train employees on phishing awareness and other social engineering tactics.
  • Emphasize the importance of strong passwords and secure online behavior.

Timeline of Main Events (March 17 - March 26 Reporting Period)

• March 17 - March 26: Okoma Somto conducts a honeypot experiment for a 7-day reporting period. The honeypot records over 570,000 cyber attacks.

Setup Process

• Environment Setup: A Microsoft Azure platform with an Ubuntu 22.04 LTS instance is set up. The honeypot system is T-Pot 24.04.1 (Multi-Honeypot Framework).

T-Pot Installation on Azure VM:

• An Azure Virtual Machine named "My Tpot" in the "Tpot Honeypot" resource group in Canada Central is provisioned.
• Security rules are configured to allow SSH (restricted to Okoma Somto's IP) and all TCP/UDP ports (1-65535).
• The Ubuntu system is updated (sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y).
• The T-Pot repository is cloned from GitHub.
• The install.sh script is executed, installing dependencies like Ansible and Docker.
• "Hive" mode is selected during T-Pot setup.
• An admin username and password for the Web UI are configured.
• The VM is restarted (sudo reboot).

Within the 570,000+ Cyber Attacks:

• Over 570,000 total attacks are recorded.
• 46,957 unique engagement attempts are noted.
• Brute force is identified as the most used attack.
• 160,560 high-risk attacks are detected.
• 485 successful exploits are recorded.
• 29,195 attacks target SSH.

Top Performing Honeypots:

• Honeytrap, Cowrie, and SentryPeer are used, each effective in detecting different types of attacks (network-based, brute-force, VoIP fraud, respectively).

OS Fingerprinting Analysis:

• Linux-based systems are the most common attack source (especially older versions).
• Windows systems (NT-based kernels and Windows 7/8) are also frequent.
• Some Linux attacks strip timestamps to evade detection.
• Mac OS X appears as an attack platform but is rare.

Active Times (WAT):

• Highest attack frequency occurs on Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday.
• Peak hours are between 8 AM and 5 PM.
• The most intense period is 9 AM - 12 PM, accounting for 7.4% of total attacks.

Top Location of Attacks:

• U.S.A (31%)
• China (18%)
• India (13%)
• Bangladesh (10%)
• Vietnam (9%)

Suricata Alert Analysis (March 20–24):

• A surge in reconnaissance and exploitation attempts is recorded, indicating a structured attack pattern.
• The highest spike in alerts (8,398) occurs on March 23 at 09:00, likely from automated scanning.
• Privilege escalation attempts peak on March 21 (3,532 alerts).
• High failure rate of authentication attempts suggests credential stuffing or brute-force attacks.
• Attack activity aligns with business hours (06:00-12:00 and 18:00-21:00).

Critical Suricata Alerts:

• Over 170,000 exploit attempts targeting exposed services are recorded.
• High attack volumes target Windows SMB, remote access (RDP/SSH), and web services.
• 31,947 attempts to exploit the DoublePulsar backdoor are detected.
• Over 29,000 connections originate from known malicious IPs.
• 22,987 RDP scans and 9,333 authentication bypass attempts are noted.
• 22,145 ICMP pings and 7,558 Nmap scans are recorded.
• 18,568 unusual HTTP requests and 10,691 Python script probes are detected.

Attacker Source IP Analysis:

• The top 10 attacker source IPs and their potential threats are identified, with recommendations for blocking and monitoring.
• The Password Playbook:Brute-force attacks primarily target weak and default credentials.
• The most attempted passwords include "123456," "admin," "password," and "abc123."
• Top targeted usernames are "root," "admin," "user," and "oracle."

Critical CVE Alerts:

• Attackers actively probe for legacy flaws dating back over two decades.
• Recent critical CVEs like Log4Shell (CVE-2021-44228) and OpenSSL DoS (CVE-2021-3449) are also targeted.
• Widespread use of automated scanning tools is suggested.

Incident Response & Mitigation Recommendations:

• Detection & Identification strategies involving SIEM alerts, threat intelligence, and UEBA.
• Containment & Eradication actions like automated IP blocking and prioritized patching.
• Investigation & Forensics methods including log analysis, forensic imaging, and malware analysis.
• Recovery & Hardening steps such as password rotation, MFA enforcement, and honeypot setup.

Summary:

• The honeypot data highlights a high rate of brute-force attempts, CVE exploitation, and reconnaissance targeting critical services, emphasizing the need for proactive defense.
• Next Steps for SOC Teams: Recommendations are provided to enhance threat intelligence, prioritize patch management, strengthen access controls, and refine incident response playbooks.

Conclusion: An Ongoing Battle

The global cyber threat landscape is dynamic and constantly evolving. The data from the honeypot serves as a powerful reminder of the relentless efforts of cybercriminals targeting vulnerabilities across the globe. By understanding the scale, methods, origins, and timing of these attacks, and by implementing proactive and robust security measures, your company can significantly reduce its risk of becoming a victim. Continuous monitoring, rapid response capabilities, and a commitment to ongoing security improvements are essential in this ongoing battle against cyber threats.