Security researchers have discovered that this sophisticated attack leverages the practice of hiding malicious payloads within seemingly harmless image files, exploiting steganography—a technique historically used for concealing messages or content within digital artifacts. SEQRITE analysts noted that the malware embedded within the JPEG files primarily focuses on credential harvesting, targeting browsers, email clients, and FTP applications to extract sensitive user data. At the technical level, steganography enables the modification of pixel values in the JPEG image file to encode malicious data. A newly identified steganographic malware operation has emerged, using JPEG image files as a covert delivery mechanism for multiple password-stealing malware strains. SEQRITE security researchers have revealed that the attack begins when unsuspecting users download or view a compromised JPEG file on their system. Typically disguised as legitimate content, the infected image file contains embedded malicious scripts and executables. In such an attack, the encoded JPEG file before and after the malicious payload is extracted, highlighting subtle pixel-level alterations. Cyber Security News is a Dedicated News Platform For Cyber News, Cyber Attack News, Hacking News & Vulnerability Analysis. The embedded malicious scripts are not directly visible within the header or metadata of the image file. Once executed, these scripts initiate a chain of attack that downloads additional payloads, including customized password-stealing tools like Vidar, Raccoon, and Redline. With years of experience under his belt in Cyber Security, he is covering Cyber Security News, technology and other news.
This Cyber News was published on cybersecuritynews.com. Publication date: Mon, 17 Mar 2025 13:40:06 +0000