Information stealers have continued to grow in use over the past three years as has the demand for stolen logs seen on the dark net, with several stealers such as Redline, Racoon and Titan being prevalent.

Logs are a highly valued asset to any malicious actor’s plans. They can provide passwords, identify vulnerable devices, and provide context to a 'man in the middle' or phishing attack.

Logs that contain credentials to bigger businesses and corporations fetch a much higher price and therefore we see a tiered economy for credentials.

In a framework outlined by Flare Security, logs can be grouped by tiers of value with tier one for corporate and business access, two for infected devices and banking, and three for consumer applications and stealer logs.

Logs are sold on multiple forums on the deep and dark web. Commonly used marketplaces such as the Russian market have different methods of sale. Lower value logs are typically available for public sale while high tiered logs can be restricted for private sales to top threat actors.

Remediation & Mitigation

We recommend strong password policies, along with strict use of corporate credentials on personal devices.

If personal devices are used they should be locked down as to not allow unauthorised programs to prevent risk of downloading an information stealer.

Users should also be advised to use password safes to ensure passwords are not easily accessible by any program which does gain access to a device.

Reporting

Report all Fraud and Cybercrime to Action Fraud by calling 0300 123 2040 or online. Forward suspicious emails to report@phishing.gov.uk. Report SMS scams by forwarding the original message to 7726 (spells SPAM on the keypad).