SYMBOLCOMMON_NAMEaka. SYNONYMS
js.fakeupdates (Back to overview)

FAKEUPDATES

aka: FakeUpdate, SocGholish

Actor(s): GOLD PRELUDE

FAKEUPDATES is a downloader written in JavaScript that communicates via HTTP. Supported payload types include executables and JavaScript. It writes the payloads to disk prior to launching them. FAKEUPDATES has led to further compromise via additional malware families that include CHTHONIC, DRIDEX, EMPIRE, KOADIC, DOPPELPAYMER, and AZORULT.

FAKEUPDATES has been heavily used by UNC1543, a financially motivated group.

References
2025-04-29 ⋅ Recorded Future ⋅ Insikt Group
Uncovering MintsLoader With Recorded Future Malware Intelligence Hunting
FAKEUPDATES MintsLoader GhostWeaver Stealc
2025-04-29 ⋅ LinkedIn (Ethical Hackers Academy) ⋅ Ethical Hackers Academy
RansomHub Ransomware Deploys Malware to Breach Corporate Networks
FAKEUPDATES RansomHub
2025-03-14 ⋅ Trend Micro ⋅ Adam O'Connor, Ian Kenefick, Jack Walsh, Laura Medina, Lucas Silva
SocGholish’s Intrusion Techniques Facilitate Distribution of RansomHub Ransomware
FAKEUPDATES RansomHub
2025-02-28 ⋅ KrebsOnSecurity ⋅ Brian Krebs
Notorious Malware, Spam Host “Prospero” Moves to Kaspersky Lab
FAKEUPDATES GootLoader
2025-02-18 ⋅ Proofpoint ⋅ Proofpoint Threat Research Team
An Update on Fake Updates: Two New Actors, and New Mac Malware
Marcher FAKEUPDATES FrigidStealer Lumma Stealer
2025-02-15 ⋅ Medium TRAC Labs ⋅ TRAC Labs
Don’t Ghost the SocGholish: GhostWeaver Backdoor
FAKEUPDATES GhostWeaver
2025-02-13 ⋅ Intel 471 ⋅ Intel 471
Threat hunting case study: SocGholish
FAKEUPDATES
2025-01-17 ⋅ Google Cloud Security ⋅ Office of the CISO
Threat Horizons - H1 2025 Threat Horizons Report
FAKEUPDATES Conti Hades LockBit Phoenix Locker RansomHub TRIPLESTRENGTH
2025-01-10 ⋅ Spamhaus ⋅ Spamhaus Malware Labs
Spamhaus Botnet Threat Update July to December 2024
Coper FluBot Hook Mirai FAKEUPDATES AsyncRAT BianLian Brute Ratel C4 Cobalt Strike DanaBot DCRat Havoc Latrodectus NjRAT Quasar RAT RedLine Stealer Remcos Rhadamanthys Sliver Stealc
2024-12-16 ⋅ Morphisec ⋅ Morphisec Labs, Nadav Lorber
CoinLurker: The Stealer Powering the Next Generation of Fake Updates
ClearFake FAKEUPDATES
2024-12-15 ⋅ Malwarebytes ⋅ Jérôme Segura
Malicious ad distributes SocGholish malware to Kaiser Permanente employees
FAKEUPDATES
2024-11-21 ⋅ Intrinsec ⋅ CTI Intrinsec, Intrinsec
PROSPERO & Proton66: Uncovering the links between bulletproof networks
Coper SpyNote FAKEUPDATES GootLoader EugenLoader
2024-11-20 ⋅ Intrinsec ⋅ Equipe CTI
PROSPERO & Proton66: Tracing Uncovering the links between bulletproof networks
Coper SpyNote FAKEUPDATES GootLoader EugenLoader IcedID Matanbuchus Nokoyawa Ransomware Pikabot
2024-09-30 ⋅ X (@GenThreatLabs) ⋅ Gen Threat Labs
Tweet on FAKEUPDATES pushing WARMCOOKIE backdoor via compromised websites targeting France
FAKEUPDATES WarmCookie
2024-07-17 ⋅ Huntress Labs ⋅ Alden Schmidt, Greg Linares, Matt Anderson
Fake Browser Updates Lead to BOINC Volunteer Computing Software
FAKEUPDATES MintsLoader AsyncRAT
2024-07-09 ⋅ Spamhaus ⋅ Spamhaus Malware Labs
Spamhaus Botnet Threat Update January to June 2024
Coper FluBot Hook Bashlite Mirai FAKEUPDATES AsyncRAT BianLian Cobalt Strike DCRat Havoc NjRAT QakBot Quasar RAT RedLine Stealer Remcos Rhadamanthys RisePro Sliver
2024-04-30 ⋅ Intrinsec ⋅ Intrinsec
Matanbuchus & Co: Code Emulation and Cybercrime Infrastructure Discovery
FAKEUPDATES Matanbuchus
2024-01-12 ⋅ Spamhaus ⋅ Spamhaus Malware Labs
Spamhaus Botnet Threat Update Q4 2023
FluBot Hook FAKEUPDATES AsyncRAT BianLian Cobalt Strike DCRat Havoc IcedID Lumma Stealer Meterpreter NjRAT Pikabot QakBot Quasar RAT RecordBreaker RedLine Stealer Remcos Rhadamanthys Sliver
2023-12-12 ⋅ Check Point Research ⋅ Check Point
November 2023’s Most Wanted Malware: New AsyncRAT Campaign Discovered while FakeUpdates Re-Entered the Top Ten after Brief Hiatus
FAKEUPDATES AsyncRAT
2023-08-31 ⋅ Rapid7 Labs ⋅ Evan McCann, Natalie Zargarov, Thomas Elkins, Tyler McGraw
Fake Update Utilizes New IDAT Loader To Execute StealC and Lumma Infostealers
FAKEUPDATES Amadey HijackLoader Lumma Stealer SectopRAT
2023-02-26 ⋅ Proofpoint ⋅ Andrew Northern
TA569: SocGholish and Beyond
FAKEUPDATES RedLine Stealer solarmarker
2022-11-07 ⋅ SentinelOne ⋅ Aleksandar Milenkoski
SocGholish Diversifies and Expands Its Malware Staging Infrastructure to Counter Defenders
FAKEUPDATES
2022-10-27 ⋅ Microsoft ⋅ Microsoft Security Threat Intelligence
Raspberry Robin worm part of larger ecosystem facilitating pre-ransomware activity
FAKEUPDATES BumbleBee Fauppod PhotoLoader Raspberry Robin Roshtyak
2022-10-27 ⋅ Microsoft ⋅ Microsoft Threat Intelligence
Raspberry Robin worm part of larger ecosystem facilitating pre-ransomware activity
FAKEUPDATES BumbleBee Clop Fauppod Raspberry Robin Roshtyak Silence DEV-0950 Mustard Tempest
2022-08-19 ⋅ nccgroup ⋅ Ross Inman
Back in Black: Unlocking a LockBit 3.0 Ransomware Attack
FAKEUPDATES Cobalt Strike LockBit
2022-08-16 ⋅ SUCURI ⋅ Denis Sinegubko
SocGholish: 5+ Years of Massive Website Infections
FAKEUPDATES
2022-07-30 ⋅ The Hacker News ⋅ Ravie Lakshmanan
Microsoft Links Raspberry Robin USB Worm to Russian Evil Corp Hackers
FAKEUPDATES Raspberry Robin
2022-06-13 ⋅ Jorge Testa ⋅ Jorge Testa
Killing The Bear - Evil Corp
FAKEUPDATES Babuk Blister DoppelPaymer Dridex Entropy FriedEx Hades Macaw Phoenix Locker WastedLoader WastedLocker
2022-06-08 ⋅ Malwarebytes Labs ⋅ Threat Intelligence Team
MakeMoney malvertising campaign adds fake update template
FAKEUPDATES
2022-06-02 ⋅ Mandiant ⋅ Mandiant Intelligence
To HADES and Back: UNC2165 Shifts to LOCKBIT to Evade Sanctions
FAKEUPDATES Blister Cobalt Strike DoppelPaymer Dridex FriedEx Hades LockBit Macaw MimiKatz Phoenix Locker WastedLocker
2022-05-25 ⋅ Medium walmartglobaltech ⋅ Jason Reaves, Joshua Platt
SocGholish Campaigns and Initial Access Kit
FAKEUPDATES Blister Cobalt Strike NetSupportManager RAT
2022-05-09 ⋅ Microsoft ⋅ Microsoft 365 Defender Threat Intelligence Team, Microsoft Threat Intelligence Center (MSTIC)
Ransomware-as-a-service: Understanding the cybercrime gig economy and how to protect yourself
AnchorDNS BlackCat BlackMatter Conti DarkSide HelloKitty Hive LockBit REvil FAKEUPDATES Griffon ATOMSILO BazarBackdoor BlackCat BlackMatter Blister Cobalt Strike Conti DarkSide Emotet FiveHands Gozi HelloKitty Hive IcedID ISFB JSSLoader LockBit LockFile Maze NightSky Pandora Phobos Phoenix Locker PhotoLoader QakBot REvil Rook Ryuk SystemBC TrickBot WastedLocker BRONZE STARLIGHT
2022-05-06 ⋅ Twitter (@MsftSecIntel) ⋅ Microsoft Security Intelligence
Twitter Thread on initial infeciton of SocGholish/ FAKEUPDATES campaigns lead to BLISTER Loader, CobaltStrike, Lockbit and followed by Hands On Keyboard activity
FAKEUPDATES Blister Cobalt Strike LockBit
2022-04-25 ⋅ Cybereason ⋅ Aleksandar Milenkoski, Loïc Castel, Yonatan Gidnian
THREAT ANALYSIS REPORT: SocGholish and Zloader – From Fake Updates and Installers to Owning Your Systems
FAKEUPDATES Zloader
2022-04-10 ⋅ Digital Information World ⋅ Hura Anwar
Threatening Redirect Web Service Instills Malicious Campaigns In Over 16,500 Websites
FAKEUPDATES
2022-04-07 ⋅ Avast Decoded ⋅ Jan Rubín, Pavel Novák
Parrot TDS takes over web servers and threatens millions
FAKEUPDATES Parrot TDS Parrot TDS WebShell NetSupportManager RAT
2022-04-05 ⋅ Trend Micro ⋅ Abdelrhman Sharshar, Earle Maui Earnshaw, Ian Kenefick, Lucas Silva, Mohamed Fahmy, Ryan Maglaque
Thwarting Loaders: From SocGholish to BLISTER’s LockBit Payload
FAKEUPDATES Blister LockBit
2022-04-05 ⋅ Trend Micro ⋅ Abdelrhman Sharshar, Earle Maui Earnshaw, Ian Kenefick, Lucas Silva, Mohamed Fahmy, Ryan Maglaque
Thwarting Loaders: From SocGholish to BLISTER’s LockBit Payload (IoCs)
FAKEUPDATES Blister LockBit
2022-04-04 ⋅ ⋅ LAC WATCH ⋅ Takehiko Takagen
Confirmation of damage to domestic e-commerce sites, actual situation of Web skimming attacks and examples of countermeasures that Rack thinks (Water Pamola)
FAKEUPDATES
2022-03-22 ⋅ Red Canary ⋅ Red Canary
2022 Threat Detection Report
FAKEUPDATES Silver Sparrow BazarBackdoor Cobalt Strike GootKit Yellow Cockatoo RAT
2022-02-26 ⋅ Mandiant ⋅ Mandiant
TRENDING EVIL Q1 2022
KEYPLUG FAKEUPDATES GootLoader BazarBackdoor QakBot
2021-07-22 ⋅ Expel ⋅ Evan Reichard, Kyle Pellett, Ryan Gott, Tyler Fornes
Incident report: Spotting SocGholish WordPress injection
FAKEUPDATES
2020-12-17 ⋅ Menlo Security ⋅ Krishnan Subramanian
Increase In Attack: SocGholish
FAKEUPDATES
2020-03-16 ⋅ Mandiant ⋅ Kelli Vanderlee
They Come in the Night: Ransomware Deployment Trends
FAKEUPDATES
2018-04-10 ⋅ Malwarebytes Labs ⋅ Jérôme Segura
‘FakeUpdates’ campaign leverages multiple website platforms
FAKEUPDATES

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