#146 - Intel Chat: GhostEmperor, .top, PlugX & Microsoft

In this episode of The Cybersecurity Defenders Podcast, we discuss some cutting-edge intel coming out of LimaCharlie's community Slack channel.The Chinese hacker group GhostEmperor has re-emerged after a two-year hiatus, displaying new advanced capabilities and sophisticated evasion techniques. The Chinese company, Jiangsu Bangning Science & Technology Co., in charge of handing out domain names ending in “.top” has been given until mid-August 2024 to show that it has put in place systems for managing phishing reports and suspending abusive domains, or else forfeit its license to sell domains. Following a report by the cybersecurity firm Sekoia.io, the Paris Public Prosecutor’s Office launched a preliminary investigation into a botnet involving millions of global victims, including thousands of machines in France. Microsoft has initiated significant changes to its Windows operating system following a critical incident involving CrowdStrike's kernel driver.