A series of highly-targeted espionage attacks in North Africa has been linked to a previously undisclosed modular backdoor called “Stealth Soldier.”Targeting primarily individuals in Libya, the new campaign focuses on surveillance operations, according to a new advisory published today by Check Point Research (CPR). In particular, the Stealth Soldier backdoor features file exfiltration, screen and microphone recording, keystroke logging and stealing browser information capabilities. “We’re seeing an increase in the rate of cyber-attacks in North Africa,” commented Sergey Shykevich, threat intelligence group manager at Check Point Software. “What’s interesting is that this new Stealth Soldier malware signifies a re-emergence of a threat actor from 2019 which operated against Egyptian civilian society.”CPR discovered different versions of the backdoor, with the latest being Version 9, likely delivered in February 2023. A separate campaign targeting North Africa (and the Middle East) is Earth Bogle, which relied on Middle Eastern geopolitical-themed lures to distribute NjRAT.

Source: The North Africa Journal June 08, 2023 16:34 UTC