GitHub users targeted by dangerous new phishing threat

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(Image credit: Shutterstock) (Image credit: Shutterstock)

  • Researchers discover Golssue - a new tool for extracting GitHub user emails
  • It is being sold for $700 on the dark web
  • Such a high-precision tool could lead to dangerous supply chain attacks

GitHub users are allegedly being targeted in a brand new phishing campaign, according to SlashNext.

The company recently published an article titled “GoIssue – The Tool Behind Recent GitHub Phishing Attacks”, detailing the tool, which, from the headline, appears to have already been put to use.

However, the article’s body mostly discusses the potential risks and the ways it could be used to facilitate targeted phishing campaigns and other cyber attacks. It outlines the features of GoIssue and how attackers "could" use it to target GitHub users, suggesting hypothetical scenarios rather than confirming any specific incidents where the tool has been deployed.

Discount for early adopters

In any case, Golssue is definitely a sophisticated hacking tool, and GitHub users should be on their guard.

SlashNext claims Golssue can extract email addresses from public GitHub profiles, and send bulk emails directly to people’s inboxes. That way, crooks could craft highly targeted, convincing phishing emails, which could result in GitHub users losing access to their profiles, or having projects compromised with malware in supply-chain attacks.

"Whether you're aiming to reach a specific audience or expand your outreach, GoIssue offers the precision and power you need," Golssue’s developer, a threat actor called ‘cyberdluffy’ said in an ad posted on the dark web.

To purchase a custom build of the tool, you will need to pay $700. Access to the source code can also be acquired, but for $3,000. TheHackerNews found on October 11, the developer slashed the prices to $150 and $1,000 respectively - for the first five customers. So, we might assume that no groups used it just yet.

GitHub is a web-based platform that provides version control and collaboration features for software development projects. It is extremely popular, and as such, often targeted by various criminal groups.

Via SlashNext

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Sead is a seasoned freelance journalist based in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. He writes about IT (cloud, IoT, 5G, VPN) and cybersecurity (ransomware, data breaches, laws and regulations). In his career, spanning more than a decade, he’s written for numerous media outlets, including Al Jazeera Balkans. He’s also held several modules on content writing for Represent Communications.

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