Gafgyt Variant

The Gafgyt variant is a malicious software that poses a significant threat to computer systems and devices. This malware can infiltrate your system through suspicious downloads, emails, or websites, often without the user's knowledge. Once inside, it has the potential to steal personal information, disrupt operations, or even hold data hostage for ransom. Zyxel, a network device manufacturer, addressed a vulnerability exploited by this malware in 2017 with the release of new firmware. However, in 2019, the vendor warned that a Gafgyt variant was still exploiting the flaw. Recent observations have highlighted multiple attacks focusing on this year-old vulnerability, with botnets like Moobot, Miroi, the Golang-based agent "AGoent," and the Gafgyt Variant being used. Threat actors are taking advantage of unpatched devices to dispatch these various botnets, which can compromise the devices for Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks and further nefarious activities. A particularly concerning aspect of this situation is the Gafgyt variant's ability to exploit the TP-Link flaw by downloading and executing a script file, then retrieving Linux architecture execution files with the prefix filename "rebirth." Fortinet Labs' Threat Research team has noted multiple attacks over the past month focused on exploiting the said vulnerability, including those from botnets Moobot, Miori, the Golang-based agent "AGoent," a Gafgyt variant, and an unnamed variant of the infamous Mirai botnet. These findings underscore the ongoing risk posed by this malware and the need for users to ensure their devices are regularly updated and patched to protect against such threats.