The CIA's hacking operations allegedly borrowed elements from the Carberp financial malware when the code was leaked in 2013 When the source code to a suspected Russian-made malware leaked online in 2013, guess who used it? A new release from WikiLeaks claims the U.S. CIA borrowed some of the code to bolster its own hacking operations.On Friday, WikiLeaks released 27 documents that allegedly detail how the CIA customized its malware for Windows systems.The CIA borrowed a few elements from the Carberp financial malware when developing its own hacking tool known as Grasshopper, according to those documents.Carberp gained infamy as a Trojan program that can steal online banking credentials and other financial information from its victims’ computers. The malware, which likely came from the criminal underground, was particularly problematic in Russia and other former Soviet states. In 2013, the source code was leaked, sparking worries in the security community that more cybercriminals might use the malware.Friday’s WikiLeaks release includes supposed CIA user manuals that show the agency took an interest in the malware, especially with the way it can survive and linger on a Windows PC. “The persistence method, and parts of the installer, were taken and modified to fit our needs,” the U.S. spy agency allegedly wrote in one manual, dated January 2014. It’s unclear why the agency chose Carberp. However, the borrowed elements were only used in one “persistence module” meant for the CIA’s Grasshopper hacking tool. That tool is designed to build custom malware configured with different payloads, according to a separate document.The WikiLeaks’ release describes several other modules that work with Grasshopper to let malware persist on a PC, such as by leveraging Windows Task Scheduler or a Windows registry run key.However, no actual source code was included in Friday’s release. Nevertheless, the documents will probably help people detect the CIA’s hacking tools — which is WikiLeaks’ intention in releasing the classified information.Last month, WikiLeaks began releasing a trove of secret files allegedly obtained from the CIA. Those first leaks described how the agency has a library of hacking techniques borrowed from malware out in the wild. The U.S. spy agency has so far declined to comment on the authenticity of WikiLeaks’ document dump. Related content news Almost 50% of organizations plan to reduce cybersecurity headcounts: Survey While organizations are realizing the need for knowledgeable teams to address unknown threats, they are also looking to reduce their security headcount and infrastructure spending. By Gagandeep Kaur Dec 06, 2023 4 mins IT Jobs Security Practices feature 20 years of Patch Tuesday: it’s time to look outside the Windows when fixing vulnerabilities After two decades of regular and indispensable updates, it’s clear that security teams need take a more holistic approach to applying fixes far beyond the Microsoft ecosystem. By Susan Bradley Dec 06, 2023 6 mins Patch Management Software Threat and Vulnerability Management Windows Security feature What should be in a company-wide policy on low-code/no-code development Low-code/no-code development could bridge the gulf of development backlogs that exists between great ideas and great execution of digital innovation. But not without security policies around areas like access control, code quality, and application vi By Ericka Chickowski Dec 06, 2023 15 mins Application Security Security Practices news analysis Cisco unveils AI-powered assistants to level up security defenses New AI-driven tools aim to simplify and bolster policies, alerts and prevention to reduce complexity when setting security policies and assess traffic without decryption. By Rosalyn Page Dec 05, 2023 5 mins Encryption Cloud Security Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe