Discord and Telegram Users Beware: BlackPlague Malware on the Rise

 Source: BlackPlague Malware Steals Discord Token & Telegram Sessions (cybersecuritynews.com)

With online messaging applications being a mainstay of modern interpersonal communications, it is no surprise that malicious actors would seek to exploit and compromise them to achieve their various objectives. With that in mind, the BlackPlauge malware is only the latest iteration of this trend, as it was specifically engineered to target the popular messaging and communications platforms Discord and Telegram. Stealing session data and user tokens is the name of the game for this version of the malware, and its sophisticated approach embodies a critical threat to the confidentiality and integrity of countless users of these communication platforms worldwide. 

BlackPlague's approach leverages vulnerabilities found in the communications platforms themselves, from which it can then pivot and extract session data, user tokens, and similar sensitive information from the platforms. Subsequently, it can escalate its privileges by infiltrating the user machines, which represents the opening of a pandora's box of potential adverse outcomes, ranging from data exfiltration, identity theft, remote access, and many other forms of cybercrime. ThreatMon, a cyber threat intelligence service platform specializing in tracking exploits like BlackPlague, also shared a report on social media, warning users of the malware's rapid spread and exploitation of users on Discord and Telegram. It further indicated that the malware, written in C# and continuously upgraded by its creators using Python for more optimized performance, can also capture tokens from Steam and Ubisoft sessions. Consequently, this represents a heightened risk to not only users of communication platforms but also gamers worldwide, as the platforms mentioned earlier are heavily oriented towards the gaming industry, and as such, increasing numbers of users are at risk due to the malware's modularity. Other factors that increase this malware's threat level is its ability to bypass traditional security measures in its quest to exploit communication and gaming platforms. This can be especially deadly, as versions of it could lay dormant on the accounts of millions of victims worldwide through its ability to escape detection, all while silently accomplishing the nefarious goals set for it by its deployers. 

Regarding mitigation and risk management efforts, the harsh truth is that no silver bullet currently exists to combat BlackPlague. Still, actions can be taken to dent its effectiveness significantly. This includes taking inconvenient but proactive measures, such as enabling multi-factor authentication (MFA) and password policies and exhibiting solid judgment in cyberspace by refraining from clicking links or downloading files from untrustworthy sources. Furthermore, users are advised to ensure that their versions of the platforms at risk, namely Ubisoft, Telegram, Discord, and Steam, are up to date, as security improvements that mitigate the effects of malware like BlackPlague are often included in such updates. Robust antivirus and antimalware services can also make a difference by detecting known malware signatures before they wreak havoc on one's accounts in the impacted platforms. Lastly, users are also advised to be on the lookout for any potentially suspicious activities involving their accounts and to raise awareness of any abnormalities, as doing so could mean the difference between a successful and a failed exploitation attempt by BlackPlague. Ultimately, through the raising of awareness and the popular spread of mitigation efforts like the ones just mentioned here, malware like BlackPlague will rapidly begin to lose its potency. At the same time, cybersecurity researchers and threat hunters continue to analyze its makeup and develop increasingly more effective solutions to counter it. 

For ongoing updates, and a more holistic overview on BlackPlague, check out Cybersecurity News.