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Abuse of Trusted Applications Grows by 51% in Latest Sophos Report

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John Shier, field CTO, Sophos
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Sophos, a global leader in innovating and delivering cybersecurity as a service, today released “The Bite from Inside: The Sophos Active Adversary Report,” an in-depth look at the changing behaviors and attack techniques that adversaries used in the first half of 2024.

John Shier, field CTO, Sophos

John Shier, field CTO, Sophos

The data, derived from nearly 200 incident response (IR) cases from across both the Sophos X-Ops IR team and Sophos X-Ops Managed Detection and Response (MDR) team, found that attackers are leveraging trusted applications and tools on Windows systems, commonly called “living off the land” binaries, to conduct discovery on systems and maintain persistence.

When compared to 2023, Sophos saw a 51% increase in abusing “Living off the Land” binaries or LOLbins; since 2021, it’s increased by 83%.

Among the 187 unique Microsoft LOLbins detected in the first half of the year, the most frequently abused trusted application was remote desktop protocol (RDP). Of the nearly 200 IR cases analyzed, attackers abused RDP in 89% of them.

This dominance continues a trend first observed in the 2023 Active Adversary report in which RDP abuse was prevalent in 90% of all IR cases investigated.

“Living-off-the-land not only offers stealth to an attacker’s activities but also provides a tacit endorsement of their activities. While abusing some legitimate tools might raise a few defenders’ eyebrows, and hopefully some alerts, abusing a Microsoft binary often has the opposite effect. Many of these abused Microsoft tools are integral to Windows and have legitimate uses, but it’s up to system administrators to understand how they are used in their environments and what constitutes abuse. Without nuanced and contextual awareness of the environment, including continuous vigilance to new and developing events within the network, today’s stretched IT teams risk missing key threat activity that often leads to ransomware,” says John Shier, field CTO, Sophos.

In addition, the report found that, despite the government disruption of LockBit’s main leak website and infrastructure in February, LockBit was the most frequently encountered ransomware group, accounting for approximately 21% of infections in the first half of 2024.

Other key findings from the latest Active Adversary Report:

· Root Cause of Attacks: Continuing a trend first noted in the Active Adversary Report for Tech Leaders, compromised credentials are still the number one root cause of attacks, accounting for the root cause in 39% of cases. This is, however, a decline from the 56% noted in 2023

· Network Breaches Dominate for MDR: When examining solely the cases from the Sophos MDR team, network breaches were the dominant incident the team encountered

· Dwell Times Are Shorter for MDR Teams: For cases from the Sophos IR team, dwell time (the time from when an attack starts to when it’s detected) has remained approximately eight days. However, with MDR, the median dwell time is just one day for all types of incidents and only three days for ransomware attacks

· The Most Frequently Compromised Active Directory Servers Are Nearing End of Life: Attackers most frequently compromised the 2019, 2016, and 2012 server versions of Active Directory (AD). All three of these versions are now out of mainstream Microsoft support—one step before they become end-of-life (EOL) and impossible to patch without paid support from Microsoft. In addition, a full 21% of the AD server versions compromised were already EOL

To learn more about attacker behaviors, tools and techniques, read “The Bite from Inside: The Sophos Active Adversary Report,” on Sophos.com.


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Ugo Onwuaso is an ICT enthusiast. He believes technology should be used for general good. He holds a Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree from the Lagos state University. Dear Reader, Your support matters. But we believe that technology makes life more exciting and helps improve the lives of people around Nigeria and indeed the world. That is why, we have devoted our energy to independent reportage of technology and finance and how they affect lives. Our incisive and analytical view of how technology news affects the daily life help individuals and organizations make up their minds. Quality journalism costs money. Today, we're asking that you support us to do more. Kindly support our effort to deliver technology and finance journalism to everyone in the world. Donate as little as N1,000. Bank transfers can be made to: UBA Plc 1017156876 Communication Week Media Ltd

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NCC Wins Global ICT Award for Digital Awareness in Schools

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L–R: Executive Vice Chairman/CEO of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Dr. Aminu Maida, receives the WSIS 2025 Prize (Category C3: Access to Information and Knowledge) from the Secretary-General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Doreen Bogdan-Martin, following the selection of the Commission's Digital Awareness Programme (DAP) as winner of the category.
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Nigeria, through the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), has won the 2025 World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) prize for its project, the Digital Awareness Programme (DAP), under Category C3, which is on Access to Information and Knowledge.

L–R: Executive Vice Chairman/CEO of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Dr. Aminu Maida, receives the WSIS 2025 Prize (Category C3: Access to Information and Knowledge) from the Secretary-General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Doreen Bogdan-Martin, following the selection of the Commission’s Digital Awareness Programme (DAP) as winner of the category.

The DAP, one of hundreds of projects submitted for the WSIS Prizes competition 2025, received the highest number of votes in its category, earning it the top honour. The programme equips secondary schools across the country with Information and Communication Technology (ICT) resources and provide internet connectivity to support teaching, learning, and research. Since inception in 2006, over 300 schools across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones have benefitted from the programme.

The Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, Dr. Aminu Maida, received the award during the WSIS Prizes Winners 2025 Ceremony held on Monday in Geneva, Switzerland.

In his acceptance remarks, Dr. Maida thanked the hosts, the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) and WSIS, for recognising Nigeria’s efforts in promoting inclusive digital access across Nigeria, noting that the award would serve as further motivation for the Commission.

“This recognition is more than a celebration of past efforts—it is an encouragement to press forward. It affirms that investing in digital inclusion is investing in national development, and that Nigeria’s work is being seen and valued on the global stage,” Dr. Maida said.

Four other Nigerian projects—the Women Techsters and the Advanced Digital Empowerment Programme for Tertiary Institutions (ADEPTI) under Capacity Building, the Telecom-Based Research Grant Initiative under Enabling Environment, and the Digital Learning Initiative under e-Learning—were also celebrated for their nomination for the Champions Category of Projects at the WSIS Prizes Ceremony. Although they were not among the top-voted entries, they were acknowledged for their significant merit and impact.

The WSIS Prizes competition recognises and promotes projects that effectively leverage ICTs to advance sustainable development. The competition showcases how technology can serve as a powerful tool for addressing global challenges and achieving the SDGs. Projects from around the world are recognised annually, highlighting diverse approaches to building an inclusive information society.

The World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) is a United Nations (UN) initiative aimed at building a people-centred, inclusive, and development-oriented information society. It provides a multi-stakeholder platform to address issues related to Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) and their role in achieving sustainable development.

The Forum is an annual event that brings together high-level representatives from governments, the private sector, civil society, academia, the technical community, and international organisations. It serves as a global platform for implementing the WSIS Action Lines, which are aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).


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No More Excuses: NCC Sets Tough August Deadline to Tackle Telecom Hitches

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Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has given telecom tower operators in the country August 2025 deadline to fix persistent network hitches in their facilities or face regulatory sanctions.

The Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) of the commission, Dr. Aminu Maida, reportedly gave the ultimatum during a high-level meeting with key industry players, attended by representatives of IHS Towers, American Tower Corporation (ATC), and Pan-African Towers, and mobile network operators (MNOs) in Abuja

According to sources, discussions at the meeting focused on the recurring challenges in the telecoms sector, particularly power failures, equipment malfunctions, and insufficient site maintenance, that have been causing poor Internet and call services in the country

Specifically, Maida tasked the tower operators on the imperative of complying with the NCC’s updated Quality of Service (QoS) framework, which now extends performance obligations to infrastructure providers, not just telecom service providers.

According to him, the timeline given by the commission is more than enough time for all parties to align with the performance standards expected of them.

Recently, to ensure compliance with the standards, the NCC introduced a Major Incident Reporting Portal for real-time outage disclosures; developed public performance dashboards to enhance transparency; mandated that telecom tower companies meet strict Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).

Although the tower operators had previously cited delayed payments from MNOs as a reason for service lapses, the NCC had dismissed the justification, insisting that all parties must meet their obligations.

The EVC maintained: “Operators must fulfill both their technical and financial responsibilities. Poor service delivery—regardless of internal disputes—will attract consequences.”

Available data on the telecom tower infrastructure shows that IHS Towers has the largest assets with 16,000–19,000 sites, (62% market share); compared to American Tower Corp’s (ATC’s) about 8,270 towers; and Pan-African Towers’ 760–1,000 sites nationwide.

The latest NCC’s August deadline is believed to be putting pressures on the tower operators to improve the quality of their facilities for improved services as the commission had hinted of its plan to sanction defaulting operators with fines or stricter regulatory actions.

Industry experts believe that the NCC’s directive is a welcomed development as it will ensure reliable Internet connectivity and improved services quality for telecom consumers in the country.


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NCC to Chart MVNO Growth Path at Telecom Sustainability Forum 6.0

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Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) is set to play a pivotal role at the upcoming 6th edition of the Telecom Sector Sustainability Forum (TSSF 6.0), where it will lead a critical discussion on the sustainable growth of Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs) in Nigeria.

Set against a backdrop of innovation and opportunity, this forum, organized by Business Remarks, aptly themed “Unlocking Nigeria’s MVNO Potential: Status, Trends, Investment, and Future Prospects,” is scheduled for August 26, 2025. This event reinforces the nation’s commitment to fostering a robust, competitive, and inclusive telecommunications landscape.

The forum will bring together a diverse array of key stakeholders from across the telecom ecosystem to deliberate on strategies for integrating MVNOs effectively into Nigeria’s rapidly evolving digital economy. With the recent advancements in technology and the issuance of 43 MVNO licenses to new players, MVNOs are poised to significantly enhance service delivery, drive digital transformation, penetrate underserved markets, and stimulate healthy competition across the sector.

As the global MVNO market is experiencing significant growth, with projections indicating continued expansion, experts believe that with the right regulatory environment and access to infrastructure, emerging markets like Nigeria can leverage MVNOs to unlock new value for both operators (by utilizing excess network capacity) and customers. Customers can enjoy a rich array of niche value-added services tailored to their needs.

Having been proactive in introducing a five-tier MVNO licensing classification, each with distinct services and a 10-year validity period, signaling a clear path for new entrants, the telecom regulator (NCC) will deliver a keynote address outlining the Commission’s regulatory framework, interventions, and commitment to ensuring a conducive environment for MVNO operations.

Mrs. Bukola Olanrewaju, Convener of the forum and Managing Editor of Business Remarks, emphasized the importance of collaboration. “TSSF 6.0 is designed to be a melting pot of ideas, bringing together Mobile Network Operators (MNOs), MVNOs, telecoms infrastructure providers, Internet Service Providers, industry associations, and technology experts,” she said.

“Our goal is to ignite discussions that will shape the future of MVNOs in Nigeria, ensuring their sustainable growth and their critical role in extending digital prosperity across the nation.”

The forum will feature interactive sessions, thought-provoking panel discussions, insightful paper presentations, and abundant networking opportunities. This event aims to provide a platform for stakeholders to share insights, address challenges, and explore collaborative pathways for sustainable growth.


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