Microsoft released a rolling upgrade of Windows 10 in October 2017. The “Fall Creators” edition (version 1709, codename Redstone 3) contains a new feature called “Controlled Folder Access”, which is designed to combat ransomware attacks. Continue reading →

Lateral Movement is a method used by attackers (or malware) against a network Domain. After an initial device is compromised (typically, a user’s workstation), the attacker extracts passwords from memory, or obtains encrypted password hashes from the system for cracking or direct use (i.e. Pass the Hash). The attacker then attempts to login to other systems using those credentials to search for cached passwords of privileged Domain accounts. Usually, the local Administrator account is targeted as the password is often the same on all systems (due to the common practice of deploying systems from a master image), but service accounts, etc. can also be targeted. Continue reading →