Cyberespionage, perception hacking efforts disrupted by Meta

Disrupting new cybersecurity threats has been a key priority by Facebook parent firm Meta, which has averted cyberespionage efforts and networks involved in manipulating public conversation, according to ABC News. Two different cyberespionage operations have been thwarted by Facebook during the previous quarter, one of which was led by the Bitter APT hacking group that launched malware attacks against users in India, Pakistan, New Zealand, and the U.K., a Meta report showed. Moreover, three networks facilitating coordinated inauthentic behavior aimed at discourse on Russia-Ukraine conflict have also been removed. Even though such coordinated inauthentic behavior operations have not yet been observed to target the upcoming midterm elections, Meta warned about the dangers of perception hacking and emphasized efforts to combat such threats. "As we go into the midterm elections, I think the thing we're particularly working to make sure we're ready for is these perception hacking offers where the operations go anywhere where they tried to get eyeballs and amplification from other people talking about how effective they were," said Meta Director of Threat Disruption David Agranovich.