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HarmonyDecember 17, 2024


GOOGLE CALENDAR NOTIFICATIONS BYPASSING EMAIL SECURITY POLICIES

ByCheck Point Team
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Google Calendar is a tool for organizing schedules and managing time, designed
to assist individuals and businesses in planning their days efficiently.
According to Calendly.com, Google Calendar is used by more than 500 million
people and is available in 41 different languages.

Due to Google Calendar’s popularity and efficiency in everyday tasks, it is no
wonder it has become a target for cyber criminals. Recently, cyber security
researchers at Check Point, have observed cyber criminal manipulation of
dedicated Google tools – namely Google Calendar and Google Drawings. Many of the
emails appear legitimate because they appear to directly originate from Google
Calendar.

Cyber criminals are modifying “sender” headers, making emails look as though
they were sent via Google Calendar on behalf of a known and legitimate
individual. Roughly 300 brands have been affected by this campaign thus far,
with cyber researchers observing over 4,000 of these phishing emails in a four
week period.


THREAT OVERVIEW

As noted previously, these phishing attacks initially exploited the
user-friendly features inherent in Google Calendar, with links connecting to
Google Forms.

However, after observing that security products could flag malicious Calendar
invites, cyber criminals evolved the attack to align with the capabilities of
Google Drawings.


CYBER CRIMINAL MOTIVES

At the heart of this campaign, cyber criminals aim to fool users into clicking
on malicious links or attachments that allow for the theft of either corporate
or personal information.

After an individual unwittingly discloses sensitive data, the details are then
applied to financial scams, where cyber criminals may engage in credit card
fraud, unauthorized transactions or similar, illicit activities. The stolen
information may also be used to bypass security measures on other accounts,
leading to further compromise.

For both organizations and individuals, these types of scams can prove extremely
stressful, with long-term, deleterious effects.


ATTACK EXECUTION TECHNIQUES

As noted previously, the initial emails include a link or the calendar file
(.ics) with a link to Google Forms or Google Drawings.

Users are then asked to click on another link, which is often disguised as a
fake reCAPTCHA or support button.

After clicking on the link, the user is forwarded to a page that looks like a
cryptocurrency mining landing page or bitcoin support page.

These pages are actually intended to perpetrate financial scams. Once users
reach said page, they are asked to complete a fake authentication process, enter
personal information, and eventually provide payment details.

The phishing attack shown below initially began with a Google Calendar invite.
Some of the emails do really look like calendar notifications, while others use
a custom format:

Initial phishing attack email example

If the guests were known contacts, a user might believe the ruse, as the rest of
the screen looks relatively ordinary:

Google Calendar set-up


BLOCKING THIS ATTACK

For organizations that want to safeguard users from these types of phishing
threats and others, consider the following practical recommendations:


 * Advanced email security solutions. Solutions like Harmony Email &
   Collaboration can effectively detect and block sophisticated phishing
   attempts – even when they manipulate trusted platforms, like Google Calendar
   and Google Drawings.
   High-caliber email security solutions include attachment scanning, URL
   reputation checks, and AI-driven anomaly detection.
 *  Monitor the use of third-party Google Apps. Leverage cyber security tools
   that can specifically detect and warn your organization about suspicious
   activity on third-party apps.
   
   

 * Implement strong authentication mechanisms. One of the most important actions
   that security administrators can take consists of implementing Multi-Factor
   Authentication (MFA) across business accounts.
   
   Further, deploy behavior analytics tools that can detect unusual login
   attempts or suspicious activities, including navigation to
   cryptocurrency-related sites.

For individuals who are concerned about these scams reaching their personal
inboxes, consider the following practical recommendations.

 * Remain wary of fake event invites. Does the invite have unexpected
   information on it or request that you complete unusual steps (i.e., CAPTCHA)?
   If so, avoid engaging.
 * Carefully examine incoming content. Think before you click. Hover over links
   and then type the URL into Google for the purpose of accessing the website –
   a safer approach than otherwise.
 * Enable two-factor authentication. For Google accounts and other repositories
   of sensitive information, enable two-factor authentication (2FA). If your
   credentials are compromised, 2FA can prevent criminals from accessing a given
   account.

When asked for comment, Google stated, “We recommend users enable the “known
senders” setting in Google Calendar. This setting helps defend against this type
of phishing by alerting the user when they receive an invitation from someone
not in their contact list and/or they have not interacted with from their email
address in the past.”

In 2025, upgrade your email security solution. Speak with an expert today and
get a Harmony Email & Collaboration demo.

0 78


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