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SCAMMERS FAKE DOCUSIGN TEMPLATES TO BLACKMAIL & STEAL FROM COMPANIES

Cybercriminals are trafficking DocuSign assets that allow for easy extortion and
business email compromise.

Nate Nelson, Contributing Writer

May 15, 2024

4 Min Read
Source: Andrea Danti via Alamy Stock Photo


Phishing emails mimicking DocuSign are rising, thanks to a thriving underground
marketplace for fake templates and login credentials.

Over the past month, researchers from Abnormal Security claim to have tracked a
significant increase in phishing attacks designed to mimic legitimate DocuSign
requests. A quick trip down the rabbit hole took them to a Russian cybercrime
forum, where sellers peddled a variety of templates resembling authentic emails
and documents.


PHISHING'S UNDERGROUND MARKET

The market's leading document-signing software has long provided fertile grounds
for phishermen. Its popularity helps, and that it's often used to store and
transfer valuable documents with sensitive data. DocuSign emails tend to be
generic, making them a cinch to forge, with a big, yellow button beckoning users
to click before they think twice about it.



"Everybody's been conditioned — especially after some time in the workplace —
that DocuSign links look a certain way," explains Mike Britton, CISO of Abnormal
Security. "It's got the blue background, the 'DocuSign' logo, that
[characteristic] look and feel. In any given week I probably deal with half a
dozen different things that I have to sign for DocuSign — whether it's from a
vendor, a partner, whatever — I'm kind of conditioned to see it, click it, and
kind of go into autopilot."



To achieve that perfect look and feel necessary to lull victims into autopilot,
an attacker might take the time to craft legitimate-looking DocuSign email and
document templates from scratch. Amateur, lazy, overworked, or simply logical
and efficient hackers might instead purchase ready-made malicious ones from
online marketplaces. After all, Britton says, the cost of a fresh template for
DocuSign, Amazon, PayPal, and more run as little as US $10.



Source: Abnormal Security



With such a cheap resource in hand, attackers can craft phishing emails that
trick employees of targeted organizations in any number of ways. They can send
fake documents with prompts for users to enter their personally identifying
information (PII), for example, or they can redirect users to fake login pages
for submitting their real DocuSign login credentials. Then they can leverage the
data they obtain or, more likely, sell it on to the next buyer in the food
chain.

As Britton says, "We're long gone from the days where cybercriminals own the
entire lifecycle [of an attack]. Now, if I want to go attack 10,000 victims and
steal money from them, I'm just going to go buy credentials, [and] buy access —
the necessary assets to shortcut it."



So besides email and document templates, there's also a thriving market for the
login credentials that phishers glean. And here is where the attacks start to
get ugly.


THE CONSEQUENCE TO COMPANIES

With cheap login credentials, hackers can probe employees' DocuSign histories
for all the sensitive documentation they've engaged with in recent months. They
can use information from employer contracts, vendor agreements, and payment
information as fodder for blackmail in extortion attacks, or they can sell it to
attackers even further down the line. They can also use it to identify new,
higher-value targets, and impersonate specific individuals at a company or
partner company. 

For example, an attacker can time out a request for remittance around the time a
company typically pays its vendor every month. Using information from a
compromised employee's DocuSign history, they can impersonate a direct superior,
or a vendor finance department's point person, and attach specific, real
documents to the email for reference.



To prevent this, or any number of other potential worst-case scenarios, Abnormal
Security recommends that employees always look out for suspicious email sender
and link addresses, impersonal email greetings, and uncharacteristically short
DocuSign security codes, and open documents directly from the company's website
rather than via email. And, finally, don't open documents you're not expecting.

"Everybody's busy," Britton acknowledges. "Whether you're in the office, or a
hybrid work environment where you've got personal life coming at you, the safest
bet is to just pick up the phone and say: 'Hey, I just got this email from you.
Is it legit?'"




ABOUT THE AUTHOR(S)

Nate Nelson, Contributing Writer



Nate Nelson is a freelance writer based in New York City. Formerly a reporter at
Threatpost, he contributes to a number of cybersecurity blogs and podcasts. He
writes "Malicious Life" -- an award-winning Top 20 tech podcast on Apple and
Spotify -- and hosts every other episode, featuring interviews with leading
voices in security. He also co-hosts "The Industrial Security Podcast," the most
popular show in its field.

See more from Nate Nelson, Contributing Writer
Keep up with the latest cybersecurity threats, newly discovered vulnerabilities,
data breach information, and emerging trends. Delivered daily or weekly right to
your email inbox.

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