Kaspersky Opens SAS 2026, Spotlighting Advanced Emerging Threats
IT DAILY ·
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Kaspersky held its annual Security Analyst Summit 2026 (SAS 2026) in Bali, Indonesia, from the 20th to the 23rd, with the opening and remarks taking place on-site on the 21st.
The event served as a global forum for sharing threat intelligence organized by GReAT, where a UEFI bootkit attack targeting diplomatic institutions in Central Asia, research related to Lazarus, and attacks targeting OT environments were presented.
On the 20th, the SAS CTF 2026 final was held, with Japan's BunkoWesterns taking first place, PwnSec placing second, and 'CUT from Central University' coming third.
Kaspersky held its annual Security Analyst Summit 2026 (SAS 2026) in Bali, Indonesia. The event runs from the 20th to the 23rd, and SAS 2026 opened on-site in Bali on the 21st. Eugene Kaspersky, Kaspersky founder and CEO, delivered opening remarks in person.
The event is a global forum for sharing threat intelligence, organized by Kaspersky's Global Research and Analysis Team, GReAT. Kaspersky used the occasion to share research findings secured by GReAT.
SAS began in 2009 and is being held for the 18th time this year. Through the event, Kaspersky has sought both to share research findings secured by GReAT and to strengthen ties within the cybersecurity community.
Kaspersky will present research on advanced cyberthreats at this year's SAS. At the conference held on the 21st, Georgy Kucherin, a Kaspersky GReAT researcher, presented a case involving a UEFI bootkit attack targeting diplomatic institutions in Central Asia. The attacker in this case was introduced as using rootkit malware that operates before the OS boots, attempting to take control of systems and steal information.
Researcher Ryusojun at Kaspersky focused on Lazarus, which is known to be linked to North Korea. Kaspersky discovered Lazarus attacks last year that exploited financial security software. This year, the company plans to present Lazarus's advanced phishing-based activity, which combines existing attack techniques, and will also cover the group's known use of post-quantum cryptography (PQC).
Researcher Sergey Sidorov will introduce attacks targeting OT environments. Kaspersky researchers found that barcode scanners used in logistics sites could be exploited in malicious attacks. The presentation is expected to show that a single barcode scanner could bring an entire logistics environment to a halt.
SAS 2026 chose the theme of 'cyber-anarchy,' breaking with conventional cybersecurity frameworks, and was planned to go beyond simple exchange of cyberthreat information by expanding the sharing of cyberthreat intelligence and emphasizing collaboration among communities. To that end, the event adopted an unusual format.
In line with that aim, the event also ran attendee-participation activities. Participants used a Telegram bot to solve cybersecurity quizzes and join conversations, and tasks included forming groups of five, naming a rock band, and mimicking guitar playing. Participants who completed the tasks were awarded points, which were used to enter a raffle for souvenirs.
Ahead of the main event, the final round of 'SAS CTF (Capture The Flag) 2026' was also held on the 20th. A total of 13 teams competed in the final, including 8 regional winners from the professional SAS CTF qualifiers and 5 regional winners selected through Kaspersky{CTF} competitions for global academic and corporate participants. The final was held over half a day of competition, and the total prize pool was $18,000.
As a result of the competition, the Japanese team BunkoWesterns took first place after a fierce contest, PwnSec came in second, and 'CUT from Central University' took third. Korea's Odin team, made up of Enki Whitehat researchers, entered the final as the Asia and Oceania regional winner of Kaspersky{CTF}, but failed to place.
As Kaspersky's SAS 2026 was held in Bali, Indonesia, on the 21st, attendees on-site solved tasks using a Telegram bot and waited for the souvenir raffle. The photo was taken by reporter Kim Ho-jun.
Source: IT DAILY · Kim Ho-jun
Original: https://www.itdaily.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=242341
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Source: IT DAILY
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