AnyDesk Resets Passwords and Revokes Certificates Following Cyber Security Incident

The start of February witnessed a popular remote access software provider, AnyDesk, disclose a security breach incident which compromised its production systems. By stealing source code and private code signing keys, the unknown hackers were able to access the internal system.

In a public statement, the German-based developer revealed that the incident was discovered during a security audit, triggered by suspicious activity on some of its systems. Upon discovery, the company immediately deployed remediation measures, along with a response plan involving cybersecurity expert CrowdStrike. It also revoked access to its online portal using existing login credentials.

“We have revoked all security-related certificates and systems have been remediated or replaced where necessary. We will be revoking the previous code signing certificate for our binaries shortly and have already started replacing it with a new one,” the statement said.

Although AnyDesk did not disclose details of the attack, it said that the incident was not ransomware related, and no evidence of any end-user device compromise was found.

‘’Our systems are designed not to store private keys, security tokens or passwords that could be exploited to connect to end user devices,’’ AnyDesk assured users.

Nevertheless, as a precautionary measure, it revoked all passwords to its web portal, my.anydesk.com, and recommended users to change their passwords if used elsewhere. AnyDesk assured its customers that its application was safe to use; however, it urged them to use the latest version with the new code signing certificate.

Shortly after AnyDesk’s statement, cybersecurity firm Resecurity reported that multiple threat actors were selling the hacked user login credentials on dark web forums. One of these actors, going by the alias, “Jobaaaaa,” was offering to sell over 18,000 AnyDesk customer credentials for $15,000 in cryptocurrency.

At the time of writing, AnyDesk has restored all user access, and assured continuous monitoring of its systems to prevent any interruptions in its operations.