Log4j: Still Cloudflare’s prime prey for cyber strikes in 2023

• Log4j remains a top target for cyber-attacks in 2023 and the HTTP/2 Rapid Reset is emerging as a significant new threat, according to Cloudflare’s annual “Year in Review” report.
• More than one in three applications still run vulnerable versions of Log4j which reached end-of-life in August 2015.
• Threat actors are expected to continue targeting the HTTP/2 Rapid Reset vulnerability, which can lead to resource exhaustion on a targeted web or proxy server. This attack is easy to orchestrate and delivers a high reward for cybercriminals.
• Internet traffic using post-quantum cryptography (PQC) reached 1.7% during the year, providing a protective measure against the quantum computers of the future. However, only Google’s Chrome browser currently supports PQC.

According to Cloudflare’s recent annual report, Log4j continues to be a prominent attack vector for threat actors in 2023, while a new vulnerability, HTTP/2 Rapid Reset, is gaining traction as a significant threat to organizations. Given their success in exploiting it, cybercriminals are still actively targeting Log4j. It is worth noting that more than one third of applications are still using vulnerable versions of this software.

The report highlighted the ever-increasing danger of the HTTP/2 Rapid Reset vulnerability. This flaw allows for exhaustive attacks on targeted web or proxy servers. Throughout the rest of the year, threat actors are likely to take advantage of this high-yield cyber-attack method.

Internet traffic using post-quantum cryptography (PQC) accounted for 1.7% in 2023. While Google’s Chrome browser is currently the leader in PQC support, which provides protection against potential future quantum computers, this utilization is expected to exponentially increase as more browsers begin offering this security feature.

However, as PQC only works on TLS 1.3, it could take a considerable amount of time for it to gain widespread adoption. Cybersecurity teams are urged to prepare for the possible integration of quantum-safe tooling to avoid potential cyber threats.