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A new cybersecurity threat, dubbed Hazy Hawk, has emerged, exploiting misconfigured DNS records to hijack abandoned cloud resources. Since at least December 2023, the threat actor has been using DNS CNAME hijacking to seize control of abandoned cloud endpoints belonging to reputable organizations, including Amazon S3 buckets and Microsoft Azure endpoints. By registering new cloud resources with the same names as the abandoned ones, Hazy Hawk redirects traffic to malicious sites, incorporating these hijacked domains into large-scale scam delivery and traffic distribution systems (TDS). This allows them to distribute scams, fake applications, and malware to unsuspecting users, leveraging the trust associated with the original domains.

Infoblox researchers first detected Hazy Hawk's activities in February 2025, when the group successfully took control of subdomains belonging to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Further investigation revealed that global government agencies, major universities, and international corporations such as Deloitte and PricewaterhouseCoopers have also been targeted. Hazy Hawk scans for domains with CNAME records pointing to abandoned cloud endpoints, determining this through passive DNS data validation. They then register a new cloud resource with the same name, causing the original domain's subdomain to resolve to the attacker's controlled resource.

The attack chains often involve cloning legitimate websites to appear trustworthy, and URL obfuscation techniques are employed to hide malicious destinations. Hazy Hawk uses hijacked domains to host malicious URLs that redirect users to scams and malware. What makes Hazy Hawk's operations particularly concerning is the use of trusted domains to serve malicious content, enabling them to bypass detection and exploit the reputation of high-profile entities. Cybersecurity experts advise organizations to diligently monitor and manage their DNS records, ensuring that CNAME records pointing to abandoned cloud resources are removed to prevent unauthorized domain hijacking.

ImgSrc: blogger.googleu

References :

• BleepingComputer: Threat actors have been using DNS CNAME hijacking to hijack abandoned cloud endpoints of domains belonging to trusted organizations and incorporate them in large-scale scam delivery and traffic distribution systems (TDSes).
• BleepingComputer: Hazy Hawk gang exploits DNS misconfigs to hijack trusted domains
• The Hacker News: Hazy Hawk Exploits DNS Records to Hijack CDC, Corporate Domains for Malware Delivery
• hackread.com: Infoblox reveals Hazy Hawk, a new threat exploiting abandoned cloud resources (S3, Azure) and DNS gaps since Dec…
• The DefendOps Diaries: Explore Hazy Hawk's DNS hijacking tactics and learn how to protect your domains from this emerging cybersecurity threat.
• bsky.app: A threat actor named 'Hazy Hawk' has been using DNS CNAME hijacking to hijack abandoned cloud endpoints of domains belonging to trusted organizations and incorporate them in large-scale scam delivery and traffic distribution systems (TDS).
• www.bleepingcomputer.com: Hazy Hawk has been observed hijacking abandoned cloud resources.
• Virus Bulletin: Researchers Jacques Portal & Renée Burton look into Hazy Hawk, a threat actor that hijacks abandoned cloud resources of high-profile organizations.
• blogs.infoblox.com: Hazy Hawk is a threat actor that hijacks abandoned cloud resources of high-profile organizations.
• www.scworld.com: Misconfigured DNS, neglected cloud assets harnessed in Hazy Hawk domain hijacking attacks
• Infoblox Blog: Cloudy with a Chance of Hijacking Forgotten DNS Records Enable Scam Actor
• DomainTools: Report on the threat actor's tactics and techniques, including targeting abandoned cloud resources.
• Security Risk Advisors: Hazy Hawk Actor Hijacks Abandoned Cloud DNS Records of High-Profile Organizations for Scam Distribution
• cyble.com: Cyble reports on Hazy Hawk campaign hijacks abandoned cloud DNS records from CDC, Berkeley, & 100+ major orgs to distribute scams.
• BleepingComputer: Hazy Hawk exploits abandoned cloud resources from high-profile organizations to distribute scams and malware through traffic distribution systems (TDSes).
• cyberscoop.com: Coordinated effort took down seven kinds of malware and targeted initial access brokers.
• securityonline.info: A significant takedown neutralized ransomware delivery and initial access malware infrastructure.
• BleepingComputer: International law enforcement took down hundreds of servers and domains.

Classification:

• HashTags: #DNSsecurity #CloudSecurity #HazyHawk
• Company: Infoblox
• Target: Organizations
• Attacker: Hazy Hawk
• Product: Amazon S3, Azure
• Feature: DNS Hijacking
• Malware: TDS
• Type: Hack
• Severity: Major