ownCloud has urgently urged users of its Community Edition to enable multi-factor authentication (MFA).
A threat intelligence report from Hudson Rock highlighted incidents in which attackers compromised self-hosted file-sharing platforms, including some ownCloud deployments, but ownCloud stresses that its platform itself remains unbreached.
Hudson Rock’s analysis revealed no zero-day exploits or vulnerabilities in ownCloud’s architecture. Instead, threat actors relied on a straightforward attack chain: infostealer malware like RedLine, Lumma, or Vidar infected employee endpoints, harvesting login credentials.
These were then exploited to access ownCloud instances lacking MFA. As the report bluntly states, “These catastrophic security failures were not the result of zero-day exploits in the platform architecture” and “No exploits, no cookies, just a password.”
ownCloud’s official response clarifies the scope: “The ownCloud platform was not hacked or breached.” The company points to misconfigurations in self-hosted environments as the root cause, noting that users bypassed MFA despite its availability.
This incident underscores a persistent gap in the adoption of self-managed open-source tools, where security depends on administrators’ diligence.
To mitigate risks, ownCloud recommends immediate action:
- Enable MFA across all user accounts using built-in two-factor authentication apps.
- Reset all user passwords and enforce strong, unique credentials.
- Audit access logs for suspicious activity.
- Invalidate active sessions to trigger MFA re-authentication.
These steps add a vital second verification layer, rendering stolen credentials useless. Cybersecurity experts echo this priority; MFA blocks over 99% of account takeover attempts, per Microsoft data, yet only about 30% of self-hosted platforms enforce it organization-wide.
As infostealers proliferate on dark web markets, platforms like ownCloud, Nextcloud, and Seafile face scrutiny. Users should prioritize MFA alongside endpoint detection tools to combat malware at its source.
For now, ownCloud users must act swiftly. Delaying MFA invites exploitation in an era where credentials flow freely from infected devices. This isn’t a platform flaw; it’s a reminder that defense starts with configuration.
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