04.09.10
Eye on Security: Windows Zombies, ATM Malware, and Trojans
Summary: Bits and pieces from this week’s news, shedding light on the undesirable impact of Windows on the desktop
• Vietnam Rejects Google Cyber-attack Charges (about one in two Windows machines is a zombie)
The Vietnamese government refuted charges of a cyber-attack targeting opponents of a Chinese-backed mining operation, calling Google’s comments “groundless.” According to McAfee, the attack created a botnet of infected Windows PCs and launched distributed denial-of-service attacks against certain political blogs.
• Bank of America Employee Charged With Planting Malware on ATMs (Bank of America was blocking Firefox and using Microsoft)
Rodney Reed Caverly, 37, was a member of the bank’s IT staff when he installed the malware. The Charlotte, North Carolina, man made fraudulent withdrawals over a seven-month period ending in October 2009, according to prosecutors, who’ve charged him with one count of computer fraud.
• Trojans continue to hit hard says Sunbelt Software
The latest monthly set of research from Sunbelt Software shows that trojans continue to wreak havoc with business computers far and wide, with two trojans – Trojan.Win32.GenericBT (31.07%) and Trojan-Spy.Win32.Zbot.gen (4.97%) – making up over a third of all detections during the month.
• Kids’ Choice Awards Exploited to Distribute FAKEAV
The experts commented that this business of fake anti-virus proves extremely lucrative for cyber-criminals as they reap massive amounts of dollars using bogus malware-fighting modules. They note that these criminals have left no region on the globe untouched to target with bogus AV applications
• Koobface makes (another) comeback
• Whole Foods Warns of Facebook Malware
• Whole Foods working to curb Facebook-based scam
• Manila Earthquake Results in Malware Distribution
Experts of Trend Micro, a security firm, stated that on March 25, 2010 a 6.0 magnitude earthquake hit the capital of Philippines, Manila, and subsequently many Web users accessed the Internet for latest development and news on the fateful incident. Without any doubt, hackers left no stone unturned for providing details about the earthquake. Their content was fixed with fake anti-virus applications.
