Hackers Are Using the Coronavirus to Spread Their Own Malware
The fear of the coronavirus is spreading even faster than the virus itself, taking over the global population who are worried about its reach and propagation throughout the world.
In addition, a lot of misinformation has been shared online creating panic & confusion, and now that same fear is being exploited to spread new types of malware among Internet users.
While the coronavirus continues to take victims in China and some other countries, resulting in a public health emergency of international concern, cybercriminals are looking at the situation just like any other trend which they can take advantage of.
Today, we are taking a look at how they’re using the fear of the coronavirus to create targeted cyberattacks and what can we do to spot them before it’s too late.
The Corona-Computer Virus
Recently, multiple phishing scams have been found to contain malware disguising itself as documents related to the coronavirus in different formats like pdf, mp4, and docx. They are sent via malicious links and files which claim to be helpful information for users who are eager to learn how to prevent being infected by the virus.
It may come as instructions to protect yourself from the coronavirus, new updates regarding the threat, and even procedures that explain how to detect the virus. However, as you might’ve guessed, this information is not only fake but also contains a real computer virus that attacks whoever opens the file.
It’s not that surprising to discover that hackers are using these unethical techniques to get what they want — since they’re always following trends to have a better chance to deceive their victims. Nevertheless, using regular trends like the release of a movie or book is nothing compared to these scams related to massive events of global concern.
Where there’s fear and doubt, the rate of success for these phishing campaigns increases, as more people feel vulnerable to events that are out of their control and look for any answer that might appease them.
“We’ve only identified ten unique files, but since this type of activity is common to popular media topics, we expect this number to increase. As people continue to worry about their health, fake documents that are said to educate them about the coronavirus may be spreading more and more malware”
Anton Ivanov, malware analyst from Kaspersky.
Most of the cyberattacks took place via email and the WeChat social messaging app.
Here’s an example of one of the more common messages which came in the form of safety measures stated by a supposed specialist from Singapore.
If we take a closer look, we’ll find there are some grammar mistakes in this email, combined with the fact that it’s not referring to a specific person by name — using a vague introduction like “Dear, Sir” instead, which does raise proper suspicions.
Although, if we put ourselves in the shoes of a user who is fearful of the virus at the time of receiving the message, it makes sense that the emotion of the moment could lead him to fall in the trap and those suspicious details might not be noticed so easily.
Is There a Cure?
Unfortunately, just like the real coronavirus, there is no guaranteed cure for your computer after the infection of this malware, at least for now. But what you can do is stay alert and apply the same advice that we always give to protect your devices.
Take a minute before opening any link on your email or group chats. If you don’t know the remittent, don’t open it. If you notice anything suspicious, don’t click it. We all have our weak spots, we all have moments where we let ourselves go through urgency, fear, and emotion. And there are always cybercriminals waiting to exploit those feelings to make a quick buck.
That’s why we have to double-check anything we read or receive on the Internet. The best cure is never getting infected in the first place.
If you would like to equip your browser with some extra protection, we recommend our very own Online.io extension. It’s free, light and works by blocking all kinds of ads, malware, and tracking software from connecting to your browser. More features will be coming soon, but for now, it‘s a handy addition to your online security. Stay safe!
