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Trojans

Google won't pull Android apps deemed malicious

Dan Kaplan January 31, 2012

Symantec is trying to call attention to 13 applications that have showed up in the official Android Market over concerns that they contain software development tools that enable the theft of data.

FINRA advises brokers to bulk up security

Dan Kaplan January 27, 2012

The self-regulating authority of Wall Street is warning securities firms about a rise in customers' email accounts being hacked to deliver bogus funds transfer requests.

Just-patched critical Microsoft bug under attack

Dan Kaplan January 26, 2012

Researchers warned Thursday that a recently patched vulnerability in Windows Media is being used by remote attackers to launch malware.

Study: BlackHole appears, Conficker remains

Dan Kaplan January 26, 2012

Eighty-five percent of all malware is web-based, and some 30,000 websites are newly infected with malicious code each day, according to Sophos' "Security Threat Report 2012."

Android app claims to be Madden 12 video game

Dan Kaplan January 24, 2012

With the Super Bowl less than two weeks away, Symantec researchers said Tuesday that have spotted a malicious application in unofficial Android markets claiming to offer a version of the popular video game Madden NFL 12.

Lockheed Martin hit, but not breached, with Adobe zero-day

Angela Moscaritolo December 08, 2011

Defense contractors appear to be the prime target of sophisticated malware that attempts to take advantage of an unpatched flaw in Adobe Reader and Acrobat software.

Duqu perpetrators wipe command servers of evidence

Angela Moscaritolo December 01, 2011

On Oct 20, just two days after researchers released details about the Duqu malware, its creators scrubbed all the files from their command-and-control servers in an effort to conceal their identity.

Preparing for mobile security emergencies

Lysa Myers, director of research, West Coast Labs November 29, 2011

Mobile malware authors have skipped the rudimentary phase and are immediately creating threats that mimic complex malicious code common in the traditional PC environment. But defense technologies are countering with sophistication of their own.

In the vault: The Coastal Bank and IronKey

Greg Masters November 29, 2011

A Georgia bank found a tool to protect financial transactions and payments...while meeting compliance demands, reports Greg Masters.

ACH debit transfer emails leading to malware

Angela Moscaritolo November 10, 2011

Attackers have been circulating a trojan via email messages with subjects such as "ACH payroll payment was not accepted by Central Trust and Savings Bank."

FBI arrests six in click-fraud cyber scam that netted $14M

Angela Moscaritolo November 09, 2011

A gang of Estonians is accused of infecting millions of computers, many in the United States, with DNS-changing trojans capable of manipulating the online advertising industry through clickjacking.

Part Two: Duqu: father, son, or unholy ghost of Stuxnet?

Jeremy Sparks, Robert M. Lee, and Paul Brandau, cyberspace officers November 09, 2011

Three U.S. Air Force information security experts, independent of their role in the military, studied the Duqu trojan, and you might be surprised by what they found. This is the second article in a two-part series that examines the sophisticated threat that everyone is talking about.

Microsoft releases four security patches, one critical

Angela Moscaritolo November 08, 2011

Microsoft on Tuesday patched one "critical" vulnerability, plus three other less-severe flaws. Not patched, as expected, is a bug related to the Duqu trojan.

Duqu trojan spreads through 0-day Microsoft bug

Dan Kaplan November 01, 2011

A piece of malware that has drawn comparisons to the notorious Stuxnet worm is using an unknown Windows kernel vulnerability to infect its targets.

Disgraced bike champ accused of cybercrime

Greg Masters October 26, 2011

Cyclist Floyd Landis, who was stripped of his Tour de France medal in 2006 following positive doping results, now faces arrest in France for his alleged involvement in planting a trojan on the computer network of the French national anti-doping laboratory (LNDD), which conducted the test. According to reports, French prosecutors said Landis and Arnie Baker, his coach at the time, employed a hacker at Kargus Consultants to plant the trojan in an attempt to steal documents from the lab for an appeals process they were pursuing. Kargus has also been suspected of breaking into Greenpeace and French utility company EDF. Prosecutors said Landis should serve an 18-month suspended prison sentence for his part in the alleged scheme.

Duqu underscores trouble AV industry has in stopping threats

Angela Moscaritolo October 21, 2011

The slowness by which an offspring of Stuxnet was discovered may be further proof that attackers have a significant leg up on the security community.

New malware appears carrying Stuxnet code

Dan Kaplan October 18, 2011

A sibling of one of the most complex and potentially menacing computer worms ever created has impacted roughly five Europe-based manufacturers of industrial control systems, security researchers said Tuesday.

Keep your PCs closed to online criminals

Mike Cote, vice president, Dell SecureWorks October 14, 2011

Small and midsize businesses have been hit hard by corporate bank account takeovers. But there are easy-to-implement techniques to ensure the criminal passes them over in favor of a lower-hanging fruit.

Fake Android app mimics Netflix-for-mobile

Angela Moscaritolo October 12, 2011

A malicious app, masquerading as the online streaming video service Netflix, aims to steal information from Android users, according to Symantec research.

Microsoft adds "major" update to detect Zeus trojan

Dan Kaplan September 15, 2011

Microsoft has introduced a "fairly major" update to its Malicious Software Removal Tool to detect and kill infections of the insidious and constantly morphing data-stealing malware family known as Zbot, or Zeus. Since the software giant first added detection for Zeus last October, hundreds of thousands of Windows PCs have been expunged of the threat, prominent in banking and e-commerce fraud. But as Zeus, which recently merged code bases with SpyEye, continues to acquire advanced evasion capabilities, Microsoft has had to fight "sneakiness with sneakiness," according to a blog post on Wednesday. The company introduced the update as part of its monthly security patches, released on Tuesday.

Breaking down the updated FFIEC guidance

Sarah Fender, vice president, PhoneFactor September 15, 2011

As attackers have found a way to break traditional online banking security controls, recently issued guidelines offer some new advice for financial institutions.

Android OS under attack from new trojan variant

Greg Masters September 13, 2011

A variant of the SpyEye trojan is targeting the Google Android operating system.

Keys to the city: Richmond, Va. and PacketSentry

Greg Masters August 18, 2011

The city of Richmond, Va. found a solution to help prevent trojans from entering the gates, reports Greg Masters.

Criminals abusing Amazon cloud to spread SpyEye

Angela Moscaritolo July 29, 2011

Amazon's Simple Storage Service (S3) is being used to host malicious sites distributing the nefarious banking trojan.

University of Central Missouri hacker pleads guilty

Dan Kaplan June 24, 2011

A 21-year-old man pleaded guilty this week to infecting computers with malware at the University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg, prosecutors said. Daniel Fowler of Kansas City, Mo. admitted to, beginning in 2009, taking remote control of the compromised computers -- with the help of a co-conspirator -- in order to download personal data on students, alumni, faculty and staff; transfer money into their personal student accounts and attempt to change their grades. In one case, they used a thumb drive to install the keylogging trojan on a university administrator's computer Fowler faces up to 15 years in prison. His co-conspirator, Joseph Camp, 27, of New York state, who was caught after he tried t sell some of the stolen data for $35,000, is scheduled for trial in the fall, according to reports.

New trojan aims to steal Bitcoin virtual currency

Angela Moscaritolo June 17, 2011

Criminals are targeting the digital currency Bitcoin with new malware designed to steal victims' online wallets, several security firms warned this week.

Looking beyond anti-virus to limit costs, attacks

Pat Clawson, chairman and CEO, Lumension May 12, 2011

Anti-virus technology is still integral to the security baseline of any organization, but because of advanced attacks, firms must consider complementary solutions.

FBI warns of millions lost in fraudulent transfers to China

Dan Kaplan April 27, 2011

The FBI is probing 20 new cases of U.S. businesses losing millions of dollars to cybercriminals, who then siphoned off the cash to accounts in China.

Coreflood-style takedowns may lead to trouble

Dan Kaplan April 15, 2011

A new strategy used by the U.S. government to disassemble the notorious Coreflood bonet has some wondering whether a poor precedent was set.

Digital stick-up: Online account fraud

Dan Kaplan April 01, 2011

Corporate account takeover remains prevalent, resulting in $87.5 million in losses last year. But all banks can strive to prevent it, while staying within budget, says Rudy Wolfs of ING Direct.