43M people download fake Anti-Virus software in ‘08/09

Mike Halsey | Oct 19, 2009 | Comments

Symantec are claiming that 43 million people worldwide have fallen victim to scareware and downloaded fake anti-virus software in the twelve months from July ‘09 to June ‘09. The firm has identified 250 versions of scareware, which is thought to earn criminals three quarters of a million pounds every year.

The software, usually a carefully designed website pop-up, tricks users into believing they have a PC loaded with viruses and trojans. It then offers sell you a software download to fix the problem, which it does. This of course is because there were no viruses and trojans to remove in the first place.

The downloaded software, which you have by then granted administrator access is free to download real trojans and keyloggers. What’s more you’ve also surrendered your credit or debit card details when buying the bogus software.

In an interview with the BBC, Con Mallon from Symantec said…

"Obviously, you’re losing your own hard-earned cash up front, but at the back end of that, if you’re transacting with these guys online you’re offering them credit card details, debit card details and other personal information," he said.
"That’s obviously very valuable because these cyber criminals can try to raid those accounts themselves or they can then pass them on or sell them to others who ultimately will try to use that information to their benefit not yours."

Criminals could, at this point, do anything they like including encrypting your files and documents and extorting money from you for the decryption key. This type of attack is getting increasingly common.

Tony Neate, from Get Safe Online, told the BBC the threats presented by the internet had changed in recent years.
"Where we used to say protect your PC… we’ve now got to look at ourselves, making sure we’re protected against the con men who are out there," he said.
"They want you to help them infect your machine. When they’ve infected your machine it’s possibly no longer your machine – you’ve got no control over it.
"Then what they’re looking to do is take away your identity, steal bits of your identity, or even get some financial information from you."
He added: "They used to be 16-year-olds in their bedrooms causing damage with viruses. Now those 16-year-olds have grown up [and] they’re looking for money, they’re looking for information."

You should always be very careful what you click on and wary of anything that reports you have viruses on your PC. The best defence against virus attack is to always make sure your own anti-virus software is up to date.