Hackers actively exploiting COVID-19 crisis
CyberProof Inc., an UST Global company, has warned of new cybersecurity threats amidst the coronavirus pandemic. Hackers, including cybercriminals and state-sponsored threat actors around the globe, are taking advantage of the COVID-19 outbreak to accelerate their activities and spread their own infections.
Hackers have underground networks for communicating among themselves and sharing resources for a cyberattack. Actively tracking this activity, CyberProof witnessed these forum complaints about being stuck at home because of the coronavirus, leading to a greater amount of frustration and malicious activity.
CyberProof has uncovered a new coronavirus phishing attack: investigations into cybercrime hacking communities exposed a threat actor offering a phishing method that infects victims with malware by sharing an online map of coronavirus-infected areas as a disguise. CyberProof suspects that according to the threat actor, the given Pre-loader has a file extension that can be sent as an attachment directly by/to any mail service, and it works on all Windows versions.
“As threat hunters, we have become increasingly aware of the greater need for diligence and awareness regarding the latest cyber security threat – hackers taking advantage of new vulnerabilities during this difficult time,” said Yuval Wollman, President, CyberProof.
“In crisis situations, the underground community springs into action – and we need to do the same,” added Wollman. “To protect your organization, make sure employees are keeping their guard up and follow best practices for cyber security,” he added.
The count of cybersecurity scams has risen during the coronavirus period and the main cause of these new scams is likely the fact that many hackers are shut inside their homes due to the coronavirus regulations in many locations – they are bored and looking for new ways to spread malware, siphon sensitive information, and hold critical systems hostage. Considering these insights shared by CyberProof, the reports signify a wide increase in the number of cyberattacks.
Commenting on this, Tony Velleca, Chief Executive Officer, CyberProof and CISO, UST Global said, “To help its customers during these unprecedented times, CyberProof and UST Global have partnered with Cato Networks to offer their 95% customers, a work from home (WFH) solution to reduce the security risks to large-scale remote working. The solution creates a globally available VPN solution that allows organizations to extend their security policy to the WFH workforce and optimize network performance.”
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