A huge wave of ongoing spam is attacking websites

Spam attackA huge wave of spam attacks was Discovered by G Data Software AG, a company that develops IT security solutions, following the bomb attacks in Boston last week, according to company representatives.

Cybercriminals are profiting from attacks, by launching a huge wave of spam. G Data Security Labs has seen a massive Increase in emails that include links to video recordings of explosions. By downloading the videos, the computers get infected and the users will be blackmailed and asked to pay a ransom. Infected computers are also used to distribute spam. In the second version, the passwords are stolen and all network traffic is intercepted to spy on users. G Data advises those who receive this kind of messages to delete them before reading and to not follow the links in any form, it said in a statement.

Many people use the Internet as the first option for information and videos are usually very popular among users. If an email recipient accesses the link, the user will be re-directed to a site that contains a window with five different YouTube videos. The problem is that, besides the five videos, attackers have integrated a Java applet software on the website that was uploaded to exploit a Java vulnerability. If the version of Java installed on user’s computer is older than version 7, upgrade 11, the malware is installed on the computer using an exploit and the infected PC will be used to send mass email messages, explain representatives of G Data Software.

In the second version, the attackers steal passwords saved in browsers such as Firefox, passwords used for online shopping accounts, mailboxes or social networks and read all unencrypted network traffic. This helps attackers to spy on users.

On Monday, two explosions took place in Boston during the annual marathon, and several people were injured or killed. A huge manhunt lead to the killing of one suspect and the apprehension of a second one.

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