Switchfast Blog: The Future of IT
“Hot Content” like Erin Andrews Video Used as Bait for Malware
Tuesday, August 18, 2009 by Michael Holley
Despite numerous mid-July reports of malicious links and downloads
associated with the infamous Erin Andrews peephole video, the
controversial clip continues to be a leading vector for dangerous
malware. Users should be advised not to attempt to view this video,
as legal action has threatened to consider any site hosting the
clip as an accessory to the crime of voyeurism and slander. This
means that, at this point, it is very unlikely that the video is
actually being hosted anywhere by a legitimate source.
In fact, the tactic of using trending topics as bait for malware
is only becoming more commonplace as thousands of internet users
continue to infect themselves by clicking bad search links each
day. While your anti-virus software might catch a slip up, the best
method of prevention is simply not to attempt to view high-risk
material, or at the very least, be very careful as to which sources
you trust.
"In general, any illicit 'hot search topic' is a prime candidate
for malware writers to use as a vector," warns Switchfast CITO,
Nikolai Vargas, who has dealt with numerous cases of preventable
infection. "If you want to view such material, be smart, don't do
it (at the very least don't do it on a work-issued computer)."
Although it may go without saying, the same rules apply to
suspicious media sent via email. Some may remember the outbreak of
bogus scandal videos relating to President Obama during last year's
election. Although it's tempting to open a message that is sent by
a trusted source, many infected messages appear to be sent from
someone you know, but are actually created without the knowledge of
the 'sender.' Use your best judgment, and when in doubt, don't open
a suspicious message.
If you think you may have become infected with malware, feel
free to contact us (TheFutureOfIT@switchfast.com)
to look into it.
Best,
Michael Holley
Switchfast Technologies
Chicago IT Support
& Consulting
Rochester
IT Support & Consulting
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