TweetDeck is warning Twitters users not to click on any links claiming to be a critical TweetDeck update because the update is actually malware. Scammers, upon hearing that the popular third party Twitter app was preparing to issue a real update, quickly rushed to take advantage of it. The fake update install a Trojan which more »

Malware is absolutely everywhere these days. Even if you do all the right things like not clicking on links or opening attachments in emails, avoiding bittorents, porn sites and illegal download sites like Limewire (which is full of malware!), not clicking on pop up or banner ads, and being careful about what apps and notifications more »

Interested in a life of cybercrime? All it takes is $50. Researchers at security firm Finjan have discovered that a site called “Golden Cash” is doing a bustling business in the buying and selling of infected computers. A small botnet of 1,000 malware infested PCs goes for just $50. That’s a mere 5 cents each! more »

We’ve all gotten them – official looking emails that look like they are from Paypal, eBay, our bank, or credit card company. They usually say there is a problem with our account or something needs updating and to please click the convenient link provided and log in. Dire consequences such as suspension or deletion are more »

Harvard University and Consumer Reports have joined together to create a web community dedicated to providing information and support to consumers regarding malware, spyware, adware, and malicious websites.

The site, a joint effort of Harvard’s Berkman Center and Consumer Reports’ Webwatch, is called BadwareBusters.org. The site administrators say they want BadwareBusters to be the first stop for anyone who’s been victimized by malicious software, had their computers or sites hacked, or had a site flagged as suspicious by Google.

Now I’ve been to the site and so far I’m impressed

Barack Obama’s election as the 44th president of the United States has spawned a new malware attack. Scammers wasted no time sending out e-mails with links to a video of the victory speech he gave the night of the election. The link takes the user to a site called America.gov, and like many malicious spams before it, produces a pop up claiming Adobe Flash must be updated in order for the video to run. The download is, of course, malware which steals personal info and sends it to a host machine run by the scammers.

Another version of the attack claims to come from a Spanish news site and has a video actually embedded in the e-mail. Clicking on it prompts a download called “BarackObama.exe” and if run it sets up a direct link between the PC and the scammers. Experts are particularly worried about this variation as it is not detected by anti-virus software.

BusinessWeek’s website has fallen under attack by hackers. Security vendor Sophos discovered the attack last week. Hundreds of pages of the popular site have been infected with malicious Javascript that redirects users to a Russian website that attempts to download malware to their computers. While some of the download attempts are being detected by malware blockers, many more are slipping through easily. The stats compiled by Google’s Safe Browsing API are alarming:

Of the 2157 pages we tested on the site over the past 90 days, 214 page(s) resulted in malicious software being downloaded and installed without user consent. The last time Google visited this site was on 09/15/2008, and the last time suspicious content was found on this site was on 09/11/2008. Malicious software includes 721 scripting exploit(s), 4 trojan(s), 3 exploit(s). Successful infection resulted in an average of 2 new processes on the target machine.

Hijacking legit sites for malware attacks is nothing new. In the past USA Today, Facebook, MySpace, and others have been used by hackers for malware delivery. Experts estimate that at least 70% of all web based malware is hosted on legit sites. It is not yet known how many BusinessWeek.com visitors were caught in the attack and infected, and the site has had no comment.

Keep reading for safety tips on how you can avoid malware.

Facebook recently came under attack by hackers who are posting malicious links on the Wall section of user profiles. The links urge the user to click on them to view a video hosted by Google, but in reality the link takes them to a compromised page with another link that claims to be an update more »