Scammers Target Apple's iPad
It just goes to show you that scammers will use any excuse to try and trick you. When the Haiti earthquake struck, scammers were quick to take advantage. At the time Sophos announced that it caught in its spamtraps messages that claim to originate from aid organizations and that ask users to donate money to help those affected by the earthquake. This was a variant of the 419 Nigerian scams.
Scammers also managed to poison search results and lure computer users searching for info about the earthquake to malware spreading sites – sites which served rogue security software applications, which scam the user out of his money by making him think his computer is infected and by pushing him to purchase a license to remove the infection.
Now that Apple has announced the iPad, the scammers are once again keeping busy. They managed to poison search results hoping that people looking for more details on Apple’s tablet device will visit their malware spreading sites.
According to TrendMicro, company that specializes in providing network antivirus and internet content security software, if the computer user were to click on a poisoned search result it would lead to the download of rogue antivirus application Live PC Care. The rogue would scare the user into thinking his computer is infected, then it would ask the user to purchase a Live PC Care license to remove the infection. It is a scam because the infection is made-up and because the rogue has no genuine security software capabilities.
“Since Apple announced when the iPad will be made available to consumers, it has been one of the hottest topics circulating the Web today. And cybercriminals are not just about to let this slide. With the growing user anticipation for this new product, it is most likely that many users will be victimized by the latest FAKEAV attack. Users are thus advised to be wary of malicious links and to instead go to reputable news sites to get the latest information about the iPad,” explained TrendMicro’s Technical Communications Specialist, Carolyn Guevarra.
Scammers also managed to poison search results and lure computer users searching for info about the earthquake to malware spreading sites – sites which served rogue security software applications, which scam the user out of his money by making him think his computer is infected and by pushing him to purchase a license to remove the infection.
Now that Apple has announced the iPad, the scammers are once again keeping busy. They managed to poison search results hoping that people looking for more details on Apple’s tablet device will visit their malware spreading sites.
According to TrendMicro, company that specializes in providing network antivirus and internet content security software, if the computer user were to click on a poisoned search result it would lead to the download of rogue antivirus application Live PC Care. The rogue would scare the user into thinking his computer is infected, then it would ask the user to purchase a Live PC Care license to remove the infection. It is a scam because the infection is made-up and because the rogue has no genuine security software capabilities.
“Since Apple announced when the iPad will be made available to consumers, it has been one of the hottest topics circulating the Web today. And cybercriminals are not just about to let this slide. With the growing user anticipation for this new product, it is most likely that many users will be victimized by the latest FAKEAV attack. Users are thus advised to be wary of malicious links and to instead go to reputable news sites to get the latest information about the iPad,” explained TrendMicro’s Technical Communications Specialist, Carolyn Guevarra.
