VB Blog

WordPress users urged to manually update to fix bug that prevents automatic updating

Posted by Martijn Grooten on Feb 8, 2018

Users of the popular WordPress content management system are urged to manually update their installation to version 4.9.4, as a bug in the previous version broke the ability to automatically install updates.

Posted by Martijn Grooten on Feb 7, 2018

The Andromeda botnet (aka Gamarue or Wauchos) has plagued Internet users for more than half a decade but, following a takedown effort and the arrest of the suspected botnet owner in December 2017, it is likely we have seen the end of it. In a new paper by Fortinet researchers Bahare Sabouri and He Xu, we look back at the evolution of Andromeda from version 2.06 to 2.10 and demonstrate both how it improved its loader to evade automatic analysis/detection and how the payload varied among the different versions.

Posted by Martijn Grooten on Feb 2, 2018

Reports of malware using the Meltdown or Spectre attacks are likely based on proof-of-concept code rather than files written for a malicious purpose.

Posted by Martijn Grooten on Feb 1, 2018

This Throwback Thursday, we republish the VB2012 paper by Microsoft researcher Amir Fouda, one of the earliest papers to look at malware targeting Bitcoin.

Posted by Martijn Grooten on Jan 31, 2018

We especially encourage those less experienced in speaking in public to submit to the call for papers for VB2018, where we aim to provide a friendly and welcoming environment in which people can both present their own research and learn from what others have been working on.

Posted by Martijn Grooten on Jan 25, 2018

At VB2017 in Madrid, security researcher Randy Abrams presented an overview of the VirusTotal service and then went on to bust several of the persistent myths that surround it. Today we publish both Randy's paper and the recording of his presentation.

Posted by Martijn Grooten on Jan 24, 2018

A new computer emergency response team has been launched in the Netherlands to provide guidance specifically tailored to the healthcare sector. Martijn Grooten welcomes the development.

Posted by Martijn Grooten on Jan 23, 2018

Have you analysed a new online threat? Do you know a new way to defend against such threats? Are you tasked with securing systems and fending off attacks? The call for papers for VB2018 is now open and we want to hear from you!

Posted by Martijn Grooten on Jan 22, 2018

VB Editor Martijn Grooten recommends Jean-Philippe Aumasson's 'Serious Cryptography' as a very solid but practically focused introduction to cryptography.

Posted by Martijn Grooten on Jan 16, 2018

A Necurs pump-and-dump spam campaign pushing the lesser known Swisscoin botnet is mostly background noise for the Internet.

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VB2019 paper: Different ways to cook a crab: GandCrab Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS) analysed in depth

Though active for not much longer than a year, GandCrab had been one of the most successful ransomware operations. In a paper presented at VB2019 in London, McAfee researchers John Fokker and Alexandre Mundo looked at the malware code, its evolution and t…
Different ways to cook a crab: GandCrab ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) analysed in depth Read the paper (HTML) Download the paper (PDF) Though active for not… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2019/11/vb2019-paper-different-ways-cook-crab-gandcrab-ransomware-service-raas-analysed-depth/

VB2016 paper: Diving into Pinkslipbot's latest campaign

Qakbot or Qbot, is a banking trojan that makes the news every once in a while and was the subject of a VB2016 paper by Intel Security researchers Sanchit Karve, Guilherme Venere and Mark Olea. In it, they provided a detailed analysis of the Pinkslipbot/Qa…
Pinkslipbot, also known as Qakbot or Qbot, is a banking trojan that makes the news every once in a while, yet never seems to get the attention of the world's Zbots and Dridexes. I… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2017/06/vb2016-paper-diving-pinkslipbots-latest-campaign/

Vulnerability turns McAfee's anti-malware solution into open relay

Flaw allows for spam to be sent through customers' PCs.
Flaw allows for spam to be sent through customers' PCs. A vulnerability discovered in McAfee's SaaS for Total Protection, the company's hosted anti-malware solution, effectively… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2012/01/vulnerability-turns-mcafee-s-anti-malware-solution-open-relay/

AV-Test.org unveils latest results

Trend Micro achieves pass; Microsoft and McAfee fail to reach certification standards.
Trend Micro achieves pass; Microsoft and McAfee fail to reach certification standards. Independent testing body AV-Test.org has released its latest set of quarterly test results,… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2010/11/av-test-org-unveils-latest-results/

Computer chip giant buys AV giant

Intel becomes new owner of McAfee for the princely sum of $7.8bn
Intel becomes new owner of McAfee for the princely sum of $7.8bnIntel, the world's biggest manufacturer of computer chips, is poised to acquire security giant McAfee - one of the… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2010/08/computer-chip-giant-buys-av-giant/

AV-Test.org issues latest round of testing results

Symantec and Microsoft outdo Trend and McAfee in live tests.
Symantec and Microsoft outdo Trend and McAfee in live tests. Independent testing organisation AV-Test.org has released its latest round of test results in a simplified format,… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2010/08/av-test-org-issues-latest-round-testing-results/

McAfee offers payments to cover FP cleanup costs

Compensation for faulty update victims could set precedent.
Compensation for faulty update victims could set precedent. Victims of the erroneous McAfee DAT update last month are being offered cash payments to cover costs incurred in fixing… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2010/05/mcafee-offers-payments-cover-fp-cleanup-costs/

Botnets becoming more robust

Zeus botnet used Amazon's in-the-cloud service to control bots.
Zeus botnet used Amazon's in-the-cloud service to control bots. New reports by MessageLabs and McAfee show that botherders have learned a lesson following the take-down of McColo… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/12/botnets-becoming-more-robust/

Anti-spam products do well in VB testing

VB announces anti-spam certification results.
VB announces anti-spam certification results.Virus Bulletin has announced that 12 products earned VBSpam awards in its latest round of comparative anti-spam testing. A total of 14… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/11/anti-spam-products-do-well-vb-testing/

Serious false positive hits users of old McAfee engines

Batch of system files wrongly flagged as malware, current versions not affected.
Batch of system files wrongly flagged as malware, current versions not affected. An update released by McAfee last week resulted in problems around the world, as some vital system… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/07/serious-false-positive-hits-users-old-mcafee-engines/

McAfee to acquire Solidcore

Whitelisting firm to be assimilated by security giant.
Whitelisting firm to be assimilated by security giant.McAfee has announced the acquisition of whitelisting firm Solidcore in a deal reported to be worth a base rate of $33 million,… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/05/mcafee-acquire-solidcore/

Security holes trouble vendors

Vulnerabilities fixed in McAfee website and Google Chrome; patch expected for Adobe Reader.
Vulnerabilities fixed in McAfee website and Google Chrome; patch expected for Adobe Reader. A range of vulnerabilities have been causing headaches recently for companies… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/05/security-holes-trouble-vendors/

Banking sector confuses users over online safety

Leftfield AV detection scores used to promote ID theft tool.
Leftfield AV detection scores used to promote ID theft tool. With online banking an increasingly important way of interacting with our banks, the security of online transactions is… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/04/banking-sector-confuses-users-over-online-safety/

AV-Comparatives releases latest detection figures

Large collection test shows major improvement from AV giants.
Large collection test shows major improvement from AV giants. Independent testing organisation AV-Comparatives has released its latest bi-annual detection test figures, with 17… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/03/av-comparatives-releases-latest-detection-figures/

McAfee false positive flags Vista component

Innocent file labelled trojan.
Innocent file labelled trojan.McAfee has updated one of its detections after a faulty update led to an integral component of the Windows Vista operating system being falsely… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2008/10/mcafee-false-positive-flags-vista-component/

McAfee to buy Secure Computing

Acquisition deal valued at $465m.
Acquisition deal valued at $465m.McAfee has announced its official agreement to purchase network security firm Secure Computing Corp. in a deal worth a whopping $465 million. The… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2008/09/mcafee-buy-secure-computing/

McAfee buys data loss firm Reconnex

$46 million acquisition announced as strong profit report released.
$46 million acquisition announced as strong profit report released.McAfee has announced its official agreement to purchase privately owned data loss prevention firm Reconnex, in a… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2008/08/mcafee-buys-data-loss-firm-reconnex/

Yahoo! searchers to get McAfee site advice

SiteAdvisor data to help check security of search results.
SiteAdvisor data to help check security of search results. Search engine giant Yahoo! has announced a deal with McAfee to incorporate site security ratings from the firm's… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2008/05/yahoo-searchers-get-mcafee-site-advice/

Malware going local

Report sees trend toward greater localisation of threats.
Report sees trend toward greater localisation of threats.McAfee's latest Sage report focuses on increased localisation in malware, with spam, phishing and malcode all showing great… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2008/02/malware-going-local/

Botnet roasting on an open fire

FBI reports successes of operation Bot Roast; McAfee predicts cyber espionage for 2008.
FBI reports successes of operation Bot Roast; McAfee predicts cyber espionage for 2008. The FBI has revealed that eight individuals have been indicted, pled guilty or been… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/12/botnet-roasting-open-fire/

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