VB Blog

VB2018 call for last-minute papers opened

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Jul 27, 2018

The call for last-minute papers for VB2018 is now open. Submit before 2 September to have your abstract considered for one of the nine slots reserved for 'hot' research.

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VB2017 paper and update: Browser attack points still abused by banking trojans

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Jul 25, 2018

At VB2017, ESET researchers Peter Kálnai and Michal Poslušný looked at how banking malware interacts with browsers. Today we publish their paper, share the video of their presentation, and also publish a guest blog post from Peter, in which he summarises the recent developments in this space.

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New paper: Does malware based on Spectre exist?

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Jul 16, 2018

It is likely that, by now, everyone in computer science has at least heard of the Spectre attack, and many excellent explanations of the attack already exist. But what is the likelihood of finding Spectre being exploited on Android smartphones?

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More VB2018 partners announced

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Jul 11, 2018

We are excited to announce several more companies that have partnered with VB2018.

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Malware authors' continued use of stolen certificates isn't all bad news

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Jul 10, 2018

A new malware campaign that uses two stolen code-signing certificates shows that such certificates continue to be popular among malware authors. But there is a positive side to malware authors' use of stolen certificates.

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Save the dates: VB2019 to take place 2-4 October 2019

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Jul 6, 2018

Though the location will remain under wraps for a few more months, we are pleased to announce the dates for VB2019, the 29th Virus Bulletin International Conference.

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Necurs update reminds us that the botnet cannot be ignored

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Jul 6, 2018

The operators of the Necurs botnet, best known for being one of the most prolific spam botnets of the past few years, have pushed out updates to its client, which provide some important lessons about why malware infections matter.

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Nominations opened for fifth Péter Szőr Award

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Jul 3, 2018

Virus Bulletin has opened nominations for the fifth annual Péter Szőr Award, for the best piece of technical security research published between 1 July 2017 and 30 June 2018.

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.SettingContent-ms files remind us that it is features, not bugs we should be most concerned about

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Jul 3, 2018

Security researcher Matt Nelson has discovered how .SettingContent-ms files can be embedded into Office files to deliver malware.

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We cannot ignore the increased use of IoT in domestic abuse cases

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Jun 26, 2018

The New York Times reports that smart home devices are increasingly used in cases of domestic abuse.

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Search blog

Samsung site hosting malware

Websense reports trojans found on electronics giant's servers.
Websense reports trojans found on electronics giant's servers. A US-hosted website belonging to Samsung Telecommunications America, a subsidiary of South Korean electronics giant… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2006/09/samsung-site-hosting-malware/

Zango not guilty on spyware charges

Spyware bad, adware OK, says court.
Spyware bad, adware OK, says court. Adware-supported 'online media company' Zango has had accusations of using spyware dashed by a Chicago, Illinois court. The class action case,… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2006/09/zango-not-guilty-spyware-charges/

Phishers cast nets less wide

More scams hitting fewer targets, says report.
More scams hitting fewer targets, says report. According to RSA Security's August report on online fraud, the number of brands attacked by phishing scams fell by 20% last month,… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2006/09/phishers-cast-nets-less-wide/

Spyware firms charged $2 million

FTC takes cash, bans from future naughtiness.
FTC takes cash, bans from future naughtiness.Enternet Media and ConSpy & Co., the companies behind products including Miracle Search and EliteBar, have been forced to pay out over… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2006/09/spyware-firms-charged-2-million/

'Magic Quadrant' study unveiled

AV industry future revealed - must do better.
AV industry future revealed - must do better. Industry analyst and predictor Gartner has released its annual 'Magic Quadrant' study of the current state and likely future of the AV… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2006/09/magic-quadrant-study-unveiled/

MS sues UK spammer

Civil action avoids spam law technicalities.
Civil action avoids spam law technicalities.Microsoft has sued and reached an out-of-court settlement with UK spammer Paul Fox, after apparently despairing of finding any success… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2006/09/ms-sues-uk-spammer/

Subliminal message hidden in spam

Mail campaign aims to sneak into readers' subconscious minds.
Mail campaign aims to sneak into readers' subconscious minds. A spam campaign is using the classic 'submliminal message' technique in an attempt to implant thoughts in the minds of… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2006/09/subliminal-message-hidden-spam/

Nine years for spam felon

Tough sentence upheld despite free-speech claims.
Tough sentence upheld despite free-speech claims. A US man convicted two years ago under the state of Virginia's anti-spam laws has lost an appeal against his conviction. The case,… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2006/09/nine-years-spam-felon/

Word zero-day exploited

Trojan uses unpatched hole in office software.
Trojan uses unpatched hole in office software. At least one trojan has been seen in the wild exploiting a newly discovered vulnerability in Microsoft's Word 2000 software. The… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2006/09/word-zero-day-exploited/

Phishing on the rise

One in three malicious emails a phish, says MessageLabs.
One in three malicious emails a phish, says MessageLabs. A report on the current state of digital security has revealed that phishing scams constitute a growing danger to computer… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2006/09/phishing-rise/

Gromozon mystery clearing

Cleaner tool aims to remove sophisticated attack.
Cleaner tool aims to remove sophisticated attack. The shadowy blended threat known as Gromozon has slowly been gaining notoriety in recent weeks, particularly after some in-depth… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2006/09/gromozon-mystery-clearing/

Mobile snoopware labelled spyware

Future phone privacy threatened.
Future phone privacy threatened. Reports this week highlighted the problem of spyware running on mobile phones, and the consequences this could have for privacy. A commercial… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2006/09/mobile-snoopware-labelled-spyware/

New New Zealand spam laws to allow spam

Adjustments to laws may let 'non-commercial' spam continue.
Adjustments to laws may let 'non-commercial' spam continue. Recommendations have been made to dilute tough new anti-spam laws currently being debated by the New Zealand government.… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2006/09/new-new-zealand-spam-laws-allow-spam/

CA in Windows FP

eTrust identifies critical file as virus.
eTrust identifies critical file as virus. A mistake at CA caused some trouble over the weekend, as its eTrust products started identifying part of the Windows local authentication… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2006/09/ca-windows-fp/

AT&T hack led to spearphish

Stolen details used to trick victims out of further info.
Stolen details used to trick victims out of further info. Transaction details stolen as part of last weekend's security breach of a shopping site run by US phone giant AT&T were… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2006/09/amp-t-hack-led-spearphish/

A fine, a curfew and a treasure hunt

Round up of the month's spammer penalties.
Round up of the month's spammer penalties. Kicking off a round-up of some of the anti-spam penalties issued worldwide this month, the Chinese government has made an underwhelming… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2006/09/fine-curfew-and-treasure-hunt/

September issue of VB published

The September issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to download.
The September issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to download. The September 2006 issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to browse online… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2006/09/september-issue-vb-published/

Spot that spammer

Quiz tests consumers' ability to identify spam causing sites.
Quiz tests consumers' ability to identify spam causing sites. Last month, McAfee invited web users to spot the undesirable website, in an eight-question quiz entitled: 'Can you… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2006/09/spot-spammer/

Nearly VB 100%

Near misses.
Near misses. In the recent Windows XP comparative review (see VB, June 2006, p.11), VB reported that VirusBuster failed to achieve the results required for a VB 100% award. After… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2006/09/nearly-vb-100/

Testing patience

Consumer Reports does it again.
Consumer Reports does it again. After having come in for a great deal of criticism in recent weeks over its AV testing methodology (see VB, September 2006, p.2), Consumer Reports… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2006/09/testing-patience/

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