VB Blog

Paper: New Keylogger on the Block

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Jul 5, 2016

In a new paper published by Virus Bulletin, Sophos researcher Gabor Szappanos takes a look at the KeyBase keylogger, sold as a commercial product and popular among cybercriminals who use it in Office exploit kits.

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BSides Denver to take place the day after VB2016

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Jun 28, 2016

VB2016, the 26th International Virus Bulletin conference, is an excellent reason to go to Denver, Colorado in the first week of October. But there is another reason to come to Denver: BSides Denver, which will take place the day after VB2016, on Saturday 8 October 2016.

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VB2015 paper: DDoS Trojan: A Malicious Concept that Conquered the ELF Format

Posted by   Virus Bulletin on   Jun 13, 2016

In their VB2015 paper, Peter Kálnai and Jaromír Hořejší look at the current state of DDoS trojans forming covert botnets on unsuspecting systems. The paper provides a technical analysis of the most important malware families, focusing on infection methods, dynamic behaviour, C&C communication, obfuscation techniques, advanced methods of persistence and stealth, and elimination of rivals.

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Throwback Thursday: Hyppönen, that Data Fellow / Finnish Sprayer

Posted by   Helen Martin on   Jun 2, 2016

This week, well known and universally respected industry guru Mikko Hyppönen celebrates his 25th anniversary of working at F-Secure (formerly known as Data Fellows). VB takes a look back in the archives at two articles published in 1994: an "insight" into the life and work of the then rising star of the anti-virus world, and a virus analysis penned by the man himself.

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VB2015 paper: Economic Sanctions on Malware

Posted by   Helen Martin on   Jun 1, 2016

Financial pressure can be a proactive and potentially very effective tool in making our computer ecosystems safer. By cleverly employing various trust metrics and technologies such as digital signing, watermarking, and public-key infrastructure in strategically selected places, we can encourage good behaviours and punish bad ones. In his VB2015 paper, Igor Muttik analyses and gives examples of technologies (certificates, credentials, etc.) to de-incentivize bad behaviours in several ecosystems (Windows, Android, iOS).

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Virus Bulletin's job site for recruiters and job seekers

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   May 26, 2016

Virus Bulletin has relaunched its security job vacancy service and added a new section, in which job seekers can advertise their skills and experience.

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Throwback Thursday: One_Half: The Lieutenant Commander?

Posted by   Helen Martin on   May 26, 2016

In October 1994, a new multi-partite virus appeared, using some of the techniques developed by the Dark Avenger in Commander_Bomber. As if this were not enough, the One_Half virus could also encrypt vital parts of the fixed disk. Eugene Kaspersky provided a detailed analysis.

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Advertisements on Blogspot sites lead to support scam

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   May 9, 2016

Support scam pop-ups presented through malicious advertisements show that, next to vulnerable end points, gullible users remain an easy source of money for online criminals.

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To make Tor work better on the web, we need to be honest about it

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   May 6, 2016

Many websites put barriers in front of visitors who use the Tor network. If we want to make the web more accessible through Tor, we need to be honest about why this is done, rather than cry wolf about a dislike for privacy, Martijn Grooten says.

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Paper: How It Works: Steganography Hides Malware in Image Files

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Apr 28, 2016

A new paper by CYREN researcher Lordian Mosuela takes a close look at Gatak, or Stegoloader, a piece of malware that was discovered last year and that is controlled via malicious code embedded in a PNG image, a technique known as steganography.

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Search blog

Drop reported in infected computers worldwide

Nearly one third of computers still found to be infected.
Nearly one third of computers still found to be infected. The proportion of infected computers worldwide decreased from 38.49% in 2011 to 31.98% last year, according to an annual… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/02/drop-reported-infected-computers-worldwide/

Happy Safer Internet Day

10th annual awareness day focuses on rights and responsibilities.
10th annual awareness day focuses on rights and responsibilities. Today (5th February) is Safer Internet Day 2013 across the world. Safer Internet Day (SID) is organised by the… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/02/happy-safer-internet-day/

Impressive results in latest VBSpam test

Excellent performances in spam filter test - plus evidence of a correlation between spam 'passing' SPF and an increased delivery rate.
Excellent performances in spam filter test - plus evidence of a correlation between spam 'passing' SPF and an increased delivery rate. No fewer than ten anti-spam solutions… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/02/impressive-results-latest-vbspam-test/

February

Anti-virus and security related news provided by independent anti-virus advisors, Virus Bulletin
https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/02/

February issue of VB published

The February issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to download.
The February issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to download. The February 2013 issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to browse online or… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/02/february-issue-vb-published/

Phone support scammers attempt repeat business

Previous victims contacted again and tricked into 'renewing' service.
Previous victims contacted again and tricked into 'renewing' service. Phone support scammers have found a new way to make easy money: by calling back people whom they have… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/01/phone-support-scammers-attempt-repeat-business/

Avast launches bug bounty programme

Security firm offers reward for info on bugs.
Security firm offers reward for info on bugs. Security firm Avast Software, producer of the popular avast! free anti-virus solution, has announced a bug bounty programme to… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/01/avast-launches-bug-bounty-programme/

VB2014 - location, location, location

Cat escapes bag as details of VB2014 conference are announced.
Cat escapes bag as details of VB2014 conference are announced. Keeping shtum about the dates and details for VB2014 - the 24th Virus Bulletin International Conference - has not… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/01/location-location-location/

Indian government proposes pamphlet-based cybersecurity education

Mandatory brochures not welcomed by manufacturers.
Mandatory brochures not welcomed by manufacturers. In an attempt to raise public awareness of security issues, the Indian government has proposed a plan in which it will be… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/01/indian-government-proposes-pamphlet-based-cybersecurity-education/

Anonymous petitions Obama Administration

Anti-virus and security related articles provided by independent anti-virus advisors, Virus Bulletin
"Make DDoS a legal form of protest." Hacking/protest group Anonymous has petitioned the Obama Administration to recognize DDoS attacks as a legal form of protest. The petition… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/01/anonymous-petitions-obama-administration/

European Cybercrime Centre set for launch

Central cybercrime resource for EU member states.
Central cybercrime resource for EU member states. This Friday will see the doors of the new European Cybercrime Centre (EC3) officially open in The Hague. The EC3 - which will be… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/01/european-cybercrime-centre-set-launch/

Cat carries computer virus

Cat collared.
Cat collared. Japanese police have captured a cat said to be carrying a computer virus on a memory card attached to its collar. The bizarre 'arrest' came after various Japanese… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/01/cat-carries-computer-virus/

January issue of VB published

The January issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to download.
The January issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to download. The January 2013 issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to browse online or… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/01/january-issue-vb-published/

2013

Latest news from the anti-virus industry provided by independent anti-virus advisors, Virus Bulletin
NewsBotconf - the 'first botnet fighting conference'Tools, ideas and research presented in Nantes. 10 December 2013VB2014: more of the same, plus something a little… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/

January

Anti-virus and security related news provided by independent anti-virus advisors, Virus Bulletin
https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2013/01/

December

Anti-virus and security related news provided by independent anti-virus advisors, Virus Bulletin
https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2012/12/

December issue of VB published

The December issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to download.
The December issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to download. The December 2012 issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to browse online or… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2012/12/december-issue-vb-published/

Correction to VBSpam results

Spamhaus and SURBL results re-evaluated.
Spamhaus and SURBL results re-evaluated. The most recent VBSpam results incorrectly stated that SURBL failed to detect a blacklisted URL in any of the emails in the Wombat feed of… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2012/11/correction-vbspam-results/

Virus Bulletin announces VBWeb tests for web filters

Regular comparative tests will show which products offer best protection from malicious web traffic.
Regular comparative tests will show which products offer best protection from malicious web traffic. Just as security companies can't afford to neglect the major infection vector… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2012/11/announces-vbweb-tests-web-filters/

Latest spam filter test shows spam catch rates have bounced back

Spam catch rates improve, but performance on phishing lags behind that on other spam.
Spam catch rates improve, but performance on phishing lags behind that on other spam. Earlier this week we published the results of the 22nd VBSpam comparative spam filter test,… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2012/11/latest-spam-filter-test-shows-spam-catch-rates-have-bounced-back/

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