VB Blog

Alleged author of creepy FruitFly macOS malware arrested

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Jan 11, 2018

A 28-year old man from Ohio has been arrested on suspicion of having created the mysterious FruitFly malware that targeted macOS and used it to spy on its victims.

Read more  

The threat and security product landscape in 2017

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Jan 10, 2018

At the start of the new year, Virus Bulletin looks back at the threats seen in the 2017 and at the security products that are available to help mitigate them.

Read more  

Spamhaus report shows many botnet controllers look a lot like legitimate servers

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Jan 9, 2018

Spamhaus's annual report on botnet activity shows that botherders tend to use popular, legitimate hosting providers, domain registrars and top-level domains when setting up command-and-control servers.

Read more  

Tips on researching tech support scams

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Jan 5, 2018

As tech support scammers continue to target the computer illiterate through cold calling, VB's Martijn Grooten uses his own experience to share some advice on how to investigate such scams.

Read more  

Meltdown and Spectre attacks mitigated by operating system updates

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Jan 4, 2018

Just four days into the new year, two serious attacks in modern processors, dubbed Meltdown and Spectre, have been discovered. The attacks can be mitigated by patches to the operating system, but anti-virus software vendors need to make sure their products are compatible with the patches.

Read more  

Conference review: AVAR 2017

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Dec 22, 2017

Martijn Grooten reports on the 20th AVAR conference, which took place earlier in December in Beijing, China.

Read more  

Conference review: Botconf 2017

Posted by   Virus Bulletin on   Dec 22, 2017

Virus Bulletin researchers report back from a very interesting fifth edition of Botconf, the botnet fighting conference.

Read more  

VB2017 videos on attacks against Ukraine

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Dec 21, 2017

(In)security is a global issue that affects countries around the world, but in recent years none has been so badly hit as Ukraine. Today, we publish the videos of two VB2017 talks about attacks that hit Ukraine particularly badly: a talk by Alexander Adamov (NioGuard) on (Not)Petya and related attacks, and another by Robert Lipovsky and Anton Cherepanov (ESET) on Industroyer.

Read more  

Facebook helps you determine whether emails really came from its servers

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Dec 21, 2017

On its website, Facebook now shows which emails it has sent you recently, thus helping you to determine which emails are real, and which should be discarded as phishing.

Read more  

Vulnerability disclosure and botnet takedown not to be hindered by Wassenaar Arrangement

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Dec 19, 2017

Clarification in the language of the Wassenaar Arrangement, a multilateral export control regime for conventional arms and dual-use goods and technologies, means those involved in vulnerability disclosure or botnet takedown won't have to worry about acquiring an export licence.

Read more  

Search blog

11 out of 26 anti-virus products fail VB100 certification

VB reveals which products failed to meet VB100 certification criteria, and updated 'RAP quadrant' showing Reactive And Proactive detection abilities.
VB reveals which products failed to meet VB100 certification criteria, and updated 'RAP quadrant' showing Reactive And Proactive detection abilities.Virus Bulletin has revealed the… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/10/11-out-26-anti-virus-products-fail-certification/

Webmail data leak hype deflated

Rumoured phishing explosion grabs headlines, reality much more mundane.
Rumoured phishing explosion grabs headlines, reality much more mundane. This week has seen some major news organisations picking up on the story of tens of thousands of sets of… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/10/webmail-data-leak-hype-deflated/

Microsoft steps into free AV market

Security Essentials release creates expected storm of words.
Security Essentials release creates expected storm of words.Microsoft's release of its free Security Essentials product this week sparked the expected barrage of views and opinions… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/10/microsoft-steps-free-av-market/

October

Anti-virus and security related news provided by independent anti-virus advisors, Virus Bulletin
https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/10/

October issue of VB published

The October issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to download.
The October issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to download. The October 2009 issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to browse online or… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/10/october-issue-vb-published/

Latest AV-Comparatives test results released

High scores as 7 out of 16 graded Advanced+ in on demand tests
High scores as 7 out of 16 graded Advanced+ in on demand tests Independent testing body AV-Comparatives have released the results of their latest round of on demand anti-malware… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/09/latest-av-comparatives-test-results-released/

Rogue AV claims to send money to environmental causes

'Green AV' best added to blacklist to avoid red faces.
'Green AV' best added to blacklist to avoid red faces. In an attempt to lure users into buying it, the rogue anti-malware product Green AV claims to send US$2 per purchased product… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/09/rogue-av-claims-send-money-environmental-causes/

September

Anti-virus and security related news provided by independent anti-virus advisors, Virus Bulletin
https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/09/

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 2009 issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to browse online… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/09/september-issue-vb-published/

Take-down of rogue ISP sees temporary drop in spam levels

Spam levels back to normal within a few days.
Spam levels back to normal within a few days. The take-down of the rogue ISP Real Host on 1 August saw spam levels temporarily drop by more than a third, Messagelabs claims in its… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/08/take-down-rogue-isp-sees-temporary-drop-spam-levels/

Unspam files lawsuit against unnamed cybercrooks

Anti-spam firm hopes to force banks to share more information on attacks.
Anti-spam firm hopes to force banks to share more information on attacks.Unspam Technologies, the company behind Project Honey Pot, has filed a lawsuit against unnamed 'John Does',… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/08/unspam-files-lawsuit-against-unnamed-cybercrooks/

Yahoo! re-opens e-postage discussion

'CentMail' to benefit charities, harm spammers.
'CentMail' to benefit charities, harm spammers. Online giant Yahoo! has launched a website to give a charitable twist to the old idea of combating spam by making senders pay a… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/08/yahoo-re-opens-e-postage-discussion/

Anti-Obama sentiments used in spam campaign

'DDoS software' turns out to be malware.
'DDoS software' turns out to be malware. In a new spam campaign users are being urged to participate in a DDoS attack on the website of American president Barack Obama in protest… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/08/anti-obama-sentiments-used-spam-campaign/

ICANN adopts new domain tasting policy

'Free temporary registrations' come to an end.
'Free temporary registrations' come to an end. A new policy adopted by ICANN, the organization responsible for the assignment of domain names and IP addresses, has brought the… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/08/icann-adopts-new-domain-tasting-policy/

August issue of VB published

The August issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to download.
The August issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to download. The August 2009 issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to browse online or… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/08/august-issue-vb-published/

August

Anti-virus and security related news provided by independent anti-virus advisors, Virus Bulletin
https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/08/

McColo shutdown not felt the same by all recipients

Mailbox-level reduction may depend on spam detection methods.
Mailbox-level reduction may depend on spam detection methods. When the rogue provider McColo was taken offline in November 2008, depriving many botnets of their command and control… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/07/mccolo-shutdown-not-felt-same-all-recipients/

Yxe trojan infecting mobile phones

Symbian software-signing slipup certifies SMS spambot.
Symbian software-signing slipup certifies SMS spambot. A new trojan, the first of its kind, is affecting users of the Symbian mobile operating system by spreading itself via text… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/07/yxe-trojan-infecting-mobile-phones/

Call for last-minute technical papers

Submissions invited for technical 'turbo' talks at VB Geneva.
Submissions invited for technical 'turbo' talks at VB Geneva. Virus Bulletin is seeking submissions from those wishing to present last-minute technical papers at VB2009. The VB… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/07/call-last-minute-technical-papers/

Five botnets responsible for 75% of spam sent

Each infected machine sends spam at rate of almost two messages per second.
Each infected machine sends spam at rate of almost two messages per second.Spam levels have increased 60% since the beginning of this year, according to security company Marshal8e6… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2009/07/five-botnets-responsible-75-spam-sent/

We have placed cookies on your device in order to improve the functionality of this site, as outlined in our cookies policy. However, you may delete and block all cookies from this site and your use of the site will be unaffected. By continuing to browse this site, you are agreeing to Virus Bulletin's use of data as outlined in our privacy policy.