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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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 2007 issue of Virus Bulletin is now available for subscribers to browse online or… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/10/october-issue-vb-published/

Phil makes anti-phishing education child's play

Researchers create game to raise awareness.
Researchers create game to raise awareness. Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University have created an interactive game designed to teach players how to identify phishing URLs and… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/10/phil-makes-anti-phishing-education-child-s-play/

Another security hole found in GMail

Vulnerability latest in a growing list of holes in Google's web applications.
Vulnerability latest in a growing list of holes in Google's web applications. A significant security hole has been found in Google's web mail application GMail. Security… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/another-security-hole-found-gmail/

Fujacks/Panda virus authors sentenced, offered job

Fujacks author put away for four years.
Fujacks author put away for four years. Four men who were charged last month with writing, selling and spreading the W32/Fujacks virus and worm (a.k.a. the 'Panda burning… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/fujacks-panda-virus-authors-sentenced-offered-job/

Vulnerabilities closed in OpenOffice, StarOffice

Flaws patched in TIFF parsing code.
Flaws patched in TIFF parsing code. Security researchers at iDefense revealed last week that OpenOfficeversion 2.0.4 and earlier versions are vulnerable to maliciously crafted TIFF… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/vulnerabilities-closed-openoffice-staroffice/

Microsoft files further adware patent

User behaviour monitors could be used to target ads.
User behaviour monitors could be used to target ads. Following a patent application disclosed some months ago, details have been released of another adware scheme patented by… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/microsoft-files-further-adware-patent/

St. Petersburg US Consulate website hacked

Malware served by official government site.
Malware served by official government site. Web-watchers at Sophos have reported spotting malware hosted on the website of the US Consulate in St. Petersburg, using obfuscated… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/st-petersburg-us-consulate-website-hacked/

Boot virus shipped on German laptops

Aged malware installed on batch of Vista systems.
Aged malware installed on batch of Vista systems. A consignment of laptops from German manufacturer Medion, sold through German and Danish branches of giant retail chain Aldi, have… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/boot-virus-shipped-german-laptops/

VB2007 last-minute hot-topic papers revealed

Schedule for up-to-the-minute tech talks announced.
Schedule for up-to-the-minute tech talks announced.VB has unveiled the schedule for a series of up-to-the-minute technical presentations at the VB2007 conference next week (19-21… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/last-minute-hot-topic-papers-revealed/

Quiet Patch Tuesday

Four flaws fixed in minimal security update.
Four flaws fixed in minimal security update.Microsoft's monthly 'Patch Tuesday' release of security updates for Windows and other software has been fairly quiet this month - with… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/quiet-patch-tuesday/

Yahoo!-owned ad firm serves up trojans

Infectious flash adverts displayed on major sites.
Infectious flash adverts displayed on major sites. Advertising supplied by ad firm Right Media, a company bought out by web giant Yahoo! earlier this year after an initial… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/yahoo-owned-ad-firm-serves-trojans/

AOL quietly drops free-to-all AV offering

Gratis software now for members only, old users may be at risk.
Gratis software now for members only, old users may be at risk. A month ago we reported on AOL's switch of providers for its free anti-virus software offering, from the… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/aol-quietly-drops-free-all-av-offering/

New worm spreading via Skype

Multilingual malware posing as porn in chat messages.
Multilingual malware posing as porn in chat messages. VoIP and chat system Skype has been targeted by another worm, sending chat messages to harvested contacts posing as links to… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/new-worm-spreading-skype/

Minor flaws patched in Sophos AV

Security vulnerabilities found and fixed.
Security vulnerabilities found and fixed. Two separate flaws have been reported in Sophos's anti-virus engine, affecting most of its product range and allowing security bypass and… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/minor-flaws-patched-sophos-av/

Storm DDoS hits anti-scam sites

419 fighters attacked - NFL and TOR latest spam hooks.
419 fighters attacked - NFL and TOR latest spam hooks. The massive botnet amassed by the 'Storm' (Zhelatin/Nuwar/Dorf/etc.) attack continues to target new victims, with the TOR… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/storm-ddos-hits-anti-scam-sites/

Kaspersky-Zango case heralded as groundbreaking

Judge sets precedent upholding users' rights to block badware.
Judge sets precedent upholding users' rights to block badware. A lawsuit brought by adware-pusher Zango against Kaspersky Lab was dismissed last week, with the judge in the case… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/kaspersky-zango-case-heralded-groundbreaking/

Cybercrime rivals real-world crime rates

Researchers estimate 3 million online crimes committed in UK last year.
Researchers estimate 3 million online crimes committed in UK last year. A research group has issued a report estimating levels of cybercrime in the UK during 2006, finding that an… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/cybercrime-rivals-real-world-crime-rates/

Spamhaus $11 million fine thrown out

Appeal court quashes earlier e360 compensation ruling.
Appeal court quashes earlier e360 compensation ruling. Anti-spam operation Spamhaus, previously ordered to pay $11 million to mass-mailing firm e360 Insight after refusing to… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/spamhaus-11-million-fine-thrown-out/

China denies Pentagon hacking claims

'Hacked by Chinese' row rumbles on.
'Hacked by Chinese' row rumbles on. The Chinese government has vigorously denied accusations, made in a report in UK newspaper The Financial Times on Monday, that Chinese hackers… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/china-denies-pentagon-hacking-claims/

MS gaining fast in AV-Comparatives tests

Detection rates up 7% in six months, more improvement predicted.
Detection rates up 7% in six months, more improvement predicted.AV-Comparatives have released the results of their latest test of detection rates, pitting 17 scanners already known… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2007/09/ms-gaining-fast-av-comparatives-tests/

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