Sykpe, the popular VoIP program hasbecome the latest channel for scareware spreaders to peddle their wears.
Sean-Paul Correll, a security researcher at Panda Security explains in its latest disguise, scareware scams appear as spam messages sent to personal skype accounts posing from the origin account of ‘Online Notification’ claiming to have discovered infection on a supposedly comprised PC.
Once the user has been lured to the link site for ‘more information’, a fake anti-virus scan takes place that alerts the user that their system is packed with malware in an attempt to stir fear and trick people into buying a useless clean-up tool.
One particular ’strain’ of scareware detected by Panda disables all applications apart from the rogueware utility and Internet Explorer. The browser is left operational as it is needed for the victim to hand over payment for the release of their PC usually by providing them with a code to unlock the system.
Google has established a customer search page - www.anti-maladvertising.com - designed to assist customers of ad networks to uncover possible attempts to distribute malware through advertising, a concern highlighted by the recent New York Times rougeware attack
