VirusTotal Reveals Apps Most Exploited by Hackers to Unfold Malware

In keeping with the newest analysis findings from VirusTotal, cybercriminals and menace actors are more and more counting on mimicked variations of real, common-use apps equivalent to Adobe Reader, Skype, and VLC Participant to efficiently conduct social engineering assaults.

Findings Particulars

Of their examine of malware, researchers at Google’s VirusTotal revealed that cybercriminals deploy quite a few approaches to abuse the belief customers have in lots of respected apps.

Essentially the most widespread tactic is mimicking legit apps to ship malware. On this approach, the app’s icon is replicated to realize the sufferer’s belief and persuade them to make use of the mimicked app. The aim behind this malicious new technique is to bypass safety options equivalent to IP or domain-based firewalls on units and unfold malware by way of trusted domains.

One other generally used assault tactic is stealing genuine signing certificates from legit software program distributors and utilizing them for signing the malware. Reportedly, since 2021, over a million signed samples had been declared suspicious.

Round 13 p.c of the samples checked by Google’s group didn’t have a legitimate signature when uploaded on VirusTotal for the primary time, and over ninety-nine p.c of them have been DLL or Home windows Transportable Executable information.

This occurs as a result of the method of analyzing the validity of a signed file will be abused by malware said VirusTotal safety engineer Vicente Diaz. This turns into regarding when attackers begin stealing legit certificates and creating an excellent provide chain assault situation.

The third approach is incorporating legit installers as a transportable executable useful resource into malicious samples to execute the installer when malware is run.

Associated Information

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Over 2 Million Suspicious Information Downloaded from High Domains

In keeping with VirusTotal’s weblog put up, ten p.c of the high 1,000 Alexa domains had distributed suspicious samples, together with the domains generally used for distributing information, and over 2 million shady information have been downloaded from these domains.

Regardless of the approach’s simplicity, Diaz explains, it could successfully keep away from elevating crimson flags for the sufferer. That’s why many channels have gotten widespread as potent malware distribution vectors. This consists of the distribution of cracked software program.

Most Abused Web sites and Apps

The highest three mimicked apps embrace the next:

• Adobe Acrobat
• VLC media participant
• Skype VoIP platform

Once they researchers examined the URLs utilizing internet icon similarity, WhatsApp, Instagram, Fb, and iCloud have been the 4 most abused websites.

“Adobe Acrobat, Skype, and 7zip are very fashionable and have the best an infection ratio, which most likely makes them the highest three functions and icons to concentrate on from a social engineering perspective.”

VirusTotal

Moreover, VirusTotal found 1,816 samples since January 2020 masquerading legit software program by hiding the malware in installers for widespread software program like Zoom, Google Chrome, Proton VPN, Courageous, and Mozilla Firefox.

Different impersonated apps by icon have been TeamViewer, 7-Zip, CCleaner, Steam, Microsoft Edge, Zoom, and WhatsApp. The abused domains included are discordappcom, squarespacecom, amazonawscom, mediafirecom, and qqcom. 

The rationale why attackers are utilizing these software program and apps is unknown as but however one cause might be their recognition, Diaz said.

Extra Malware Information

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4. Malware droppers for rent concentrating on customers on faux pirated software program websites
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