Spyware, viruses, & security forum: NEWS - November 13, 2012

Researchers in Norway have uncovered evidence of a vast Middle Eastern espionage network that for the past year has deployed malicious software to spy on Israeli and Palestinian targets.

The discovery, by Oslo-based antivirus and security firm Norman ASA, is the latest in a series of revelations involving digital surveillance activity of unknown origin that appears designed to gather intelligence from specific targets in the Middle East.

Norman's experts say the true extent of the spy network came into focus after news of a cyber attack in late October 2012 that caused Israeli authorities to shut down Internet access for its police force. According to press reports, that incursion was spearheaded by a booby-trapped email that was made to look as if it was sent by Benny Gantz, the chief of general staff of the Israel Defense Forces.

Security vendor Trend Micro suggested that the initial target of that attack were systems within the Israeli Customs agency, and said the malware deployed was a version of Xtreme RAT, a Remote Access Trojan that can be used to steal information and receive commands from a remote attacker. According to Trend, the latest iterations of Xtreme Rat have Windows 8 compatibility, improved Chrome and Firefox password grabbing, and improved audio and desktop capture capabilities features.

Continued : http://krebsonsecurity.com/2012/11/malware-spy-network-targeted-israelis-palestinians/

American Express customers are often targeted with malware-laden or phishing emails, mostly because when it comes to money and the potential loss of it, people automatically become anxious and are more likely to overlook otherwise obvious signs that the emails are faked.

The latest bogus AmEx email to hit inboxes is a warning about an aborted transaction / terminated incoming transfer: [Screenshot]

Unfortunately, all of the links included in the email will take the worried user to one of many compromised websites hosting the Blackhole exploit kit.

The kit then exploits an Adobe Reader and Acrobat vulnerability to drop an information-stealing Trojan onto the victim's machine.

According to Webroot, when this malicious campaign was first spotted and analyzed more than a week ago, the malware in question was detected only by two of the 43 AV solutions used by VirusTotal. Since then that number has reached 15, but that is still a very poor detection rate.

Continued : http://www.net-security.org/malware_news.php?id=2315

From the Symantec Security Response Blog:

Ransomware is a type of malicious software that disables the functionality of a computer in some way and demands a ransom in order to restore the computer to its original state. Recent variants use law enforcement imagery to add legitimacy to the warning messages. The malware uses geo-location services to determine the location of the computer it is running on and then, after locking the computer displays a message appropriate to that country. The message usually claims that the user has broken the law by browsing some illegal material. Figure 1 is an example of a ransomware variant that displays a message claiming to be from the FBI. [Screenshot]

The message states that in order to unlock the computer, "a fine" must be paid using one of several prepaid electronic money schemes. The fines can range from €50 to €100 in Europe, and up to $200 in the US.

Ransomware has been in existence since 2009 and initially targeted users in Russia and Eastern Europe. It has since become a global problem, spreading first throughout Europe and, in more recent months, has begun targeting users in North America. At least 16 different versions of ransomware have been identified over the past year and a half. Each version is not an 'upgrade' from a previous version, but rather a unique variant, associated with a separate gang. These gangs have independently developed, or bought, their own different version of ransomware. The gangs are not new to cybercrime; they have been associated with other threats and scams in the past such as banking Trojans and rogue antivirus programs. Ransomware has now become a more lucrative enterprise for them.

Continued : http://www.symantec.com/connect/blogs/ransomware-how-earn-33000-daily

Related: Mushrooming ransomware now extorts $5 million a year