With the Coronavirus spreading to new countries, causing a halt in air travel, and impacting the stock market, it’s clear that the situation is only escalating. Unfortunately, hackers often benefit and profit from public fear and anxiety, as they have been through Coronavirus-themed malware and phishing attacks.
Check Point Software has observed a noticeable number of new websites registered with domain names related to the virus. The sudden rise in domain registration is concerning, and the company anticipates that many of these domains are being used for phishing attempts, notes the cyber security firm
An example of such a website is vaccinecovid-19.com, which was first created on Feb. 11 and registered in Russia. The website offers to sell “the best and fastest test for Coronavirus detection at the fantastic price of 19,000 Russian rubles (about US$300).”
The most prominent Coronavirus-themed malware campaign was distributed in Japan through malicious email attachments pretending to be sent by a Japanese disability welfare service provider, according to Check Point Software. The emails appeared to be reporting where the infection was spreading in several Japanese cities, encouraging the victim to open the document for more information. When the document was opened, Emotet (a malware strand) was downloaded onto the victim’s computer.
