Malicious Coronavirus COVID-19 Link

Malicious Coronavirus COVID-19 Link

Hackers are taking advantage of fears surrounding the Coronavirus/COVID-19 outbreak by luring people into clicking links that download malicious software. One such instance is a malicious website link pretending to be a map of global Coronavirus cases masquerading as the legitimate site managed by John Hopkins University. This link (corona-virus-map[dot]com), infects visitors with the AZORult Trojan, which steals sensitive information such as browsing history, cryptocurrency wallets, and passwords/credentials, and more. This Trojan can also act as a gateway for more serious infections. Another potential scam includes phishing emails which pretend to have legitimate information but ask you to click a link or download a file. 

Precautions you can take: 

• Only use verified and reliable websites when looking for a Coronavirus Map dashboard, such as those by the real John Hopkins University or The New York Times   

• Inspect any links from search results carefully and do not click on or download any attachments from suspicious emails         

 

More Information: 

Forbes 

https://www.forbes.com/sites/zakdoffman/2020/03/11/warning-you-must-not-download-this-dangerous-coronavirus-map/#7ef1e0583253 

Business Insider 

https://www.businessinsider.com/hackers-are-using-fake-coronavirus-maps-to-give-people-malware-2020-3 

TechRadar.pro 

https://www.techradar.com/news/hackers-are-spreading-malware-through-coronavirus-maps 

The Hacker News 

https://thehackernews.com/2020/03/coronavirus-maps-covid-19.html 

SC Media 

https://www.scmagazine.com/home/security-news/malicious-coronavirus-map-hides-azorult-info-stealing-malware/ 

Krebson Security 

https://krebsonsecurity.com/2020/03/live-coronavirus-map-used-to-spread-malware/