Author Archives: francois paget

Bitcoin Headlines Attract Malware Developers

Bitcoin issues have been front-page news in recent months, especially after its surprising April exchange rate. In the latest McAfee Threats Report, for the second quarter of 2013, we discuss this topic. The following timeline highlights recent events about this virtual currency. In our report we noted the growing interest in malware Bitcoin miners: malware Read more…

Alerte aux Faux Sites de Vente en Ligne de Médicaments

Il y a quelques jours de cela, l’ordre national des pharmaciens signalait l’existence de sites illégaux proposant des médicaments, essentiellement des stimulants sexuels ou des pilules de régime, et utilisant des noms de domaine reprenant ceux de diverses pharmacies existant réellement dans l’hexagone. Ces arnaques se sont en effet multipliées depuis le 12 juillet, date Read more…

Short-URL Services May Hide Threats

In a recent post, AppAppeal ranked the most popular URL shorteners. The top five includes TinyURL, Goo.gl, Bit.ly, Ow.ly and is.gd. Unfortunately, these helpful services are also used to hide a large number of malicious URLs. This result has made me want to learn more about malicious links that may be hidden behind these shortcuts. Read more…

Syrian Crisis Reminds Us to Beware of ‘Charity’ Scams

The dismal situation in Syria has gained considerable sympathy in the rest of the world. Unfortunately, playing on our emotions is a typical strategy of cybercriminals. Today I received an email calling for donations to be made to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to help Syrian refugees. This mail appeared very professional Read more…