Check your bank accounts on a neutral PC (account fraud reaches new lows)
The bad guys (TBGs) keep coming up with new ways to steal our money, and now they have reached new heights of sophistication.
According to this article, there is a trojan horse (malware, but not a virus - labeled SpyEye) that can infect your computer and hide fraud from you when you check your accounts. A keylogger (a small app that logs every keystroke you make) is dropped on the infected PC. Once you go to a financial site, enter your login information and any other useful information (useful to the bad guys), the malware then monitors your use of the financial sites. It also sends the login information to the bad guys.
Here's the kicker:
Once TBGs start taking money out of your accounts, their software on your PC intercepts the financial web pages before you see them and change the data on the displayed page so it all looks normal to you. In other words, they cut out their transactions (withdrawals) and modify the totals on the page so that you can't see what they've done! It may be several days before you find out what's happened!
However, their scheme only works if you are checking your financials from the infected PC. If you use a second PC to check, the bad software isn't on that PC and you will be able to check your accounts unhindered.
SO, when you go to monitor activity for your financial accounts, use a PC that is not the same one you use for actual transactions. That way, you can be fairly certain you are seeing the account information that is the same as what you bank sees.
As always, you must be vigilant. Don't leave all security to your Internet security software. It has limitations and flaws. Security is up to you.
Be careful out there!
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If you like what you read here, please LIKE my company on Facebook!
According to this article, there is a trojan horse (malware, but not a virus - labeled SpyEye) that can infect your computer and hide fraud from you when you check your accounts. A keylogger (a small app that logs every keystroke you make) is dropped on the infected PC. Once you go to a financial site, enter your login information and any other useful information (useful to the bad guys), the malware then monitors your use of the financial sites. It also sends the login information to the bad guys.
Here's the kicker:
Once TBGs start taking money out of your accounts, their software on your PC intercepts the financial web pages before you see them and change the data on the displayed page so it all looks normal to you. In other words, they cut out their transactions (withdrawals) and modify the totals on the page so that you can't see what they've done! It may be several days before you find out what's happened!
However, their scheme only works if you are checking your financials from the infected PC. If you use a second PC to check, the bad software isn't on that PC and you will be able to check your accounts unhindered.
SO, when you go to monitor activity for your financial accounts, use a PC that is not the same one you use for actual transactions. That way, you can be fairly certain you are seeing the account information that is the same as what you bank sees.
As always, you must be vigilant. Don't leave all security to your Internet security software. It has limitations and flaws. Security is up to you.
Be careful out there!
———————————————————————-
If you like what you read here, please LIKE my company on Facebook!
Posted by Sid Plait at 1/7/2012 11:04 AM 
Categories: OMG!, Malware, Cybercriminals, All, Internet, PC Security, Computers, Identity Theft, Bad News!, TBGs - The Bad Guys
Tags: Security cybercriminals cyber crime Internet security Online Security malware Microsoft Windows Trojan Horse infection security breach Small Business trojans virus anti-virus data theft home computer protection identity theft Personal Security PCs small business computer protection virus protection identity theft prevention individual responsibility online protection passwords Robbery terrorism Theft your wallet SpyEye Trojan Horse
Categories: OMG!, Malware, Cybercriminals, All, Internet, PC Security, Computers, Identity Theft, Bad News!, TBGs - The Bad Guys
Tags: Security cybercriminals cyber crime Internet security Online Security malware Microsoft Windows Trojan Horse infection security breach Small Business trojans virus anti-virus data theft home computer protection identity theft Personal Security PCs small business computer protection virus protection identity theft prevention individual responsibility online protection passwords Robbery terrorism Theft your wallet SpyEye Trojan Horse
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