Endpoint Protection

In the past, spoofed news alerts have been used to carry malicious links or attachments. Spammers tap into the curiosity of the reader and attempt to trick them into clicking bad links or opening harmful attachments. This often results in the infection of a victim’s machine, unless it is properly protected by an updated antivirus program and firewall. We are currently monitoring spam attacks that employ the spoofed news alert approach, but contrary to the malicious approach, the news alert spam doesn't contain any URLs or attachments.

With these types of spam attempts, we try to isolate the reasons for such attempts and consider the possible outcomes for spammers using this approach. When we look at the received lines in these messages, we find them originating from diverse geographical locations, suggesting that this may be a botnet attack. So then, why are these messages sent? It may be because the spammers want to confirm the validity of a recipient’s email address, or perhaps it is a dry run of an attack planned for future spam campaigns. Spammers likely want to test their messages against anti-spam filters and to ascertain the probability of penetrating into the recipient’s inbox. Spammers may also want to simply raise the fear, uncertainty, and doubt (FUD) among email users. We also considered another possibility—that of a “misconfigured” botnet sending in messages without a call of action for the recipient. Whatever the reason, we are keeping a close eye on this trend and we advise users not to open any unsolicited news alerts.

Here is a sample message:

Below are a few sample subject lines that we’ve seen:

Police and protesters prep for NATO summit
Police use CS spray in Parliament
S. Korea: U.S. To Monitor Rocket Launch
Senator Collins urges financial stability council
US launches new fight against Afghan drug trade
Your Bank Has Failed: What Happens Next?
Former KB home chief pleads not guilty
France threatens G20 walkout
Iran, US find common cause on Afghanistan
Netanyahu says he wants full peace with Arab world
Disaster: Homestead, Fla., hit by foreclosures
Flooded N. Dakota Stares Down Snow Storm
Record drop in home prices keeps U\.S\. consumers glum
Study: Enforcement spurs rise in Web sex arrests
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