Symantec Warns of Fresh Scareware

Eoin Ward, security researcher at Symantec the security company has issued an alert that fresh malicious software is presently circulating online.

The malware called Trojan.Fakefrag is being disseminated through drive-by download attacks. But, a difference between this malware and the standard rogueware or scareware is that the former pretends to cause the drive of hard disk to collapse with the help of numerous persuasive messages asking infected users to buy a spurious anti-virus application.

Observes Ward that Trojan.Fakefrag masks UltraDefragger, a scareware program created for extorting money via the simulation of errors on hard disk that actually don't exist.

Also it, by manipulating different Star Menu and desktop options, raises end-users' chances of ultimately acquiescing to pay for the UltraDefragger. Moreover, it doesn't allow the end-users to alter their background picture that automatically blacks upon performing a reboot of the PC, whilst the computer system's Task Manager too is deactivated.

And just as one can perceive, Trojan.Fakefrag will effectively trigger off UltraDefragger that'll naturally spot numerous "critical" faults on the infected computer's file system. Thereafter, a need for the fake 'sophisticated software' would arise for rectifying the faults through the purchase of the product at $79.50.

Remarking about this, Ward stated that the Trojan performed a truly persuasive task of making users believe that there indeed was something problematic. And when it cleansed the infected user's desktop off its files, it did the task quite prominently. Theinquirer.net published this on May 17, 2011.

Fortunately though, if an AV (anti-virus) that's up-to-date is run to scan for Trojan.Fakefrag as well as remove it from the hard drive then all files on it can be restored.

Worryingly, there've been false malware-removal programs along with de-fragmentation tools starting 2010 end, however, the new online dangers actually perform crucial alterations on the infected PCs for making it appear like their hard drive will soon collapse, indicates Symantec.

Additionally, it isn't just the Windows OS that scammers have targeted during May 2011 hitherto. In the 2nd-week of the month, say, Intego the security firm complained of an unprecedented scareware it discovered on Mac OS X.

» SPAMfighter News - 24-05-2011

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