Spammers Exploit Gamers’ Interest in GTA V for Disseminating Malware

In an alert by Trend Micro, cyber-criminals are exploiting the buzz surrounding soon-to-be shipped PC edition of the Grand Theft Auto 5 (GTA V) video-game in disseminating malicious software.

It maybe noted that Grand Theft Auto 5 (GTA V) is one widely played video-game that the multinational creator and publisher of video games Rockstar Games situated within New York provided last September (2013). Players can already obtain the game via certain consoles.

Reportedly, GTA V is currently the target of spammers who're distributing junk e-mails bearing a caption "GTA V."

Security Company Trend Micro provides a sample e-mail that uses Slovak language. There are web-links inside the message along with one attachment. The e-mail's reader gets an invitation for acting like any beta tester while the video-game is played on Windows system. Nevertheless, it is a scam.

Essentially a web-link from the total embedded takes onto a phishing website, says Trend Micro. However, the greatest danger is the attachment which's a zipped archive that on clicking releases software labeled "Your-promo-code-in-app-rockstargames.com." End users on seeing the extension are likely to think it'll produce the Rockstar site, but actually it's one backdoor that the security company identified as BKDR_ANDROM.ATG.

A computer-player getting lured to become a quick gamer of GTA 5 through the invitation will actually lose than gain anything via following/viewing any web-link/attachment in the spam mail. If the attachment is viewed, there'll only be severe infection for the gamer whose information would get stolen from his computer. For, neither GTA V exists for computers nor is it known there'll be one in future.

Earlier, many spam assaults ran and spread malware based on Internet-games that turned out successful and popular. Games such as Grand Theft Auto IV and World-of-Warcraft too were leveraged in spam assaults, outline security researchers. Naturally, being successful globally, such games prove as highly profitable social engineering baits for duping Internauts, the researchers add.

Therefore like every time, users must remain watchful and cautious with unsolicited spam mails similar as above, so they must lookout for the one mentioned, while incase they receive it, they must avoid clicking it, advises Trend Micro.

» SPAMfighter News - 3/25/2014