Fake Extension of Adobe Flash Player Update Serves Salacious Spam Ads

Security firm Malwarebytes has warned of a new bogus update of Adobe Flash player which causes legitimate advertisements replaced with spam and improper banners.

Malwarebytes claims that FlashPlayer11.safariextz is a fake extension of browser and it uses the correct logo of Flash Player and includes a hyperlink to the official Adobe website.

However, the application if installed, either introduces its own intrusive adverts or replaces the official ads with its own on the legitimate website.

According to Jerome Segura, a Security Analyst of Malwarebytes, the authors of this rogue application are tapping the lucrative business of web advertising by generating revenue from users who are clicking on fake adverts.

Scmagazineuk.com published a report on 19th August 2013 saying "Online advertising is a billion dollar industry and everybody wants to have a share of it and cyber-crooks are likely to generate lot of 'views' and pay per clicks with such invasive adverts."

Segura points out that these adverts are not only intrusive but they are also displayed indiscriminately.

Itpro.co.uk published a blog of Segura on 15th August, 2013 stating that once installed it will start injecting very rogue ads on any site that you visit.

For example, Segura says he visited pbskids.org, a children's site, to play online games and see their most beloved characters when out of the blue a pornographic ad was displayed on the website.

He adds that the extension of the maligned Adobe Flash Player is being inserted from different websites but in most cases it is from the web portals of adult.

Fortunately, this phony extension doesn't work on IE (Internet Explorer) but it works in Chrome, Safari and Firefox.

This nasty extension is competent of 'hijacking' genuine ads and replaces them with its own besides injecting adverts in every single page you visit.

For example, website of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's where the topmost banner was swapped with a dissimilar one.

Segura finds it exciting that cybercriminals are caching on the awareness of people on how essential it is to update software.

He concludes that Internauts should install all updates regularly from the official website of the vendor to shun such type of nasty surprises.

» SPAMfighter News - 8/26/2013