UAE Cautions about Malicious PDF Files Entering E-mail, WhatsApp Accounts

In the most recent series of malware, officials of UAE are currently cautioning the public for exercising vigilance as they click anonymous files arriving through the WhatsApp messaging application. Recently TRA (Telecommunications Regulations Authority) cautioned about malevolent PDF files dispatched from unnamed sources to WhatsApp else e-mail accounts which resulted in severe damage of smart-phones and other electronic devices.

Malevolent PDF files on the Web have dramatically risen in volume during 1915-17. This is because of malware authors' success acquired through the distribution of PDFs. The kind of threat isn't same everywhere because a variety of PDFs exist while there are various manners whereby malevolent PDFs are employed for hijacking PCs.

The TRA Computer Emergency Readiness Team previously declared that 615 cyber assaults in all had been targeted at private, semi-government and government entities within United Arab Emirates from January to October 2017.

The Telecommunications Regulations Authority is urging all users, from establishments to individuals towards being cautious to the maximum extent possible when handling anonymous PDF files, while referring to statistics by the worldwide PC security software firm McAfee that a considerable number of cyber assaults executed during the recent years accounted for PDF malware. Straitstimes.com posted this on the Web dated December 20, 2017.

In addition, the TRA is urging the users for maintaining backup databases to be done offline. It explains that cyber assaults are launched for blocking or defacing the websites of government through operations such as hacking, denial of service (DOS), fraud, deception as well as document and ID-theft.

The TRA has been conducting workshops, seminars and lectures as part of awareness campaigns for promoting best practices in cyber safety, while urging all departments towards maintaining backup of their data files offline.

Cyber assaults targeted at government websites rely on PDFs which particularly strike an organization or individual while frequently have certain social engineering components for making them seem as being from some genuine place, and so lure victims into clicking on the PDF files.

» SPAMfighter News - 12/30/2017