New MyloBot Malware Variant Sends Sextortion Emails Demanding $2,732 in Bitcoin

A new version of the MyloBot malware has been observed to deploy malicious payloads that are being used to send sextortion emails demanding victims to pay $2,732 in digital currency. MyloBot, first detected in 2018, is known to feature an array of sophisticated anti-debugging capabilities and...

How to avoid being scammed this Valentine’s Day

With Valentines Day approaching, you can be sure that the scammers will want to take advantage of lovebirds everywhere. From romance scams and sextortion, to fake dating sites and phishing campaigns, heres how to avoid a sting in the tail this Valentines Day. Romance scams Stories of online roman...

Software engineer hacked webcams to spy on girls—Here’s how to protect yourself

A 32 year-old software engineer has been sentenced to two years and two months in prison for remotely accessing chat logs, photos, videos, and webcams of his female victims. For nine years, between 2010 to 2019, Robert Davies used malware to infiltrate his targets devices and access their data...

How social media mistakes can impact cybersecurity

We talked to members of our Malware Removal Support team and asked them what kind of problems they get asked to solve for our customers. To understand why they get to handle these questions, it is also necessary to know that the Malwarebytes software is unable to resolve the problems users are...

A week in security (Sept 6 – Sept 12)

Last week on Malwarebytes Labs Apple delays plans to search devices for child abuse imagery. ProtonMail hands user’s IP address and device info to police, showing the limits of private email. Patch now! Netgear fixes serious smart switch vulnerabilities. Tor vs VPN—What is the difference? Windows...

Sextortion on the rise, warns FBI

The pandemic saw a surge in sextortion cases in 2020. Fast forward 12 months, and the numbers continue to rise significantly. This revelation came from the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center IC3. Until 31 July 2021, it had received over 16,000 sextortion complaints, with victims losing a combine...

A week in security (January 4 – January 10)

Last week on Malwarebytes Labs, we released survey results about VPN usage and found that 36 percent of our respondents use it. We also talked about Adobe Flash Player reaching its end of life—meaning, Adobe wont be supporting the updating and patching of its Flash Player software; covered the...

“I have full control of your device”: Sextortion scam rears its ugly head in time for 2021

Malwarebytes recently received a report about a fresh spate of Bitcoin sextortion scam campaigns doing the rounds. Bitcoin sextortion scams tend to email you to say theyve videoed you on your webcam performing sexual acts in private, and ask you to pay them amount in Bitcoin to keep the video whi...

Beware: not so festive social media scams

We’re now into the most crucial stage of Christmas festivities, where money and gifts are on the march…and social media is a conduit for both good and bad tidings. This is the absolute best time for social media scammers to make their move. A little confidence trick here, the promise of good chee...

Leader of biggest online sextortion ring ‘Nth Room’ jailed for 40 years

By Waqas Cho Ju-Bin was accused of forcing at least 74 females, including 16 minors, into Virtual Enslavement on Nth Room to produce explicit content. This is a post from HackRead.com Read the original post: Leader of biggest online sextortion ring Nth Room jailed for 40 years...

Tech Support Scam Uses Child Porn Warning

A new email scam is making the rounds, warning recipients that someone using their Internet address has been caught viewing child pornography. The message claims to have been sent from Microsoft Support, and says the recipient's Windows license will be suspended unless they call an "MS Support"...

What to do when you receive an extortion email

In the last few weeks, there has been an upswing in people receiving threatening, extortion email messages, demanding payment to avoid release of sensitive information. Most of the time, these emails are what we call "sextortion" emails, as they claim that malware on your computer has captured...

‘Black Rose Lucy’ is Back, Now Pushing Ransomware

Cybercriminals behind the Android-based dropper malware Black Rose Lucy have shifted attacks from info-stealing to ransomware – with a sextortion twist. The malware family, operated by the Lucy Gang, encrypts targeted Android devices and delivers a spoofed FBI message. The ransom note claims the...

Friend’s girlfriend sextortion scam infects PCs with Raccoon malware

By Deeba Ahmed Hackers are using supposed nude photos of a friend's girlfriend in the latest sextortion scam - Here's what's happening... This is a post from HackRead.com Read the original post: Friend's girlfriend sextortion scam infects PCs with Raccoon malware...

Cyber tips for safe online dating: How to avoid privacy gaffs, exploits, and scams

Research and reporting on this article were conducted by Labs writers Chris Boyd and David Ruiz. Dating apps have been mainstream for a long time now, with nearly every possible dating scene covered—casual, long-term, gay, poly, of the Jewish faith, interested only in farmers—whatever you're...

A week in security (January 20 – 26)

Last week on Malwarebytes Labs, we reported on a Ryuk ransomware attack on The Tampa Bay Times, a newspaper in Florida; unmasked an elaborate browser locking scheme behind the more advanced tech support operations that are currently active; and looked at the latest laws on regulating deepfakes...

New sextortion scam claims to record you with hacked Google Nest cam

By Waqas The difference between conventional sextortion campaigns and this one is that the victim has to go through... This is a post from HackRead.com Read the original post: New sextortion scam claims to record you with hacked Google Nest cam...

Nuclear Bot Author Arrested in Sextortion Case

Last summer, a wave of sextortion emails began flooding inboxes around the world. The spammers behind this scheme claimed they'd hacked your computer and recorded videos of you watching porn, and promised to release the embarrassing footage to all your contacts unless a bitcoin demand was paid...

A week in security (November 25 – December 1)

Last week on Malwarebytes Labs, we discussed why the notion of "data as property" may potentially hurt more than help, homed in on sextortion scammers getting more creative, and explored the possible security risks Americans might face if the US changed to universal healthcare coverage. Other...

Sextortion scammers getting creative

We've covered sextortion before, focusing in on how the core of the threat is an exercise in trust. The threat actor behind the campaign will use whatever information available on the target that causes them to trust that the threat actor does indeed have incriminating information on them. They...