A DarkSword hangs over unpatched iPhones

Researchers at Google have identified an iOS exploit chain, named DarkSword, that has been used since late last year by multiple actors to infect iPhones with malware in targeted attacks. DarkSword combines six vulnerabilities in iOS and Safari to deploy malware on the device. It demonstrates, on...

Reddit, porn sites fined by UK regulators over children’s safety and privacy

The UK’s online safety and privacy regulators are targeting companies that violate new age verification laws at both ends : Porn sites that did not keep children out, and mainstream platforms that profited from children coming in. On February 23, media regulator Ofcom fined porn operators that...

Refund scam impersonates Avast to harvest credit card details

A fraudulent website dressed in Avast’s brand is tricking French-speaking users into handing over their full credit card details—card number, expiry date, and three-digit security code—under the cover story of processing a €499.99 refund that was never owed to them. The operation combines live ch...

How to find and remove credential-stealing Chrome extensions

Researchers have found yet another family of malicious extensions in the Chrome Web Store. This time, 30 different Chrome extensions were found stealing credentials from more than 260,000 users. The extensions rendered a full-screen iframe pointing to a remote domain. This iframe overlaid the...

AI chat app leak exposes 300 million messages tied to 25 million users

An independent security researcher uncovered a major data breach affecting Chat & Ask AI, one of the most popular AI chat apps on Google Play and Apple App Store, with more than 50 million users. The researcher claims to have accessed 300 million messages from over 25 million users due to an...

Meta confirms it’s working on premium subscription for its apps

Meta plans to test exclusive features that will be incorporated in paid versions of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. It confirmed these plans to TechCrunch. But these plans are not to be confused with the ad-free subscription options that Meta introduced for Facebook and Instagram in the EU, th...

Fake WinRAR downloads hide malware behind a real installer

A member of our web research team pointed me to a fake WinRAR installer that was linked from various Chinese websites. When these links start to show up, that’s usually a good indicator of a new campaign. So, I downloaded the file and started an analysis, which turned out to be something of a...

DroidLock malware locks you out of your Android device and demands ransom

Researchers have analyzed a new threat campaign actively targeting Android users. The malware, named DroidLock, takes over a device and then holds it for ransom. The campaign to date has primarily targeted Spanish-speaking users, but researchers warn it could spread. DroidLock is delivered via...

“Sleeper” browser extensions woke up as spyware on 4 million devices

Researchers have unraveled a malware campaign that really did play the long game. After seven years of behaving normally, a set of browser extensions installed on roughly 4.3 million Chrome and Edge users’ devices suddenly went rogue. Now they can track what you browse and run malicious code insi...

New Android malware lets criminals control your phone and drain your bank account

Albiriox is a new family of Android banking malware that gives attackers live remote control over infected phones, letting them quietly drain bank and crypto accounts during real sessions. Researchers have analyzed a new Android malware family called Albiriox which is showing signs of developing...

How to set up two-factor authentication (2FA) on your Facebook account

While two-factor authentication 2FA is not completely fool-proof, it is one of the best ways to protect your accounts from hackers. It adds an extra step when logging in, which is a small extra effort for you, but it dramatically boosts your security. With 2FA, you’ll be asked for a special login...

Malwarebytes for Teams now includes VPN

Running a small business today can hardly be done from a single device, a single location, or a single network. Staying cybersecure is quite the same. To extend the security and privacy of small business owners, no matter where you are, Malwarebytes for Teams now includes personal VPN access, for...

Beware of Zelle transfer scams

As we have said many times before, falling for a scam can happen to the best of us. And it can ruin lives. In our podcast How a scam hunter got scammed, scam hunter Julie-Anne Kearns talked about how she had been duped by people pretending to be from HMRC, which is the UK’s version of the US...

OpenAI kills “short-lived experiment” where ChatGPT chats could be found on Google

A little-known ChatGPT "feature" is now gone. It could be a good thing. On X, OpenAI Chief Information Security Officer Dane Stuckey announced that OpenAI "removed a feature from ChatGPT that allowed users to make their conversations discoverable by search engines, such as Google." Stuckey called...

Fake DocuSign email hides tricky phishing attempt

On my daily rounds, I encountered a phishing attempt that used a not completely unusual, yet clever delivery method. What began as a seemingly routine DocuSign notification turned into a multi-layered deception involving Webflow, a shady redirect, and a legitimate Google login page. Webflow is a...

Malware-infected printer delivered something extra to Windows users

You'd hope that spending $6,000 on a printer would give you a secure experience, free from viruses and other malware. However, in the case of Procolored printers, you'd be wrong. The Shenzen-based company sells UV printers, which are able to print on a variety of materials including wood, acrylic...

Fake Social Security Statement emails trick users into installing remote tool

Fake emails pretending to come from the US Social Security Administration SSA try to get targets to install ScreenConnect, a remote access tool. This campaign was flagged and investigated by the Malwarebytes Customer Support and Research teams. ScreenConnect, formerly known as ConnectWise Control...

Security expert Troy Hunt hit by phishing attack

Internet security expert and educator Troy Hunt disclosed this week that he had been hit by one of the oldest—and most proven—scams in the online world: A phishing attack. Through an automated attack disguised as a notice from Hunt’s chosen newsletter provider Mailchimp, scammers stole roughly...

Oops! Google accidentally deletes some users’ Maps Timeline data

Google has admitted it accidentally deleted some users' Google Maps Timeline data after a "technical issue". As reported by Forbes on March 11, users started noticing that their Google Maps Timelines had completely disappeared. At the time, we didn't know anything about the cause of this issue...

What Google Chrome knows about you, with Carey Parker (Lock and Code S06E06)

This week on the Lock and Code podcast … Google Chrome is, by far, the most popular web browser in the world. According to several metrics, Chrome accounts for anywhere between 52% and 66% of the current global market share for web browser use. At that higher estimate, that means that, if the 5.5...

A week in security (March 3 – March 9)

Last week on Malwarebytes Labs: TikTok: Major investigation launched into platform’s use of children’s data PayPal scam abuses Docusign API to spread phishy emails Android zero-day vulnerabilities actively abused. Update as soon as you can I spoke to a task scammer. Here’s how it went Android...

Google now allows digital fingerprinting of its users

In the ongoing saga that is Google’s struggle to replace tracking cookies, we have entered a new phase. But whether that’s good news is another matter. For years, Google has been saying it will phase out the third-party tracking cookies that power much of its advertising business online, proposin...

Apple fixes zero-day vulnerability used in “extremely sophisticated attack”

Apple has released an emergency security update for a vulnerability which it says may have been exploited in an "extremely sophisticated attack against specific targeted individuals.” The update is available for: iOS 18.3.1 and iPadOS 18.3.1 - iPhone XS and later, iPad Pro 13-inch, iPad Pro...

Malicious ad distributes SocGholish malware to Kaiser Permanente employees

On December 15, we detected a malicious campaign targeting Kaiser Permanente employees via Google Search Ads. The fraudulent ad masquerades as the health care company's HR portal used to check for benefits, download paystubs and other corporate related tasks. We believe the threat actors' intent...

An air fryer, a ring, and a vacuum get brought into a home. What they take out is your data (Lock and Code S05E24)

This week on the Lock and Code podcast… The month, a consumer rights group out of the UK posed a question to the public that they’d likely never considered: Were their air fryers spying on them? By analyzing the associated Android apps for three separate air fryer models from three different...

Why your vote can’t be “hacked,” with Cait Conley of CISA (Lock and Code S05E23)

This week on the Lock and Code podcast … The US presidential election is upon the American public, and with it come fears of "election interference." But "election interference" is a broad term. It can mean the now-regular and expected foreign disinformation campaigns that are launched to sow...

Internet Archive suffers data breach and DDoS

A non-profit that benefits millions of people has fallen victim to a data breach and a DDoS attack. Internet Archive, most known for its Wayback Machine, is a digital library that allows users to look at website snapshots from the past. It is often used for academic research and data analysis...

Explained: Android overlays and how they are used to trick people

Sometimes you’ll see the term "overlays" used in articles about malware and you might wonder what they are. In this post we will try to explain what overlays—particularly on Android devices—are, and how cybercriminals deploy them. Most of the time, overlays are used to make people think they are...

You get a passkey, you get a passkey, everyone should get a passkey

Microsoft is rolling out passkey support for all consumer accounts. Passkeys are a very secure replacement for passwords that cant be cracked, guessed or phished, and let you log in easily, without having to type a password every time. After enabling them in Windows 11 last year, Microsoft accoun...

Malwarebytes Premium Security earns “Product of the Year” from AVLab

After blocking 100% of “in-the-wild” malware samples that were deployed in multiple, consecutive third-party tests conducted by the AVLab Cybersecurity Foundation, Malwarebytes Premium Security has earned “Product of the Year.” The recognition cements Malwarebytes Premium Security’s perfect recor...

Kaiser health insurance leaked patient data to advertisers

Health insurance giant Kaiser has announced it will notify millions of patients about a data breach after sharing patients’ data with advertisers. Kaiser said that an investigation led to the discovery that “certain online technologies, previously installed on its websites and mobile applications...

Giant Tiger breach sees 2.8 million records leaked

Someone has posted a database of over 2.8 million records to a hacker forum, claiming they originated from a March 2024 hack at Canadian retail chain Giant Tiger. When asked, they posted a small snippet as proof. The download of the full database is practically free for other active members of th...

35-year long identity theft leads to imprisonment for victim

Sometimes the consequences of a stolen identity exceed anything you could have imagined. Matthew David Keirans, a 58-year-old former hospital employee has pleaded guilty to assuming another man’s identity since 1988. He was convicted of one count of making a false statement to a National Credit...

Cookie consent choices are just being ignored by some websites

In news that is, sadly, unlikely to shock you, new research indicates that many websites ignore visitors choices to refuse cookies and collect their data anyway. Researchers at the University of Amsterdam UvA analyzed 85,000 European websites and came to the conclusion that 90% of them violated a...

ALPHV is singling out healthcare sector, say FBI and CISA

In an updated StopRansomware security advisory, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency CISA, the Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI, and the Department of Health and Human Services HHS has warned the healthcare industry about the danger of the ALPHV ransomware group, also known as...

FBI removes malware from hundreds of routers across the US

The FBI has used a court order to remove malware from hundreds of routers across the US, and alter the routers’ settings to prevent reinfection. The routers are malware-infected NetGear and Cisco small office/home office SOHO devices that no longer receive updates because they have reached their...

In conversation: Bruce Schneier on AI-powered mass spying

For decades, governments and companies have surveilled the conversations, movements, and behavior of the public. And then the internet came along and made that a whole lot easier. Today, search engines collect our queries, browsers collect our device information, smartphones collect out locations...

Windows 10 gets its own extended security updates program

The day that Windows 10 machines will get their last security updates is set for October 14, 2025. So if you want to stay secure, you’d have to upgrade to a newer version. Either to Windows 11, which is not all that different, but more demanding when it comes to system requirements. Or to the...

Meta sued over forcing users to pay to stop tracking

Meta is required to get users’ consent in Europe in order to show them targeted ads. For this reason, Meta has to provide European users with a way to opt out of behavioral advertising or face fines totalling $100,000 a day. Behavioral advertising are ads tailored to someone’s browsing habits and...

Why less is more: 10 steps to secure customer data

In an advisory aimed at the protection of customers’ personal data, the Australian Cyber Security Centre ACSC has emphasized that businesses should only collect personal data from customers that they need in order to operate effectively. While that may seem like kicking in an open door, it’s real...

Defeating Little Brother requires a new outlook on privacy: Lock and Code S04E23

This week on the Lock and Code podcast… A worrying trend is cropping up amongst Americans, particularly within Generation Z—theyre spying on each other more. Whether reading someones DMs, rifling through a partners text messages, or even rummaging through the bags and belongings of someone else,...

Watch out, this LastPass email with "Important information about your account" is a phish

The consequences of last year's LastPass breach continue to be felt, with the latest insult to users coming in the form of a highly convincing phishing email. Although the "unauthorized party" that compromised LastPass users' data was able to steal password vaults, it's likely that they are havin...

Microsoft Teams used to deliver DarkGate Loader malware

Researchers have found a new method by which cybercriminals are spreading the DarkGate Loader malware. Until now, DarkGate was typically distributed via phishing emails. The malspam campaign used stolen email threads to lure victims into clicking a hyperlink, which downloaded the malware. But...

New Security Advisor amps up security in minutes

Malwarebytes Security Advisor, a transformation of the Nebula customer experience, enables organizations to visualize and improve their organization's security posture in just a few minutes. "If youre not fully configured, you arent fully protected," says Jonny Rivera, Director, Customer Experien...

Minecraft fans beware: Players and servers at risk from BleedingPipe vulnerability

Minecraft players interested in modding are potentially at risk of compromise. A Remote Code Execution RCE vulnerability in certain Minecraft mods allows for malicious commands on both servers and clients. The vulnerability, named BleedingPipe, allows attackers to take over a targeted server...

Malwarebytes stops 100% of Advanced Threats in latest AV-Test assessment

AV-TEST, a leading independent tester of cybersecurity solutions, has just given Malwarebytes two Advanced awards for the ability of our consumer and business products to protect against the latest attack techniques. Lets take a deeper dive into the test and the results. Advanced Threat Protectio...

Removing the human: When should AI be used in emotional crisis? Lock and Code S03E09

In January, a mental health nonprofit admitted that it had used Artificial Intelligence to help talk to people in distress. Prompted first by a user's longing for personal improvement--and the difficulties involved in that journey--the AI tool generated a reply, which, with human intervention,...

FTC tackles tech support scams by chasing payment processor firms

A multinational payment processing company and two of its executives are facing a potential $650k fine as a result of allegedly processing credit card payments for tech support scammers. While this fine isnt exactly massive in comparison to some of the privacy breaches and other incidents seen do...

WhatsApp introduces new security features

WhatsApp has announced several new security features which include an extra check when an account is transferred to a new device. This check asks that users confirm the transfer on their old device. This should warn users in case there is a transfer in progress started by somebody trying to hijac...

"Log-out king" Instagram scammer gets accounts taken down, then charges to reinstate them

A fraudster going by "OBN Brandon" has been defrauding Instagram influencers and entertainment figures out of hundreds of thousands of dollars by taking down their accounts and then asking for money to get them back up again, ProPublica reports. OBN has been successful in his exploits taking...