New Phishing Scheme Seemingly Looks Legitimate

According to researchers, a new pair of phishing scheme is out to steal Microsoft user’s Outlook credentials. The problem with it is that the phishing campaigns are seemingly innocent and legitimate. At first glance, one would think that the campaigns are indeed the real deal, but they actually aren’t. They are designed to fool people with their well-constructed landing pages that use SSL certificates as well as a windows.net domain. This makes it harder for the normal person or business to sniff them out without the help of an IT consultant.

With the fact that not everyone checks the URL of the page that their navigating is one major loophole that these phishing schemes take advantage. With the use of basic social engineering, users are led to the e-mail that carries the phishing URL. While most people who are tech savvy won’t really go beyond this, some who are not so into tech would think they are still on a legit site.

The body of the e-mail is designed to push users into “re-validating” their Microsoft Outlook account through the link provided. What’s alarming is that the website they are directed to is an exact copy of Microsoft’s legit site. This is the reason why all businesses should have an IT consultant Greenville so to make users aware of these scams online.

The second scheme is quite similar to the first one, although much less convincing. It leads users to revalidate their Facebook Workplace service account but the link redirects to a copy of Microsoft’s landing page instead. It is unclear if this was just a mistake on the side of the hackers or it is deliberate. Regardless, information security within a company should be on high priority. Businesses should always have some sort of protection for the data of its employees as well as for the entire business. IT service providers can make a huge different in terms of protecting your entire business online.

Get the right IT services for your company. Call SpartanTec,  Inc. today.

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Software Similar To MS Office May Include Hacking Vulnerabilities

A small but increasing number of individuals have switched to Apache’s OpenOffice as well as LibreOffice, which are clones of MS Office. These people believe that they can enjoy all of the functionality offered by the real thing but without having to pay the price as well as avoid the bugs, weaknesses, as well as the flaws that this particular product of Microsoft has been facing. The case is often observed as a low-hanging fruit by many hackers in different parts of the world, because of its huge user base. What they don't know is that they are compromising their computer security.

The problem is that this specific strategy has its own limitation. With the many similarities in terms of the functionality that are shared by these programs, they are bound to have codes that are similar in several ways. This is, as a matter of fact, what a lot of security researchers have been discovering.  

Alex Infuhr, an independent researcher from Austria, recently uncovered a vulnerability in both of the programs mentioned earlier that let hackers to co-opt the programs through what they refer to as path transversal. That lets the code to go beyond its existing directory and into another one. This could be achieved by sending infected files to unsuspecting users. They sole interaction that was needed was for the target to put their mouse over an invisible hyperlink, which is really easy to do. If you don't know how to keep your network secure, talk to an IT consultant.

When the word got out, John Lambert, who is also a researchers, offered more evidence of concept samples of the exact same problem. LibreOffice immediately offered a patch for the bug however, Apache’s Open Office continues to be vulnerable.

The main issue is that if you are using a clone of MS office believing that you can avoid most of the attacks on the real thing, you are not as safe as you think you are. Worse, the individuals who supposed to manage the code bases of these clones might not deal with the threats as fast or as decisively as those like MS Office.

That does not mean you should no longer use the alternatives for MS Office especially if you have already installed them in your network. You just have to remember that what you are using is just as vulnerable as the MS Office.

Secure your computer network. Call SpartanTec, Inc. now. 

SpartanTec, Inc.
Greenville, SC 29601
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Hackers Are Hiding Code In Images To Fool Mac Users

According to an expert ITconsultant, one of the hardest methodologies to detect when it comes to the hacking arena is steganography. For those who are unfamiliar with the word, steganography refers to the practice of inserting executable codes on images, making it difficult if not impossible to find.

The reason is pretty simple and basic. Virus scanners are made around the concept of finding text strings that comes with identifiable malicious markers and characteristics, however, images are not like that at all. However, if they are carefully made, they can provide similar infected payloads.

Lately, Apple users have come across this problem firsthand, thanks to a group that call themselves “VeryMal”. This group are focusing on Apple users. They use codes that are embedded in ad images that will redirect users surfing the web away from safe sites and onto unsafe websites, which are places where different kinds of malware thrive.

A Quick Overview Of How It Works?

• Hackers will buy an ad space on a safe website
• The will embed a code on an ad image
• The code that was embedded will run on a JavaScript, which will check if Apple fonts are being supported, and will determine is the device is an Apple of some sort
•  If the query yields positive result, the script will take the remaining code from the image, which will force the browser of the user to navigate to another URL as determined by the command code
•  The user will then go to a page that displays pop up ads, generally encouraging the installation of a certain update for some kind of update, which is most cases is for Adobe Flash Player.

Obviously, it is not a Flash update at all. It contains something that the hackers have set in place. It is a kind of trickery that has hijacked over five million web sessions, redirecting them away from safe sites. This is according to the newest research into the activities of the group, and what’s worse, there is no way to safeguard your computer against it but to be careful and monitor your web browser’s behavior closely. You can also hire a professional to improve your computer security.

In case your company is using Apple equipment, you need to make sure that your employees are aware. You should also get in touch with an IT consultant Myrtle Beach who can help you secure your computer against various kinds of threats.

Call SpartanTec, Inc. if you are looking for an expert firm that can help you secure your network and your business information. 

SpartanTec, Inc.
Greenville, SC 29601
(864) 326-5914
https://spartantec-greenville.business.site/

Cities Served
Greenville, Spartansburg, Mauldin, East Park, Overbrook, West Greenville, Greer