Lookout! There Is A Clever New Type Of Ransomware On The Loose.

Cyber scams seem to be a hot topic at the moment. And now cyber criminals have come up with a new trick that you need to be aware of. 

It's time to face the facts - they are good at what they do. They’re forever coming up with new ways to infiltrate your devices and networks to access your valuable data.

Fortunately, on the flipside, the defensive weapons continue to improve and get better to help keep you protected. Some email systems are now better at identifying malicious messages and threats, and even better with a spam filtering platform right on top.

But if your website has a contact form, which most of them do, you face a new threat. Cyber criminals are now using web forms to spread malware and here is how it works.

They ask you to provide a quote for them for your goods and services by posing as a potential new customer. 

After you email your reply to their request, they'll send you an ISO file that they say is relevant to your conversation.

Crucially, this file will not be attached to the email. They’ll send it via a file-sharing service, such as WeTransfer. This is a way to avoid your email provider's protection systems.

The person who is managing this conversation likely believes they are talking to a prospective customer, and so is more likely to open the files without thinking.

The fact that the conversation started with a contact form lowers their natural skepticism, and c'mon, who doesn't want the sale?!

Opening the file will give cyber criminals access to your device. And that can allow them to access your full network which can then lead them to launch a malware or ransomware attack.

A ransomware attack is something you want to avoid at all costs. It's where all your data is encrypted and it is then useless to you. And you have to pay a large ransom fee to get it back… typically in bitcoin, with absolutely no guarantees the payment will work.

From what we have seen, we believe that this particular form of contact form attack is being used more frequently. It may have first been tested in December 2021, and may now be becoming more popular.

It’s vital that you and your team check requests sent via your website are genuine and do not open any files received in an email unless you are 100% sure of the source.

Until next time, keep fit and have fun!

(TYYV) The Yada Yada Version:

There is a new type of cyber attack that is becoming increasingly popular. Cyber criminals are posing as potential new customers asking for a quote for your goods and services through your website contact form. After you email them a nice reply they'll send you an ISO file via file-sharing and yada yada yada you are now the victim of a ransomware attack and need to pay a lot of money, usually in bitcoin, to get all of your data back with no guarantee that the payment will actually work. Make sure you and your team check requests sent via email and do not click on any links you are not 100% sure of.