German PayPal Users are Targeted by New Vicious Phishing Attack
Posted by: Timothy Weaver on 10/07/2015 09:38 AM
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According to researchers at Trend Micro, a vicious phishing attack is currently running rife in Germany targeting PayPal users.
What the attack is attempting to do is get a victim to download what on the surface looks like the official PayPal app, but is actually a banking trojan.
The email consists of the PayPal logo, passable German, some basic clean design. If the app is actually downloaded and installed, the Trojan will ask to become a “device administrator”. This should be a warning to users.
The researchers warn: "Even if the user decides to not grant device administrator privileges, the malicious app will still disappear from the home screen and continue to run in the background. It is also removed from the launcher screen, making it almost impossible to interact with and/or remove."
"Once the malware detects the real PayPal app is running, it will put up a fake UI on top of the real one, effectively hijacking the session and stealing the user's PayPal credentials."
Trend Micro again urges users to practice caution in what apps are downloaded and installed, repeating the widespread industry mantra not to trust unsolicited emails that tell them to download an app.
Source: SCMagazine
What the attack is attempting to do is get a victim to download what on the surface looks like the official PayPal app, but is actually a banking trojan.The email consists of the PayPal logo, passable German, some basic clean design. If the app is actually downloaded and installed, the Trojan will ask to become a “device administrator”. This should be a warning to users.
The researchers warn: "Even if the user decides to not grant device administrator privileges, the malicious app will still disappear from the home screen and continue to run in the background. It is also removed from the launcher screen, making it almost impossible to interact with and/or remove."
"Once the malware detects the real PayPal app is running, it will put up a fake UI on top of the real one, effectively hijacking the session and stealing the user's PayPal credentials."
Trend Micro again urges users to practice caution in what apps are downloaded and installed, repeating the widespread industry mantra not to trust unsolicited emails that tell them to download an app.
Source: SCMagazine
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