9-11 malicious attacks hit the Internet today

September 11, 6:33 PMIdentity Theft ExaminerJoe Campana

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                      AP Photo/Chris Hondros, Pool

This afternoon the U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT), an operational arm of the National Cyber Security Division (NCSD) at the Department of Homeland Security, issued an alert warning of phishing and other malicious software (malware) attacks that take advantage of today’s historic recognition of the 9-11 terrorist attacks.

Fraudsters often take advantage of events including disasters and death to prey on unsuspecting consumers, for example Hurricane Katrina, the Asian Tsunami and the deaths of Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett.

According to the alert including a posting by Sophos, the SPAM messages:

• Include keywords and names related to the 9/11/2001 terrorist attack. For example, one attack refers to a woman named Tania Head who was in the Twin Towers when they were attacked. It’s a fabricated story.
• The phishing attack may prompt users with a fake virus scan that attempts to make users believe they have a security issue. The users are then asked to download fake security software that is actually malicious code.

Experts recommend that computer users should:

• Install anti-virus software, and keep its virus software up to date
• Recognize and avoid social engineering and phishing attacks