The UK security firm SurfControl has issued a warning about the emergence of a new Trojan that impersonates the latest version of Google Toolbar.
This Trojan is primarily spread through phishing emails that appear to be sent by the world’s leading search engine provider, Google, which claims to offer information about the latest version of the Google Toolbar software. Accompanying these emails is a link to download the software.
When users click on this link, they are redirected to a fake website that closely resembles the Google Toolbar site. However, if users proceed to download the Google Toolbar software, they are actually downloading a Trojan.
The downloaded Trojan is, in fact, a Trojan downloader and serves as a trap set by cybercriminals to help them build botnet systems.
Once it successfully infiltrates a user’s system, this Trojan will download additional malware, turning the user’s PC into a “zombie”—in other words, a system that has been compromised by hackers. That zombie PC then becomes a part of the hacker’s botnet, serving their ulterior motives.
The security firm warns users to be cautious whenever downloading software from the Internet. It is advisable to only download from reputable websites. Additionally, users should always scan downloaded software for viruses. Each user should also utilize personal firewall software.
Hoàng Dũng
