Password-stealing hackers infect thousands of Web pages
Hackers looking to grab game passwords
March 13, 2008 12:00 PM ETIDG News Service - Hackers looking to steal passwords used in popular online games have infected more than 10,000 Web pages in recent days.
The Web attack, which appears to be a coordinated effort run out of servers in China, was first noticed by McAfee Inc. researchers on Wednesday morning. Within hours, the security company had tracked more than 10,000 Web pages infected on hundreds of Web sites.
McAfee isn't sure how so many sites have been hacked, but "given how quickly some of these attacks have come on, it does seem like some automation has gone on," said Craig Schmugar, a researcher at McAfee's Avert Labs unit. In the past, attackers have used search engines to scour the Internet for vulnerable Web sites and then written automated tools to flood them with attacks, which ultimately let criminals use legitimate sites to serve up their malicious code.
The infected Web sites look no different than before, but the attackers have added a small bit of JavaScript code that redirects visitors' browsers to an invisible attack launched from the China-based servers. This same technique was used a year ago, when attackers infected the Web sites of the Miami Dolphins and Dolphins Stadium just prior to Super Bowl XLI.
The attack code takes advantage of bugs that have already been patched, so users whose software is up to date are not at risk. However, McAfee warns that some of the exploits are for obscure programs such as ActiveX controls for online games, which users may not think to patch.
If the code is successful, it then installs a password-stealing program on the victim's computer that looks for passwords for a number of online games, including The Lord of the Rings Online.
These online game passwords are a popular hacker target, in part because many online gaming resources can be stolen and then sold for cash.
Widespread Web attacks such as this are becoming more common too.
In January, security vendor Finjan Inc. reported a widespread hacking effort that infected 10,000 Web sites with malicious code that attacked visitors and then installed data-collecting software on their machines.
This type of attack is attractive to criminals, in part because it can be hard to thwart. "It's more subtle than spamming a malicious executable file to billions of e-mail addresses," Schmugar said. "You allow the people to go to the sites that they normally go to and pull off a low-scale attack that flies under the radar."
Reprinted with permission from
Story copyright 2009 International Data Group. All rights reserved.
hackers
Additional Resources



Learn the important issues you must consider before starting your next mobility initiative. Get your mobility white paper from IDC now, compliments of Sybase.
White Papers & Webcasts
Share our Strength
Download Now
Lower the Cost and Complexity of a Mobile Workforce through Automation
Download This Resource Now!
Top 10 Things to Know about Data Protection
Download Now
Managing Mobility: Improve Data Security, Compliance and Manageability
Download This Resource Now!
Managing Secure File Transfer to Save Time, Money and IT Resources
Learn how companies are using innovative technology to overcome these challenges and improve user productivity by offloading e-mail attachments and replacing FTP with...
Ponemon Study: The Business Risk of a Lost Laptop
Download Now
Security Convergence Equals Network Security Cost Savings
Listen to IBM Internet Security Systems' take on network security convergence.
Airport Insecurity: The Case of Lost Laptops
Download Now
Disaster Recovery 2008: Reduced Costs and Improved Performance
How long can your Enterprise afford to be without your data? With an accelerated disaster recovery program, you never have to answer this...
