GOOGLE Chrome users need to be careful of an easy to fall for scam which has seen hackers walk away with millions.
Google Chrome fans have been put on alert about what links they click on when surfing the net after a number of terrifying scams were discovered.
Google Chrome is without a doubt the most popular internet browser in the world right now.
NetMarketShare stats for the whole of last year show Google Chrome as having a staggering 58.90 per cent chunk of the internet browser marketplace.
Its nearest rival, Mozilla’s FireFox, has a 13.29 per cent share while Internet Explorer is on 13 per cent.
Microsoft’s newer Edge browser, which is bundled in with Windows 10, lags behind with a 3.78 per cent market share.
These stats underline how Chrome’s crown as the world’s most popular internet browser is undisputed.
And fans of Google Chrome have been put on alert after experts discovered two terrifying scams.
The first directly takes advantage of Google Chrome’s huge popularity.
The sophisticated malware scam tricked users into downloading a fake Google Chrome browser installer, HackRead reported.
A link to the alleged Chrome installer appeared on Google search results after cybercriminals took advantage of the power of Google AdWords.
HackRead reported when the search term ‘Download Google Chrome’ was entered into Google, the first result that appeared was an advertiser link.
Once clicked on, it took users to a site.google.com link that has been developed using Google Sites service.
This is a Wiki and Web page creation tool offered by Google as part of their G Suite productivity suite.
It’s intended to create a team-oriented site where multiple users can collaborate and share files.
However, the hackers used the Google Sites tool to create a site that looked like an official Chrome download page.
However, HackRead said this file was infected with malware that installs programmes which can then receive commands from a remote attacker.
The scam was discovered back in December 2017.
And now, thankfully, searching for ‘Download Google Chrome’ in Express.co.uk tests conducted today brought up the correct, official Google page.
But while that threat passes, a similar scam that also uses Google AdWords has been discovered.
Bitcoin investors have been warned to be careful of what links they click on Google
In a blog post, researchers Jeremiah O’Connor and Dave Maynor revealed up to $50million (£35.64m) worth of Bitcoin was stolen in the past three years.
The cybercriminal gang, dubbed ‘Coinhoarder’, used “Google AdWords to poison user search results in order to steal users’ wallets”.
The researchers said the hackers helped spread their scam by purchasing advertising slots on Google AdWords.
So when a user searched for terms such as “blockchain” or “bitcoin wallet”, search results would display fake websites.
These fake sites carried the same design as the original page they mimicked, in an attempt to trick users into thinking it was authentic.
These fake results, which had names and URLs varying slightly to Blockchain, even appeared above the popular site because they were promoted links.
This tricked users into believing they were on a legitimate website, leading them to log in with their username and password.
But this enabled hackers to steal these sensitive credentials, and then empty out victims’ wallets.
The researchers wrote: “This campaign was unique in that adversaries leveraged Google AdWords to poison user search results in order to steal users’ wallets.
“Since Cisco observed this technique, it has become increasingly common in the wild with attackers targeting many different crypto wallets and exchanges via malicious ads.”
Source:www.express.co.uk