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“Antivirus XP 2008” scareware a lucrative “business”

A recent article in the New York Times reported that the people responsible for the “Antivirus XP 2008” scam and it’s successor “Antivirus XP 2009” can theoretically make as much as $5 million a year. This type of scam, often referred to as “scareware,” tries to trick the user into buying fake antivirus software by scaring them with false reports of infections. A naive user panics when the warnings pop up on their computer and hands over $49.95, thinking they will get software to disinfect their computer. Instead, all they get is a smaller bank account, a computer that is very difficult to repair, and a lesson learned the hard way.

The people responsible for this scam appear to be operating out of Russia so prosecuting the perpetrators is unlikely despite concerted efforts by law enforcement. They also pay a high commission to hackers who are able to infect computers with the scareware that result in a “sale,” which explains why the methods of infection are so varied and the numbers of infections so high – hackers all over the world are adding “Antivirus XP 2008” to their bag of malicious hacking tools.

If the $5 million a year figure is anything close to reality, it is no wonder we continue to be bombarded with scams, spyware, and malicious e-mail attachments and web links – those perpetrating these frauds and attacks are making a lot of money! As long as people continue to be duped by these scams and criminals continue to profit from them, the threats will only increase. Once again, the user is the key defense against these scams – think before you click, especially if that click requires you to spend money or provide private information!

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About Harvard Townsend (harv@ksu.edu)

Chief Information Security Officer