Why you should be extra careful while searching about Coronavirus

Security experts say a spike in email scams linked to coronavirus is the worst they have seen in years. Hackers are writing city-specific malware to trap curious netizens.

As governments across the world are trying to minimize the the reak of Coronavirus, steps are being taken to limit public gatherings by cancelling public events, places, schools etc. According to cyber experts, since people want to be updated about these developments in their respective cities, hackers have been using city-specific messages which contain information about these government orders and asking users to click on link which takes users to an outside page.

In this latest example, an email intimating the closure of schools, colleges and cinema halls in Delhi is used to lure the user and draw them into clicking on a suspicious link. Once you click on any of the outside links, it will prompt the system to open a new outside web-page which might contain harmful malware.

Hackers are also pretending to represent the World Health Organization (WHO) claim that attached document details how recipients can prevent the disease’s spread. It contains a ZIP file attachment and will lead you to an external page which will end up installing an encrypted malware called GuLoader into your system, compromising your passwords and banking details.

Hackers are using fear-mongering tactics to encourage clicks and downloads.

HOW TO STAY SAFE:

A. Avoid the temptation to click on links shared via social media, instant messaging applications or any other source.

B. Do not open such emails if you don’t trust the sender. Never click on links in emails with Coronavirus in the subject line under any circumstance.

C. Report such mails to your email service provider or to your organizational security team.

D. Rely on known sources for healthcare updates (these include the official websites and social media channels of World Health Organization, union or regional governments, news publications of repute and your local healthcare professionals).

E. In today’s day and age, if someone wants to reach you with some emergency communication, they will call you or text you on using IM channels. They will not share any urls.

F. Keep all your software, OS, firmware and mobile applications updated. Do not skip updates.

G. Check the URL of websites carefully every time. A single typo could lead you to an infected website. If possible use search engines or previous bookmarks to reach sites rather than entering the URL text directly

H. News updates will anyway reach you it is just a matter of a few minutes. But if you click on a suspicious link, you could end up doing far more damage in the short and long term to your business\personal interests