Cybersecurity Threats seen during Q1 2017 for Windows, MacOS and Android

By rahul, 14 April, 2017
Cybersecurity Threats

Even in the 21st century, people are entirely unaware of the functioning of the various malware that leads to cyber crimes. These Malwarebytes can quickly invade and destroy your system. With cybercrime on the increase, the lack of knowledge can put you at a serious risk. In such a situation it's advisable to learn about the various malware that is quite dangerous and pose a potent threat to your cyber security. Here are a few points that you need to know about the malware so that you can take precautionary steps to protect yourself from the sabers of cyber crime.

Windows

The only Malware which windows faced in the first few months of 2017 was ransomware. Some 2114 infections have been discovered from December to January on corporate endpoints on Windows 10 operating system. Ransomware is profitable and easy to deploy. The chances of it fading away from the system and market are quite low. Contrary to ransomware which dominated the Windows malware scene, Cerber functions beyond the large and dominant ransomware family.

Cerber is quite famous. The reason behind its popularity is that it follows a ransomware as a service model. Cyber criminals can easily buy a complete and customised ransomware package without any technical aid. The ransomware package which they purchase is already ready for deployment. All they have to do is leak them into the victim’s file, and their motive is served. Another reason which deciphers the popularity of Cerber is that it is quite difficult to locate. You can suspect that something is wrong with your system, but the chances of your finding the culprit are quite small. In such a situation all you can do is run your files in the sandbox or a virtual machine which is isolated from the rest of the system. That’s the only way you can protect your records. If the files do contain some malware, the sandbox will eliminate it immediately.
The malware developers are of course ahead of time. Around the end of March, they have planned on releasing a new version of Cerber called Trend Micro which shuts itself down in the sandbox or the virtual machine and remains undetected even there.

MacOS

Ransomware made its appearance on MacOS much later. Around the start of 2017 one new form of Mac ransomware was discovered. The trouble began with the discovery of FindZip on a piracy site posing as a medium to crack into Microsoft Office and other programs. Malicious backdoors are increasing in number, and there was a marked increase in them into the MacOS.
Soon even the Mac App Store got infested with malware programs. PUPS are the main culprits behind this. They are known to drop malware on Macs. The various virus protection software has potentially tried to fight against this malware but without any success. Apple hasn’t done anything about it yet. Users with iCloud accounts have reported various malware attacks which have done considerable damage to their files. They have even complained of obtaining fake messages from Apples notifying the users that they have lost access to their accounts. These false messages and email provided the users with a link which directed them directly on the infected malware site.

Android

Device Administrator was developed to enable Enterprise application developer to install improved security measures on their devices. This has proved to be a big drawback as the cybercriminals are using this as a medium to sneak into the Android devices and exercise control over them. Whenever you install an app you must have noticed that upon launching the app a screen pops up asking to activate Device Administrator. Since most of the people are unaware of the functions of a device administrator, they mindlessly click on the accept button. Device manager locks an app so that it cannot be removed from the system. This acts as a boon to the cyber criminals. All they have to do is install irremovable malware on the user’s device and the damage will be done. Since now you cannot even remove the affected application, the malware will soon spread into the system and create havoc on your device.