New IM Worm Targets Google AdSense
A new Yahoo Instant Messenger Worm hijacks users’ webpages in order to click on Google Ads that generate dollars per click for the hackers. It seems that Mesothlioma ads pay up to 13 dollars per click.
From the Register here:
Worm automates Google AdSense fraudClick-fraud menace spreads using IM
Virus writers have crafted a malware threat that serves up expensive Google AdSense web pages related to mesothelioma, a rare cancer caused by exposure to asbestos.
Industry workers affected by the disease have launched a series of lawsuits, a factor that means “ambulance chasing” lawyers pay through the nose to get a mention when searches for the term “mesothelioma” are made. The cost-per-click for the term “mesothelioma” is among the highest in the online ads business ranging from $4 to $13 and higher on various keyword bidding networks.
The KMeth worm, which targets Yahoo! Messenger users, directs infected users to a web site serving a barrage of Google AdSense advertisements related to mesothelioma. Financially-motivated malware writers apparently hope to cash on the ruse through shares in the resulting advertising commissions which we doubt will materialise.
KMeth exploits IE vulnerabilities to infect surfers who visit malware infested sites controlled by hackers, promoted through IM messages sent to the Yahoo! Messenger contacts of infected users. The “status message” in Yahoo! Messenger can also be also hijacked, presenting potentially enticing messages to their contacts, such as “check out my blog” in order to trick potential marks into becoming infected, IM security firm FaceTime reports.
On the plus side, the worm is likely draining the pockets of some ambulance-chasing lawyer types too, since they are the ones sponsoring the Google Ads.
