Hotmail Passwords Posted Online

Microsoft has confirmed it is investigating allegations that passwords to more than 10,000 Hotmail accounts were posted online.

Neowin.net reported the alleged leak that was posted last week on a site commonly used by web developers to share code.

The information has since been removed from the website where it was posted. It is presently unclear how the login information was acquired.

According to Newowin.net, the accounts…

Cyber Crime Pays Better than Drug Trafficking

According to David Freer of Symantec, cyber crime nets more money than drug trafficking. An identity is stolen every three seconds worldwide, and the stolen identity is often sold.

Hackers attempting to steal identities and bank information often use a variety of tactics. These include employing bots, malware and phishing scams. The stolen information is then used to either drain bank accounts, or is sold in an online…

Online Scam Exploits Soldiers

A series of false ads on Craigslist and Ebay offering to sell vehicles claim to be from National Guard soldiers set to ship out to Afghanistan.

The scams were discovered when prospective shoppers contacted the Illinois National Guard to confirm the unit was shipping out soon.

The ads are remarkably similar in the language used, however, the supposed vehicle for sale changes. The ads claim…

Record High for Malware

According to the Anti-Phishing Working Group, malware levels are at a record high.

Fake anti-virus software has increased almost 600 percent in the first six months of 2009.

The chairman of the APWG said, “The Internet has never been more dangerous.” The number of phishing websites has increased dramatically and the number of Trojans that target bank data has risen close to 200 percent….

Facebook Increasingly Targeted in Phishing Scams

Facebook is advising users of the increasing number of phishing scams that are perpetrated on the social-networking site.

Members login information is being stolen in scams and the scammers are using the information to solicit money from friends.

The phishing messages often claim to be sent from Facebook representatives that require the user to login to a fake page designed to look official. Another common technique is…

Phishing Worm on Twitter

A new phishing scam on popular networking site Twitter is spreading worms based on false links.

Users are invited by already hijacked Twitter accounts to click on a video link, where the worm then infects their computer.

Previously infected accounts are used to send an invitation to access a video to their friends. When the link is clicked, users are asked to submit login information on a falsified Twitter…

Phishers Add Sophisticated Chat Options to Scams

RSA Security recently detected an advanced phishing scam that uses a chat option to make the scam appear more legitimate.

The phishers use the chat option to solicit information from clients who arrive at the website.

The scam begins with an invitation to a banking website, which requires minimal login information. After that information is received, the phishers send a chat box to the client claiming to be part…

IBM Releases Report on Phishing Attacks

IBM has conducted a study evidencing the number of overall phishing attacks has gone down so far this year to 0.1 % of all spam email as compared to a range of 0.2-0.8% at the same time in 2008, however criminals are learning new methods of attack. IBM also asserted that spam email has not increased this year as it has in the past.

Kris Lamb, IBM Internet Security Systems…