Tag: search engine optimization (SEO)

SEO Poisoning Campaign Targets 8500+ SMB Users with Malware Disguised as AI Tools
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SEO Poisoning Campaign Targets 8500+ SMB Users with Malware Disguised as AI Tools

A malicious campaign that uses search engine optimization (SEO) poisoning techniques to distribute Oyster, a known malware loader (also known as Broomstick or CleanUpLoader), has been revealed by cybersecurity experts. According to Arctic Wolf, the malvertising activity encourages phony websites that offer trojanized copies of genuine tools like PuTTY and WinSCP in an attempt to fool software professionals who are looking for these products into installing them instead. A backdoor called Oyster/Broomstick is deployed upon execution, the business stated in a brief released last week. By using the DllRegisterServer export to create a scheduled job that executes a malicious DLL (twain_96.dll) via rundll32.exe every three minutes, persistence is established, demonstrating the use of ...
AkiraBot Targets 420,000 Sites with OpenAI-Generated Spam Bypassing CAPTCHA Protections
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AkiraBot Targets 420,000 Sites with OpenAI-Generated Spam Bypassing CAPTCHA Protections

Researchers studying cybersecurity have revealed information on AkiraBot, a platform driven by artificial intelligence (AI) that is used to promote questionable search engine optimization (SEO) services like Akira and ServicewrapGO by bombarding website chats, comment areas, and contact forms. In a report sent to The Hacker News, SentinelOne researchers Alex Delamotte and Jim Walter claimed that since September 2024, AkiraBot had successfully spammed at least 80,000 websites and targeted over 400,000 websites. Using OpenAI, the bot creates personalized outreach messages according to the website's goal. The activity's targets include chat widgets and contact forms seen on websites run by small and medium-sized businesses. The framework shares spam content produced by OpenAI's large l...