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New SpyWare Pretends to be Anti-Virus, Offers Fake Reviews

by Terrence O'Brien on February 24, 2009 at 10:23 AM

New SpyWare Pretends to be Anti-Virus, Offers Fake Reviews

Anti-Virus-1, a new bit of malware making its way around the Internet, has picked up a unique trick for fooling users; it spreads fake reviews of itself to convince users that it is a legitimate piece of anti-virus software.

Anti-Virus-1 is what is often referred to as scareware. It uses social engineering techniques to lure its unsuspecting victims into handing over information like credit card numbers and into installing even more malware. Anti-Virus-1 pretends to be a piece of security software called AntiVirus2010, and even redirects your browser to legitimate Web sites with fake reviews of it.

But Anti-Virus-1 doesn't stop with fake reviews. It also employs fake security alerts, copies the design of Microsoft Security Center, runs a fake blue screen crash, fakes a reboot, and -- finally -- hijacks Internet Explorer.

Running anti-spyware tools should remove the infection, and you can find complete instructions for disposing of it at BleepingComputer.com. [From: Ars Technica]

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Tags: anti-virus-1, hoaxes, malware, scareware, security, spyware, top

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