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Malware Robs Your Bank Account and Then Covers Its Tracks

by Caleb Johnson on September 30, 2009 at 02:18 PM

You might want to keep a closer eye on those bank statements. Hackers have developed a sophisticated and scary program that quickly alters online bank statements in order to hide exactly how much money cyber-crooks have been siphoning from the account.

According to Wired, the malware, called URLZone, infects a computer when the user visits a compromised site, or a site set up by hackers. Then, the program steals the user's bank account log-in information and begins draining funds that it then sends to other designated accounts. However, the victim doesn't realize the money is missing because the program rewrites the text in the html code. So, when the browser displays the page, it looks like either no money has been stolen or just a small amount has been transferred.

In just such a way, hackers stole about $438,000 from German bank accounts last August. There are ways to protect against this sneaky scam, like checking your account on an uninfected computer, where the numbers appear exactly as they should. Also, there's one tactic that many folks seem to have forgotten -- keeping track of your money with a pen and paper. [From: Wired]

Tags: banks, browser, hack, malware, money, online, scam, security, top, web

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