Privacy, Security & Virus Information

Web Surfers Beware. An Avalanche Awaits You

Such is the wide spread and sophisticated nature of computer hacking these days that there are even international groups who control the intensity of their virus attacks whenever the feel the "heat" from the authorities whose role it is to put a stop to their activities and apprehend the people behind the attack. One of the most widespread and difficult to pin down internet cybercrime conspiracies known as Avalanche who first began their online activities late in 2008, and were very active for about a year before vanishing in October 2009. For the past six months or so, the Anti-Phishing Working Group (APWG) have been on the hunt for the people behind the Avalanche group, who are believed to be based in several countries, anywhere between Eastern Europe and China. Avalanche at their peak were reckoned to be one of the leading cyber crime cartels, engaged in identity theft and using the stolen identities to empty their victim's bank accounts. From a peak of over twenty five thousand attacks in October 2009, Avalanche's activities over the Internet have almost totally ceased. However APWG are now convinced that self imposed lull was to allow Avalanche to regroup and re-organise and a fresh wave of attacks are very imminent.

Internet crime is a global problem and the various authorities whose role it is to prevent its spread constantly involve themselves in trying to understand how these organisations operate. Obviously there are some very talented software engineers involved, who may work as free agents for the large organisations who finance the setting up of these phishing groups, take the profits and run, then set up another group, usually more sophisticated, to launch a fresh round of attacks.

A spokesman for APWG announced that the people behind Avalanche were one of the most sophisticated and damaging criminal entities ever to appear on the Internet, who had cynically perfected a mass-production system for deploying phishing sites and 'crimeware' which is malware specifically designed to allow the automation of identity theft.

Whether the fresh wave of attacks will come from still remains unknown, however one thing remains for sure that it is on its way. As crimeware attacks become more frequent, and increasingly hard to trace their sources, the only protection is powerful and sophisticated anti-virus protection. The damage and inconvenience that can be caused by identity theft can be catastrophic and any money invested in installing anti-virus software will be a drop in the ocean in comparison.

 

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