Pop ups are not just annoying
If you have a good eye you might have noticed how the advertisements from Youtube, Facebook and other social networks had changed in the last month. You are probably seeing a bit more (A LOT) from political campaigns and things related to them.
If you find yourself browsing through a web page that has any advertisements your computer might be in danger, or your data for that matter.
Welcome to the sad truth
First of all, let's talk about what is exactly , malvertsing. This is basically when you get attacked by viruses when you click on a pop ud or an ad, and you don't have to necessarily click on them, just by going into a web page that contains them you can get infected by it.
Here's how it looks like
Just follow these simple steps:
- Let's watch a Youtube video
- Oh look! an ad! I'm just going to close it
- Nope, there's probably some code happening in the background , already stealing your information
Trust me when I say this, tons of websites had been attacked by this, Spotify , The New York Times, CBS and the list goes on. Because there's no way to actually control it. If you have the money to buy any ad then you're pretty much halfway there.
How do they steal?
I wasn't lying when I said that this happens even to the bests. And unfortunately there's not an accurate way (yet , because I'm hoping that in the future this gets targeted, at least easily). This is a fabulous way of stealing information because imagine it as this.
Someone wants to advertise on your website, they have the money to do so ... and Voila! That's it. If you use a fake bank account and you cover up your ip address then it's going to be really really hard to track you. Besides, imagine if ALL of the websites checked the advertisements that are published within their own page... it's like checking one by one before it goes live. I don't think that this is impossible but it takes A LOT OF TIME and A LOT OF MONEY.
If you are winning money through advertisements and then you are investing that money into security checks for them, then there's no winning there ... you see?
Also another cool thing ( well I know is not cool but you get the idea) it's the fact you can easily target certain profiles. By programming an algorithm that tracks your web searchers ... something as simple as "Military xxx" then based on this, if they are trying to target people from the government, with something as simple as this they can get you.
It happens, even to the bests
About two years ago these two major websites were attacked by a malvertising attack that contained a ransomware, which was contained in the pop ups and advertisements of the websites, I know what you're thinking ... What on earth is a "ransomware" well it's basically a type of "malware"which is short for malicious software.
Okay, now that we understand those two concepts let's move on with this sad story.
So what this ransomware did was basically target all the devices that contained a Windows Operating System, if you did, then it basically downloads to your device and blocks all of your data, so when you try to access it, they will ask you an amount of money for it, if you want it back of course. If agreed to pay, then you just simply had to follow the steps for payment. And that was it! As you saw on the last picture, these websites tried to warn people in all of their social media accounts. But the damage was done and they lost a HUGE amount of money because of it.
How do I stay safe?
If you read my last post (thank you very much by the way) you are probably going to roll your eyes when you read what I'm going to say next:
But this is no joke and I promise that even though it sounds silly and super easy it's something you should do!
Update your web browser when there is an available update. Download security extensions, have your antivirus updated (in case you are using one) , have an adblocker extension and don't browse through suspicious websites, even though you are dying to watch the newest season of Game Of Thrones... I know , I've been there, I'm not saying that I forbid you to do it ( because you can do whatever you want) but at least have an adblocker enabled when you do so.
Okay?
Okay.
How do I notice it in real life?
Now, if you are seeing any political ads , you are most probably mining your information to them. Because it's crucial to know the kind of audience they will be dealing to in the following months.
They need to know you, things as basic as your age, your geographical zone and the things that interest you. This kind of data is valued in tons of money, so it is a win - win for everyone involved in this. You pay for your ad , you get data in return and then you sell it, our you use it to your own benefit.
The whole word is based on data right now, so , in my personal opinion we should be more careful to the sites we browse in. I used to be naive and just because I wanted to a see a movie that was not on Netflix I decided it was a good idea to browse through pages such as stream2be and derivatives. The websites in which as soon as you log in and you get bombarded by a ton of pop ups are the most dangerous ones.
So next time your laptop or desktop computer feels "slower" or it's "lagging" you may want to go through your history, if you constantly go through the websites I just mentioned then you have your answer.
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