GMAIL and Outlook user have been cautioned about a malicious bug that has robbed people of millions of dollars.
Users were warned by the FBI about the dangerous bus that has been used to expose peoples’ private information.
GettyGmail and Outlook users were warned about a phishing scam that cost them millions[/caption] GettyCybercriminals were holding peoples’ data ransom unless they paid a price[/caption]Over 300 people were affected by the “Medusa” bug or the “ransomware-as-a-service” which has plagued several email users since 2021, as stated in an FBI advisory.
The advisory revealed that those who worked for Medusa developers were paid to scam people on the internet.
“Potential payments between $100 USD and $1 million USD are offered to these affiliates with the opportunity to work exclusively for Medusa,” the advisory reads.
The cyber criminals had two main tactics to scam Gmail and Outlook users — phishing and exploiting unpatched software.
Phishing is when attackers trick people into handing over personal information by having them, knowingly or unknowingly, install malware such as viruses, worms, adware, or ransomware.
In 2022, over 500 million fell victim to phishing attacks, as reported by Forbes.
Phishing scams are most prevalent over email, but criminals are now pivoting to text messages and phone calls too.
When cybercriminals use known security flaws in software to gain unauthorized access, steal data, or disrupt operations — that is called exploiting unpatched software.
Victims are usually given 48 hours to pay a hefty fee in exchange for their privacy.
After that, Medusa scammers will reach out directly by phone or email for the ransom.
In one extreme case, one victim was targeted three times after the scammers claimed the first payment was stolen and it needed to paid again, as reported by the New York Post.
The FBI did provide tips and tricks to avoid getting scammed in the first place.
The agency recommends protecting or storing all sensitive information on an external hard drive or storage device.
You can also protect your data by strengthening your passwords online — make sure they are lengthy and different for each account.
What is phishing?
Here's what you need to know...
Phishing is a type of online fraud It’s typically an attempt to nab some of your data Phishing generally involves scammers posing as a trustworthy entity For instance, fraudsters could send you an email claiming to be your bank, asking for details Scammers can also set up fake websites that look like real ones, simply to hoodwink you Phishing can take place over email, social media, texts, phone calls and more The best defence against phishing is to be generally sceptical of weblinks and emails, especially if they were unsolicitedTo be extra safe, users should implement a multi-factor authentication process to access personal information.
You can even implement tools that will identify or investigate suspicious activity for you.
“To aid in detecting the ransomware, implement a tool that logs and reports all network traffic, including lateral movement activity on a network,” the FBI stated.
“Endpoint detection and response (EDR) tools are particularly useful for detecting lateral connections as they have insight into common and uncommon network connections for each host.”
Cyber crimes aren’t something that consumers or companies should take lightly.
In 2024, increasingly complex and common data breaches cost companies nearly $5 million globally, as reported by Reuters.
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