Security experts have identified a new strain of malware, dubbed Lucifer, that targets Windows systems with crypto-jacking and distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks.
DDoS attacks involve sending a large amount of traffic to one location (devices, servers, networks) in order to slow the processes down to the point where whatever is being attacked it unusable. These attacks work by drowning a system with requests for data. The result is available system resources become overwhelmed and the service crashes.
Cryptojacking is simply the unauthorised use of someone else’s computer to mine cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin or XMR. What’s dangerous about these attacks is that they use as much of the computer’s internal resources as it can which has the potential to heat up the device further than it can handle, causing your device to overheat or in the worst case, break completely.
The never-before-seen malware initially tries to infect PCs by bombarding them with exploits in hopes that one of the exploits in a list of unpatched vulnerabilities works. While patches for all the high-risk bugs exist, companies are still impacted by the malware because they had not applied the fixes.
This malware is another reminder on how important it is to always keep systems up to date as these attacks can be prevented your systems have the latest security updates. It is important to remember that your only as strong as your weakest link, and if that link fails, it could be devastating for you and your business. Keep systems up to date, always ensure you have strong credentials, and have a reputable antivirus that updates its threat library regularly.
Cyber Wise has a variety of tools and courses to help you and your team understand the importance of keeping secure. Click here now to speak to us about how we can help.