Tuesday, October 05, 2010

iPod/Apple users

I don't know how accurate this is, but the advice contained therein stands to reason. If you use i-tunes with your credit card, be very careful.

Apple's popular iTunes platform has become a major target for hackers looking to steal credit card data from the service's millions of users.

Victims receive a cleverly-crafted email informing them that they have made an expensive purchase on iTunes. The user, having never made the purchase to begin with, is concerned by the email and naturally tries to resolve the problem – in this case by clicking on the proffered (fake) link.

After clicking the link, the victim is asked to download a fake PDF reader. Once installation is complete, the user is redirected to an infected Web page containing the ZeuS Trojan, which is specifically designed to steal personal data. This phishing attack was uncovered shortly after a similar phishing attack targeting LinkedIn users appeared last week.

When using services such as iTunes, it is absolutely crucial that users never go to the website via email, but rather from the platform itself where they can verify their account status.