TELECOM Digest OnLine - Sorted: Phishers Lure Google Users With Bogus Google Cash Prizes

Phishers Lure Google Users With Bogus Google Cash Prizes

Jay Wrolstad (newsfactor@telecom.digest.org)
Wed, 9 Nov 2005 17:19:24 -0600

Jay Wrolstad, newsfactor.com

An online scam offering the lure of free money through a bogus Google
Web site has been uncovered by security company Websense, which
reported that the site was shut down about 30 hours after it was first
discovered on Monday.

The phishing attack employed a page that closely resembled the real
Google home page, with a banner message claiming "You won $400.00!"

Users were instructed to collect their prize money by transferring it
to a credit card. To do so, they were asked to provide their account
numbers. They also were asked to provide their home addresses and
phone numbers.

After the sensitive personal information was collected, users were
redirected to Google's legitimate Web site. The phishing site was
hosted in the U.S., Websense said.

Direct Approach

"This is a little different than other phishing attacks in that it
attempted to entice people into divulging their credentials and using
the Google name, as opposed to attacks that target banks or e-commerce
sites," said Dan Hubbard, senior director of security research at
Websense.

This particular phishing site did host other attacks targeting
financial institutions, he added, noting that the approach taken by
these criminals was fairly rudimentary when compared with attacks that
use a Trojan horse or log a user's keystrokes.

Attacks on the Rise

And the Google mimicry reflects a disturbing trend. A recent Gartner
survey showed that phishing attacks grew at double-digit rates last
year in the U.S.

In the 12 months ending in May 2005, some 73 million U.S. Internet
users said they received an average of more than 50 phishing e-mails
in the prior year; some users reported a dozen or more daily.

And an estimated 2.4 million online consumers report losing money
directly because of the phishing attacks. Of these, approximately 1.2
million consumers lost $929 million during the year preceding the
survey, Gartner reported.

"The standard security rules apply in protecting yourself from a
phishing attack," said Hubbard. "Don't click on links in e-mail
messages, type in the address of a bank yourself, run the latest
antivirus software, and obtain the latest security patches."

"And," Hubbard noted, "you can assume that anyone offering you some
sum of money on the net is most likely just a crook."

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