information analyst

Russian hackers are stealing between $3 million to $5 million per day from US brands and media companies in one of the most lucrative botnet operations ever discovered.

On December 20, researchers from White Ops said the scheme, dubbed "Methbot," is a Russian operation set up to watch up to 300 million video-based adverts automatically every day.

These adverts, displayed on legitimate domains owned by companies including the Huffington Post, Economist, Fortune, ESPN, Vogue, CBS Sports, and Fox News, are used to generate additional revenue through advertising sponsors which help keep these businesses afloat.

However, White Ops says Methbot capitalizes on this revenue generation by targeting the most expensive advertising on the web -- such as full-blown video adverts on branded websites -- and is programmed to show signs of "engagement" to fool ad providers into thinking the content is being watched legitimately.

Faked clicks, mouse movements, social network login information, and typical "working hours" are all methods to keep the operation under wraps.

 

Learn more / En savoir plus / Mehr erfahren:

 

http://www.scoop.it/t/securite-pc-et-internet/?tag=cybercrime

 

Via Gust MEES