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Hackers are using new and innovative ways to exploit and steal your data, which now includes a Google search result.
Just typing these words can get you in trouble
There is a major warning for people using the internet regularly and searching for information via platforms like Google. UK-based cybersecurity firm SOPHOS has warned about a new hacking tactic targeting users who enter certain words into their computer’s search engine.
According to a report by The New York Times, SOPHOS advises against searching for six specific terms, as doing so could heighten the risk of cyberattacks. One example cited is users who search “Are Bengal Cats legal in Australia?”—allegedly had their personal information exposed online after clicking on a top search result link.“Victims are often enticed into clicking on malicious adware or links disguised as legitimate marketing, or in this case a legitimate Google search,” the firm explained in a post.
In addition, the alert stated that hackers appear to target users who include the word “Australia” in their searches, indicating that citizens of the country are more vulnerable to these cyberattacks.
SOPHOS noted that customers’ bank account information and personal information are taken by a program called Gootloader when they click on the search result that comes at the top and appears to be authentic. Moreover, this application has the capacity to lock the user out of their computer.
The cybersecurity firm asserted that although the word “Bengal cats” may seem rather specialised, users don’t need to enter any malicious information to be vulnerable to these attacks and have their private data taken and shared online.
These days, cybercriminals use programs to snoop on clean and innocent Google searches employing a technique known as “SEO poisoning.” The Daily Mail has described this practice as an “insidious technique in which criminals manipulate search engine results to push websites they control to the top of the page.” SOPHOS advised anyone who may have been a victim of SEO poisoning to change their password as soon as possible and enhance their security systems.
Reportedly, Hackers steal people’s data and even take over their devices by using malware, which is software created expressly to damage computers, networks and gadgets. Malware comes in a variety of types, such as trojan horses, bots, viruses, worms, ransomware (which prevents users from accessing their computers unless they pay) and more.
