New coronavirus outbreaks are beginning to be targeted by hackers.
On March 5, the Wall Street Journal reported that there is currently a wave of criminals taking advantage of concerns about the epidemic of the new coronavirus to spread the virus or engage in fraud.
Cybersecurity company Proofpoint Inc. says the number of malicious emails referring to coronaviruses has increased significantly since the end of January.
Proofpoint's senior director Sherrod DeGrippo said the company recently specifically assigned an analyst to track coronavirus-related cyberthreat activities.
Proofpoint analysts have discovered that every day many emails mention this coronavirus.
These hackers forged emails that appeared to come from business partners or public agencies. The content looks like a company order for masks or other supplies, enticing employees who receive the email to wire the money to a fraudulent account.
The dearth of information about the epidemic, along with plenty of conflicting claims, provides an opening for criminals, said Ryan McConnell, founder of R. McConnell Group PLLC, a law firm in Houston.
"With the coronavirus, it’s a heightened risk because it’s a good vehicle for fraud and people are scared," he said.
Kaspersky Lab, a Russian-based cybersecurity company, said recently that the company detected 403 users using its security products that were attacked by 2,673 corona virus-related files.
Malton analyst Anton V. Ivanov said the company had not yet determined how the malware was embedded in the device.
Japanese residents became one of the first people targeted in January and February of this year, and they received emails allegedly from local medical institutions.
Screenshots and translations of emails provided by IBM Cyber Security show that the emails contained legitimate contact information for key personnel. IBM has been tracking these frauds.
The emails were packaged like responses to something or a government warning to the public, but actually contained computer viruses.
According to Proofpoint's analysis, the attacker has sent emails containing about 12 types of malware. De Gribo said that malicious emails referring to coronaviruses are more creative and complex than regular spam.
According to a screenshot provided by Proofpoint, one of the emails sent to a company in the transportation industry allegedly came from a staff member of the World Health Organization.
The email included the WHO logo and instructions on how to monitor the symptoms of coronavirus on board the ship's crew, as well as an attachment with instructions.
At present, the World Health Organization has noticed similar wrongdoings. The agency posted a warning on its website about corona virus scams and asked victims to report the emails they received.
A spokeswoman for the agency told the Wall Street Journal via email that WHO received feedback on phishing software that mentioned coronavirus almost every day. But she did not disclose specific figures.
Limor Kessem, an executive security adviser at IBM Security believes that communication in the public health crisis has also facilitated phishing because most large companies and municipalities rely heavily on email to communicate outbreak-related policies, and their Plans to address people who may have been exposed to the virus.
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