Unfortunately, unsuspected freelancers are falling for the malware scam.
Fiverr and Freelancer.com are two of the most popular websites for freelancers and clients looking for skilled professionals. Currently, both sites have millions of registered users from hundreds of countries and that makes them lucrative targets for cybercriminals.
Recently, security researchers at MalwareHunterTeam have discovered a new piece of malware that has been targeting unsuspected freelancers on Fiverr and Freelancer.com which means that millions of unsuspected users are currently at risk.
According to analysis shared by MalwareHunterTeam on their Twitter account, attackers are sending malicious attachments “My details.doc,” to freelancers disguising as clients claiming to offer a new job and to view the job requirements, a freelancer is required to click on the malicious documents.
Saw an NG actor using @fiverr to spread.
And in this case, the poor girl opened the doc…
People, if you are opening files from random people, at least have an AV installed. And of course, don’t enable macros… pic.twitter.com/nfC3ahmMUj— MalwareHunterTeam (@malwrhunterteam) September 21, 2018
Once clicked, The recipient is asked to enable macros which work as malware dropper. MalwareHunterTeam has urged users to refrain from enabling macros and keep their anti-virus software activated once digging into new files. For instance, one of the victims who had their anti-virus software enabled was able to detect the malicious document.
“He contacted dozens of people,” said MalwareHunterTeam while referring to the attacker. And he actually spends the time to reply to everyone who told him something wrong / not opens / etc, asking what is wrong, explain what to do (or in other words, how to get infected…), etc.”
Fiverr has reached HackRead with an official statement according to which:
“Operating across 190 countries and with millions of community members, Fiverr uses the latest anti-fraud and data security measures to protect everyone who relies on our platform against malware and other attacks. Any attempts to publish or send malicious content with the intent to compromise another member’s account or computer environment is strictly prohibited on Fiverr, and we act aggressively against it.”
Freelancer.com has also reached HackRead with official statement according to which:
“Freelancer.com has over 30 million users in more than 247 countries, regions, and territories around the world, all of whom are protected by a range of the most up to date and sophisticated security and quality assurance measures available,” said Leon Spencer, director of communications at Freelancer.com.
“Any activity that breaches the Freelancer.com terms and conditions, including inappropriate or fraudulent activity on the marketplace, will not be tolerated in any form, and immediate action will be taken against people found to be engaging in such activity.”
Previously, malware like GravityRAT, Parasite HTTP and Kronos used similar methods to infect their victims. Therefore, if you are a freelancer at Fiver, Freelancer.com or any other such forum watch out for such attacks, install an anti-virus software on your system and keep it enabled at all times. Here is a list of 10 powerful but not yet promoted antivirus for PC, Mac, Android, and iPhone. Stay safe online.
Image credit: Depositphotos
