Rootkits are especially one of the most insidious types of malware, allowing attackers to gain a foothold into the victim’s computer and pretty much enabling untethered access in terms of installing or removing applications, and even planting additional malware such as keyloggers, which are designed to intercept passwords and pretty much everything that’s being typed. Having the latest security updates and patches installed on your system is more than recommended as it prevents attackers from exploiting those vulnerabilities in order to plant their malware. Scranos a perfect example of rootkit-enabled spyware, whose purpose was to monetize user data either by performing ad fraud or hijacking victim’s accounts after harvesting authentication credentials. Rookits are often referred to as spyware, because their ultimate goal is to help attackers remain undetected on the victim’s machine, while they plant additional malware designed for surveillance and data exfiltration purposes. So the basic precaution you take is to never implicitly trust everything that reaches your inbox and always keep your operating system and applications updated with the latest security patches. This can lead to installing the rootkit which will then take over your system. Step one: basic precautionsĪs you’ll have gathered from the paragraphs above, the first and easiest way a malicious person can get their rootkit onto your system is to get into it by exploiting unpatched vulnerabilities in either the operating system or various applications, or even by employing social engineering techniques that trick users into downloading and executing malicious files or clicking on malicious URLS. However, these were only some of its capabilities, as it was also able to harvest credentials from victims’ browsers and even exfiltrate data. Having the ability to spy on its victims and surreptitiously harvest account credentials from browsers and exfiltrate data stored on the victim’s device, Scranos also had the ability to perform ad fraud, by silently signing up users to YouTube channels, click hidden ads in the background, and even install applications without users’ knowledge. One of the most recent and interesting rootkits discovered by Bitdefender is named Scranos. Once it’s in, the infection can hide itself by manipulating the operating system in order to hide its presence to both the user and – if the rootkit’s capabilities are sufficiently sophisticated - even a traditional security solution. The way the attackers get in can be automated or it can be installed once someone has got access to your system. Best Hosted Endpoint Protection and Security Software.
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