DALLAS, May 13, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Cybercriminals
continuously discover more ways to successfully target new outlets
for financial theft as revealed in Trend Micro Incorporated's (TYO:
4704; TSE: 4704) first quarter security roundup for 2014,
"Cybercrime Hits the Unexpected." Greed is motivating
cybercriminals to take a non-traditional approach in the selection
of unlikely targets, such as advanced threats to Point-of-Sale
(PoS) terminals and the exploitation of disasters. Though well
protected, these new targets are in the crosshairs of emboldened
cybercriminals around the world.
Trend Micro threat researchers also found that online banking
malware continued to thrive with the emergence and modification of
new malware families, each with different targets and varying
anti-detection techniques. And continuing to grow for the past five
years is the number of mobile malware and high-risk apps, which has
hit 2 million since the introduction of the Android platform.
"This year's first quarterly report sheds light into the cyber
underground where creative cybercriminals continue to find new
opportunities to commit their crimes," said Raimund Genes, CTO,
Trend Micro. "To remain protected against these ever-evolving cyber
threats, users must be diligent in using best practices when
surfing the Web, especially when conducting online financial
transactions."
Key first quarter findings include:
- Mobile Threats: The mobile threat landscape continues to
grow at an even faster pace than last year as the total number of
mobile malware and high-risk apps grew to 2 million this quarter.
The explosion of repackaged apps—those that have been maliciously
tampered with to pass Android's' security features—also contributed
to the huge spike in mobile malware and high-risk app volume
growth.
- Cybercrime and the Cybercriminal Underground: This
quarter's online banking malware volume significantly dropped from
the end of 2013. This year's first quarter number did not differ
much from the same timeframe one year ago, and the high numbers at
the close of last year could be attributed to the holiday season
when cybercriminals pursue online shoppers.
- Targeted Attack Campaigns and Cyber Attacks: Reports of
PoS system infiltration in the United
States, particularly in retail and hospitality, as well as
insider threats targeting South Korean credit card companies
highlighted the need for customized defense strategies.
- Digital Life and the Internet of Everything: A
new-generation of exploits took the app ecosystem by storm this
quarter. These apps cater to users' desire to anonymously share
content, send off-the-record messages, and share media. Along with
observing more social engineering scams, several devices in the
Internet of Everything (IoE) market were scrutinized, as security
researchers exposed gaping vulnerabilities.
"Organizations continued to struggle with attacks that were
targeted in nature, which could be directly aimed at the energy,
financial, healthcare, and retail industries or critical
infrastructure," said JD Sherry, vice president of technology and
solutions, Trend Micro. "It came down to a simple
equation—high-value targets that promised massive payouts were
compromised despite the determined efforts of organizations to
protect their valuable information."
For the complete report, please visit:
http://about-threats.trendmicro.com/us/security-roundup/2014/1Q/cybercrime-hits-the-unexpected
A blog post regarding the report can be viewed here:
http://blog.trendmicro.com/cybercrime-hits-the-unexpected
About Trend Micro
Trend Micro Incorporated, a global
leader in security software, strives to make the world safe for
exchanging digital information. Built on 25 years of experience,
our solutions for consumers, businesses and governments provide
layered data security to protect information on mobile devices,
endpoints, gateways, servers and the cloud. Trend Micro enables the
smart protection of information, with innovative security
technology that is simple to deploy and manage, and fits an
evolving ecosystem. All of our solutions are powered by cloud-based
global threat intelligence, the Trend Micro™ Smart Protection
Network™ infrastructure, and are supported by more than 1,200
threat experts around the globe. For more information, visit
TrendMicro.com.
SOURCE Trend Micro Incorporated