The Indian government has asked the
Skype users in the country to be cautious about 'malicious spam' that
has been 'lurking' in the vicinity of cyber networks of users of the
popular internet-based audio-video communicator. Security experts have
suggested several measures to counter the spam.
A government advisory to Skype
users says: "A malicious spam campaign is on the rise targeting Skype
users by sending instant message which appears to come from friends in
the Skype contact list”.
The Computer Emergency Response Team
(CERT-In), the body mandated to tackle such threats, says the spam
attacking Skype users "eventually controls the victim machine by opening
a backdoor and communicating to a remote http server”. "The worm [is]
reported as stealing user credentials, engaging in click fraud
activities and pose as ransom ware," the agency added.
Cyber security experts have suggested a
number of counter-measures to tackle the malicious spam. The experts
have suggested users not to "follow unsolicited web links or attachments
in Skype messages and install latest security updates to Skype".
"Download the latest version of the
Skype from the trusted markets, install and maintain updated anti-virus
software at gateway and desktop level, use caution when opening
attachments and accepting file transfers, disable auto play feature as a
safe practice.
"Use caution when clicking on links to
web pages and protect yourself against social engineering attacks," the
agency advised internet users in the country.
