Avoid the malware infected websites, with no headaches

Malware is a software that is created for malicious purposes and although it is usually associated to devices, it can be also used to attack and infect the websites that you usually browse through. This kind of software is created with the purpose of stealing personal information or even of taking control of your device, in order to use it in illegal actions, such as launching denial-of-service attacks or spamming.

Hackers look for the vulnerabilities of the websites in order to fulfill their purpose. Although servers and hosting services have different security layers, a small vulnerability is enough for the hackers to take control of a website.

The mallware is designed to evade security software and it is difficult to be identified by common users. It is designed in such a way that performs malicious activities, such as gaining control of the victim’s computer, stealing the victim’s private information, launching denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, and spamming.

Of course, there are lots of anti-malware solutions, but the hackers usually work to even exploit any possible breache to do their work. There are three main ways that a site might be infected:

1. With standard malware injection – the attackers use a JavaScript code to pull a Trojan. Downloader script to the browser. The download is automatic, usually goes in the Temp folder and works from there until the user cleanes the browsing data. Trying to take this kind of code out manually may determine them to replicate and spread malware even more.

2. The zero pixel is a trick that usually remains unknown. It’s detection is very difficult as it is not included in the known definitions. The hacker can, for instance, infect any website of a computer and inject HTML code to display an image with zero width and height, so that it can be never seen. This image can be a drug dealers’ data, child pornography or any illegal thing in that part of the world. It means that the owner of the infected device has to face the charges, after the authorities find the full size images in the temporary files.

3. Redirect traffic is used after the cookies of a website are maliciously changed so that the user is automatically redirected to illegal websites that can look quite similar to the website you were trying to reach. This is usually done with a SQL injection, either in the file system of a website or in the main database.

Of course, not all the internet users should be experts! Although it may sound terrifying, you have the solution at hand to stay safe on the web and avoid the malware, with the help of Ad Guardian Plus, which blocks any malicious domains and websites!