Threat actors are exploiting fake websites masquerading as legitimate antivirus solutions from Avast, Bitdefender, and Malwarebytes to distribute malware that steals sensitive information from Android and Windows devices. These sites deceive users into downloading harmful software, such as the SpyNote trojan from avast-securedownload[.]com, Lumma information stealer from bitdefender-app[.]com, and StealC information stealer from malwarebytes[.]pro.
According to Trellix security researcher Gurumoorthi Ramanathan, hosting malicious software through seemingly legitimate sites is especially predatory to consumers seeking protection from cyber attacks. The malware delivered by these fake websites requests intrusive permissions, including reading SMS messages, tracking location, and even mining cryptocurrency. Another malicious site was found hosting a rogue Trellix binary named “AMCoreDat.exe” that drops malware to harvest browser data and exfiltrate it to a remote server.
The distribution methods for these fake websites remain unclear, but past campaigns have used malvertising and search engine optimization (SEO) poisoning. The prevalence of stealer malware continues to rise, with cybercriminals offering custom variants of varying complexity. New stealers like Acrid and SamsStealer, along with updates to existing ones like SYS01stealer, indicate a thriving criminal market for these threats.
Additionally, a recent report from Kaspersky highlighted a Gipy malware campaign leveraging fake AI tools to distribute various types of malware, including information stealers and cryptocurrency miners. Another significant threat is the new Android banking trojan called Antidot, which disguises itself as a Google Play update to steal information by abusing Android’s accessibility and MediaProjection APIs. This trojan can perform keylogging, overlay attacks, and control infected devices.
