Scammers Are Targeting Ross Ulbricht Supporters With Malware on Telegram

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Capitalizing on fundraising efforts to assist just lately pardoned Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht, criminals have been launching phishing assaults focusing on unwitting social media customers.

After Ulbricht’s launch from a federal penitentiary Tuesday, donations started to stream on X and malicious actors wasted no time utilizing the joy to unfold scams on X and Telegram.

For instance, one marred X account, shared a hyperlink within the replies claiming to be an official Telegram channel for updates. The message was preferred 317 instances earlier than being faraway from X.

The message was flagged by the account of the cybersecurity training web site VX-Underground, which warned members of its Telegram channel that the hyperlink was a malware installer.

“Ross Ulbricht’s X account is being spammed,” VX-Underground wrote. “When you try to view the ‘official’ Ross Ulbricht Telegram channel it asks to verify your identity, and it gives free malware!”

Telegram gives third-party verification to assist customers verify the legitimacy of contacts and companies. However, clicking the fraudulent hyperlink on this case led to a pretend verification display screen. Scammers used a Telegram mini app throughout this course of to deceive customers into executing malicious code on their units.

Experts warn that cybercriminals more and more use high-profile celeb names to control unsuspecting victims, exploiting the emotional responses tied to fame and public belief. Last week, scammers used AI-generated pictures of Brad Pitt to rip-off a lady out of $850,000 in France.

“Celebrity-themed malware is a prime example of social engineering at its most effective,” John Price, CEO of cybersecurity agency SubRosa, advised Decrypt. “Cybercriminals leverage well-known figures because they capitalize on two fundamental aspects of human psychology: trust and curiosity.”

As Price defined, celebrities like Ulbricht are recognizable and infrequently evoke robust emotional responses, which make customers extra prone to click on on hyperlinks or obtain attachments with out second-guessing their authenticity.

“This tactic works particularly well on social media, where users are accustomed to casual and rapid interactions, often bypassing critical scrutiny,” he mentioned.

It’s unclear what number of techniques had been compromised by the Telegram malware making an attempt to make use of Ulbricht’s identify earlier than X suspended the account. Price confused that these scams can have penalties past private losses.

“Compromised devices can lead to corporate breaches, data theft, or worse,” he mentioned. “Awareness and vigilance remain the best defenses.”

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