gift cards | Breaking Cybersecurity News | The Hacker News

Gift cards have once again caused quite a headache for retailers, as cyber criminals are using a botnet to break into and steal cash from money-loaded gift cards provided by major retailers around the globe. Dubbed GiftGhostBot , the new botnet specialized in gift card fraud is an advanced persistent bot (APB) that has been spotted in the wild by cyber security firm Distil Networks. GiftGhostBot has been seen attacking almost 1,000 websites worldwide and defrauding legitimate consumers of the money loaded on gift cards since Distil detected the attack late last month. According to the security firm, any website – from luxury retailers, supermarkets to coffee distributors – that allow their customers to buy products with gift cards could be targeted by the botnet. Operators of the GiftGhostBot botnet launch brute-force attacks against retailer's website to check potential gift card account numbers at a rate of about 1.7 Million numbers per hour, and request the balance f

A popular scam that always seems to pop up around the holiday shopping season has once again resurfaced.Have you gotten a text message promising a free gift card? All you have to do is click on a link? However, it was a scam. Case :  A text message has been popping up on Central New Yorkers' phones saying they've won a Target gift card worth $1,000. It's a scam – do not click on it and quickly delete it. Links within the message connect you to bogus websites that are designed to collect sensitive, private information from people who think they've really won a prize. The text messages most frequently come from Target, Best Buy or Walmart. How did someone get your number?   How many times have we filled out things for either restaurant surveys or fill out this survey and get a coupon? If that information isn't being properly secured, it's very easy to get that data if its saved in clear text or unencrypted data. People have their cell phone numbers on Facebook, and wha

Compromising the browser is a high-return target for adversaries. Browser extensions, which are small software modules that are added to the browser and can enhance browsing experiences, have become a popular browser attack vector. This is because they are widely adopted among users and can easily turn malicious through developer actions or attacks on legitimate extensions. Recent incidents like  DataSpii  and the  Nigelthorn  malware attack have exposed the extent of damage that malicious extensions can inflict. In both cases, users innocently installed extensions that compromised their privacy and security. The underlying issue lies in the permissions granted to extensions. These permissions, often excessive and lacking granularity, allow attackers to exploit them. What can organizations do to protect themselves from the risks of browser extensions without barring them from use altogether (an act that would be nearly impossible to enforce)?  A new report by LayerX, "Unveiling the