14 DAY TRIAL // Security researchers from Bitdefender have spotted a new variant of the Dorkbot worm. The malware is designed to spread from one computer to the other by abusing Facebook’s internal chat.
Once it infects a device, the malicious element is capable of monitoring the victim’s browsing activities, but it’s also capable of stealing their personal information such as usernames and passwords. Moreover, cybercriminals can use it to download additional malicious components onto the infected machine.
According to experts, the Dorkbot malware family is most prevalent in the United States, India, Portugal, Romania, Germany, Turkey and the United Kingdom.
To trick users into executing it, the malware poses as a harmless .jpg image file.
Dorkbot, which uses IRC to send and receive data, can also spread via USB drives connected to an infected device.
To protect yourself against this threat, experts advise you to avoid clicking on suspicious links received via instant messages, even if they appear to come from a friend.