Hackers attacked Super Bowl's official website

Feb 6, 2007 14:29 GMT  ·  By

Malware is one of the major problems for the security of our computers because it can be distributed on multiple ways including file transfer applications, instant messenger, websites and even e-mail messages. Although the most important companies are fighting to create powerful solutions to block all the malware attempts, it's difficult to create a program to protect the computer against all kinds of threats. Malware is dangerous for our computers because it can harm the operating system and create new vulnerabilities to be exploited by attackers.

At this time, there are a lot of software solutions that sustain they can block malware and other threats but even their developers recognize it's hard to block 100 percent of malicious content. As you probably know, one of the most interesting events of this period is the Super Bowl match that is continuously attracting companies and customers to football related products. Probably, the most dangerous attempt was reported recently and confirmed by security company Sophos, a firm that sustained Super Bowl's website was attacked by hackers.

"Hackers placed a malicious script on the website of the Miami Dolphins, hosts of Sunday's Super Bowl event, which exploited Microsoft security vulnerabilities to install malware located on a Chinese server onto visitors' computers. Sophos proactively defended customers by detecting the Windows malware as Mal/Packer using the Behavioral Genotype Protection technology built into Sophos products," Sophos sustained in a security advisory.

It seems like the malware placed on the website was looking to retrieve financial information from the affected users, connecting through several Windows vulnerabilities. Although the website's security was restored, security company Sophos recommends to scan the computer with a powerful antivirus solution and install the latest patch for Microsoft Windows vulnerabilities.