From the Panda Labs Blog ( http://pandalabs.pandasecurity.com/ (http://pandalabs NULL.pandasecurity NULL.com/) ), shows how malware and viruses can make small changing to your online banking screens and fool you into giving up information that can then be used to make unauthorized charges or clean you bank account out. (Click on the link below “Live Demo” or look on the sidebar under VodPod Videos)
Live Demo: Banking Trojan (http://vimeo NULL.com/6491332) from Panda Security (http://vimeo NULL.com/pandasecurity) on Vimeo (http://vimeo NULL.com).
I had a client a couple of days ago who asked me to clean her pc of viruses, during the conversation, she mentioned to me that on top of having to deal with the virus on the PC that she was dealing with her bank because someone got her info and drained her bank account in one evening. She mentioned that she didn’t know how they did it because she knew she followed all the rules people know for keeping her information private……
- She would shred old documents
- Had a very difficult sign on passwords
- Only thing she did online was banking at her bank, she would never buy anything online because she was afraid that somehow her info would be compromised (which it was anyways).
I unfortunately had to explain to her that the virus I was cleaning from her PC was the reason she had her information compromised and her bank account drained. The panda labs demo in this post shows how normally going to a banking site (they use Bank of America in the example, however, I should point out that B of A was not the bank my client was using) you get prompted for your Online ID and Online password for your bank. However, as shown once the machine is infected, the entire site looks normal to an untrained eye except for the fact that your sign on suddenly wants you to enter your pin #. Considering your at your banks website by all appearances most people would not think twice in entering that information. However, in fact, as shown in the video the information is on the sign in is actually being sent to criminals who can then use it to steal from you without ever meeting you in person.
Just another example as to why you need a good anti-virus, a good anti-malware (and yes these are 2 different functions) on your machine and that both programs need to be updated regularly and run regularly on your machine to try and keep your PC secure. Also if you do get infected, you should either directly address the issue and make sure to clean your machine if you know what your doing, or make sure that a trained professional cleans your machine before doing any sensitive work on your pc.