Avast's company blog covers malware, security incidents, data privacy, and the company's own breaches and policies.
HN links it for posts on smart device hacks and eBay port scanning, and for news about the Jumpshot data collection and the Norton merger.
The authors don't know much about cheap smartphones. I examined a cheap Android tablet's ROM dump and it had a backdoor that would allow manufacturer to install any application remotely and an adware that would activate about 2 weeks after turning the tablet on and show ads above browser window (so that the user thinks that it is an ad from a website).
If the user tried to delete adware, the backdoor would reinstall it. The backdoor would not activate if the phone is in China.
I downloaded ROM from the link at the manufacturer's website to make sure it is really built-in into the ROM and the tablet was not infected by virus. Either manufacturer or those who made the ROM pre-installed backdoor to earn money from clicking on the ads.
Also on a Russian forum about smartphones I saw similar reports about other cheap models.
UPD: I googled around and it seems that the backdoor (named Cosiloon) has been found and described by antivirus vendors:
- https://news.drweb.com/show/?i=10345&lng=en
- https://www.androidauthority.com/cosiloon-malware-android-devices-869407/
- https://blog.avast.com/android-devices-ship-with-pre-installed-malware
When I found it, there was no information about it anywhere.
Google appears to be spending quite a bit to increase Chrome's market share - not just through advertising, but also through aggressive bundling deals. For example, Skype's installer also installs Chrome and selects its as the default browser—if the current default browser is IE. There's a choice to opt out, but the installer's standard action is to install and select Chrome.
I assume the Skype installer deal will change once Microsoft finishes acquiring Skype, but Chrome is also bundled in the installers for other popular software like Avast Antivirus and (I think) Adobe Shockwave.
Some details:
http://news.idg.no/cw/art.cfm?id=67785482-1A64-67EA-E4A686A82023E4DA
https://blog.avast.com/2009/12/03/avast-and-google-chrome/
[Disclosure: I work for Mozilla. My comments are based on my opinions, not my employer's.]
The whole thing is a backdoor. Backdoor in a backdoor? Surprise! Of course it's backdoors all the way down ;)
But of course, script kiddies aren't particularly good at securing the servers they pwned, are they? [1]
A couple of months ago, I wrote QADE [2] for fun, a "quick and dirty" PHP-based text editor and webshell for editing files and running commands remotely. I deliberately failed to implement any authentication-related feature, because I didn't want to give an illusion of security. A secure webshell is an oxymoron.
[1] https://blog.avast.com/2014/06/09/are-hackers-passwords-stronger-than-regular-passwords/
[2] https://github.com/kijin/qade
I have used “riddled with problems” and “riddled with security holes” to talk about other software than flash.
I just googled the phrase:
https://www.computerweekly.com/news/252512175/Investigators-find-Beijing-2022-app-riddled-with-security-flaws
https://blog.avast.com/aws-freertos-riddled-with-security-vulnerabilities-avast
https://www.zdnet.com/article/hola-vpn-still-riddled-with-security-flaws-researchers-claim/
https://securityinfive.com/episode-659-tiktok-riddled-with-security-problems/
https://www.computerworld.com/article/2490527/many-antivirus-products-are-riddled-with-security-flaws.html
It’s a common phrase, not a conspiracy.
Https also ensures that the connection has not been tampered with by an ISP. Its quite stupid, especially considering you're paying them already, but used to be common when most of the web was http. Also, router malware has been seen injecting JS into http pages to mine crypto.
https://www.infoworld.com/article/2925839/code-injection-new-low-isps.html
https://www.privateinternetaccess.com/blog/comcast-still-uses-mitm-javascript-injection-serve-unwanted-ads-messages/
https://blog.avast.com/mikrotik-routers-targeted-by-cryptomining-campaign-avast
> Question is can they catch Google?
I suppose they could, if they went for the same questionable bundling [1] and SEO [2] tactics as Google :)
Adding to that the fact that Google occasionally promotes Chrome on their various products (search engine et. al.), they haven't been particularly fair all in all. I doubt Mozilla will go that low, and I doubt they could gain significant ground even if they did.
[1] https://blog.avast.com/2009/12/03/avast-and-google-chrome
[2] https://plus.google.com/+MattCutts/posts/NAWunDzJSHC