Avoid being scammed by the CVE-2018-10562 email

What is "CVE-2018-10562" email scam?

"CVE-2018-10562" is the code name of a vulnerability discovered in a variety of Dasan GPON home routers. Cyber criminals have recently started a new spam campaign naming it after this vulnerability. It is designed to extort money by threatening to expose evidence of users' sexual activity.

The cyber criminals behind this email claim to have hacked the addressee's OS (Operating System) and gained access to the device's camera.

I.e., they have recorded the victim apparently visiting adult websites. Unless a certain sum is paid, this content will supposedly be sent to all of the addressee's contacts. Note that these alleged videos do not exist and the device's integrity has not been compromised.

The email with the subject title "I hacked your device [victim's email address] and you have a problem now..." informs the user that, several months ago, the device OS was hacked by the sender. It is claimed that an application was infiltrated into the system, which allowed the cyber criminals to gain remote access.

It is stated that changing passwords will not rid users of this infiltration. The infection apparently occurred due to the internet router having a security weakness, which was exploited to insert specific code. The code is said to have infected the device via a program the next time the user connected to the internet.

After this infiltration, the scammers claim to have made a full copy of the hard drive, from which various data was obtained (e.g. email contact lists, stored telephone numbers, browsing history, account passwords, etc.). During these past months, the user was allegedly spied on through the device's camera.

Two videos were apparently made when the addressee was viewing adult-oriented content online. The cyber criminals threaten to send this supposed material to all of the user's contacts (associates, relatives and social network friends, etc.), unless they are paid.

72 hours are given to pay the equivalent of three thousand US dollars in the Bitcoin cryptocurrency. If the transaction is made, the sender promises to delete all copied and recorded data, and disable the spying app.

The rest of the message repeats and emphasizes the threats, provides links to instructions about how to obtain Bitcoins, and lists the Bitcoin wallet address for payment. All of these claims are false.

The addressee's OS has not been hacked by these scammers, no data has been stolen, and no revealing evidence of sexual activity exists. "CVE-2018-10562" and other deceptive emails such as this should be ignored.

Threat Summary:

Name	CVE-2018-10562 Email Scam.
Threat Type	Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud.
Fake Claim	Scammers claim that they have recorded a compromising video of the addressee and will distribute it, unless they are paid within 72 hours.
Ransom Amount	3000 USD (in Bitcoin)
Cyber Criminal Cryptowallet Address	1666TSnNDrjjr9rwNptufX5gSMJxyr2tLG
Symptoms	Unauthorized online purchases, changed online account passwords, identity theft, illegal access of the computer.
Distribution methods	Deceptive emails, rogue online pop-up ads, search engine poisoning techniques, misspelled domains.
Damage	Loss of sensitive private information, monetary loss, identity theft.
Malware Removal (Windows)	To eliminate possible malware infections, scan your computer with legitimate antivirus software. Our security researchers recommend using Combo Cleaner. ▼ Download Combo Cleaner To use full-featured product, you have to purchase a license for Combo Cleaner. 7 days free trial available. Combo Cleaner is owned and operated by Rcs Lt, the parent company of PCRisk.com read more.

Deceptive/scam emails are distributed using large scale spam campaigns. Various tactics are employed to trick users into certain actions. These range from "sextortion" ploys to scare tactics, which are employed to urge users into making payments, revealing sensitive data, openings infectious file attachments, etc.

The goal is financial gain for the cyber criminals behind these scams. This can be achieved through blackmail attempts, proliferation of malware (e.g. trojans, ransomware), and similar methods. On This Day I Hacked Your OS Email Scam, Please Yourself Email Scam, and I Know * Is One Of Your Pass Email Scam are some other examples of email scams.

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Infections occur through opened, dangerous files attached to deceptive emails. This mail is often disguised as "official", "important", "urgent", etc. They contain attachments or links leading to the infected files. Formats vary - they can be executable (.exe, .run) and archive (ZIP, RAR) files, Microsoft Office and PDF documents, JavaScript and others.

When they are run, executed or otherwise opened, they are triggered to start downloading/installing malicious content (trojans, ransomware, and other malware).

For example, MS Office documents request users to enable macro commands (to enable editing) - if allowed, they begin the infection process. MS Office versions released prior to 2010 do not make such requests and the process is initiated automatically.

How to avoid installation of malware

Suspicious and/or irrelevant emails should not be opened, especially those received from unknown senders. Any attachments or links found in dubious mail must never be opened, as they are the origin of a potential system infection. Content should be researched prior to being downloaded/installed and obtained only from official and verified download sources.

Peer-to-Peer sharing networks (BitTorrent, eMule, Gnutella, etc.), free file-hosting websites, third party downloaders and similar channels are untrusted and should be avoided. Untrusted download sources can offer deceptive and/or bundled content (e.g. with malware or potentially unwanted applications).

Software should be activated and updated with tools/functions provided by legitimate developers. Illegal activation ("cracking") tools and third party updaters are high-risk, as they can be used to proliferate malicious programs. You are strongly advised to have a reputable anti-virus/anti-spyware suite installed and kept up-to-date.

Use this software to perform regular system scans and remove all detected threats/issues. If you have already opened malicious attachments, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate infiltrated malware.

Text presented in the "CVE-2018-10562" email message:

Subject: I hacked your device ******** and you have a problem now...

 

Hi.

I think you will not be happy, because I have a very bad news for
you.

Just a few months ago I hacked your operating system and I have
full control of your device.
I implanted a small application into your device which sends me
your current
IP address and allows me to connect to your device just like
remote desktop.
Even if you change your password, it won't help.

How I infected you?
The router that you used to connect to Internet had a security
hole.
You can read about this problem by searching for CVE-2018-10562.
I hacked your router and I put my code into it, and when you
tried to
connect to Internet, my program infected your device.

Later I made a full copy of your hard drive (I have all your
email contact
lists, list of websites you visited, phone numbers, your
passwords etc.)

A little while later, when I was searching your web browsing
history I was
shocked by what I saw!!
The sites for adults you are visiting... you know what I mean...

I just want to say - your fantasies are shifted far away from the
normal
course!...

For months I have been spying on you through your device camera..
especially when you visited those sites to have fun...
Those videos show clearly you having fun and the content for
adults you were
watching.. this is pretty nasty and I would be very worried if I
were you.

I have secured 2 videos:
victim's email address_1557074047.mp4 (119.1 MB)
victim's email address_1555285697.mp4 (64.5 MB)

You can verify that the timestamps correspond to the moments you
were
enjoying yourself...

Now, because I do not like at all what I saw (that's pretty crazy
and
ugly) I ask you to send me a donation through Bitcoin network.

3000 US dollars is a fair price (considering your perversions).

If you want me to forget about the whole case, remove the files
and disable
the nasty app that is spying you, send me the Bitcoin payment
within 72
hours. Yes, I give you 72 hours only.

Here is my wallet:

=================
Send exactly 0.291578 BTC to my address:

1666TSnNDrjjr9rwNptufX5gSMJxyr2tLG

(copy it and paste - it's case sensitive)
=================
0.291578 BTC = 3000 dollars

If you do not send me the Bitcoin, I promise you - I will send
those files
with you enjoying yourself to all your contact lists, associates
and social
network friends.

I still have access to your device and I know when you read this
message.
When you opened it, time started ticking. You have 72 hours only!

I am from Russia and nobody will help you if you report this
email.. Before
they find me your life will be ruined! If you do not cooperate
with me - I
will release this ugly material immediately.

This is why I advise you - send me the Bitcoin and let's forget
about the
whole situation. I know you can afford it.

If you do not know how to send bitcoin

Step 1: Create an account on www.localbitcoins.com
Step 2: Buy 0.291578 BITCOIN
Step 3: Send the amount on this BTC address:
1666TSnNDrjjr9rwNptufX5gSMJxyr2tLG
Step 4: Contact me on this email address jumaichu001@aol.com copy
to hazzan0011@yandex.com with this subject: 012VIPERMARVO-
RESTOREKEYPC4102934
After this steps you will receive through email the key and a
decrypt tutorial.

Here is another list where you can buy bitcoin:
hxxps://bitcoin.org/en/exchanges

Here is my address again:

=================
Send exactly:

0.291578 BTC

to my address:
1666TSnNDrjjr9rwNptufX5gSMJxyr2tLG

=================

Remember to send the exact amount as above! This way I will know
it's from
you.

Do not be angry at me. This is just my job, and you are not the
only person
I caught.

Be angry at your fantasies - if you didn't visit those sites for
adults
you would have no problem.. but now...

I am waiting for your bitcoin.

Remember, time is ticking..

Appearance of "CVE-2018-10562" scam (GIF):

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Quick menu:

• What is CVE-2018-10562 spam?
• Types of malicious emails.
• How to spot a malicious email?
• What to do if you fell for an email scam?

Types of malicious emails:

Phishing Emails

Most commonly, cybercriminals use deceptive emails to trick Internet users into giving away their sensitive private information, for example, login information for various online services, email accounts, or online banking information.

Such attacks are called phishing. In a phishing attack, cybercriminals usually send an email message with some popular service logo (for example, Microsoft, DHL, Amazon, Netflix), create urgency (wrong shipping address, expired password, etc.), and place a link which they hope their potential victims will click on.

After clicking the link presented in such email message, victims are redirected to a fake website that looks identical or extremely similar to the original one. Victims are then asked to enter their password, credit card details, or some other information that gets stolen by cybercriminals.

Emails with Malicious Attachments

Another popular attack vector is email spam with malicious attachments that infect users' computers with malware. Malicious attachments usually carry trojans that are capable of stealing passwords, banking information, and other sensitive information.

In such attacks, cybercriminals' main goal is to trick their potential victims into opening an infected email attachment. To achieve this goal, email messages usually talk about recently received invoices, faxes, or voice messages.

If a potential victim falls for the lure and opens the attachment, their computers get infected, and cybercriminals can collect a lot of sensitive information.

While it's a more complicated method to steal personal information (spam filters and antivirus programs usually detect such attempts), if successful, cybercriminals can get a much wider array of data and can collect information for a long period of time.

Sextortion Emails

This is a type of phishing. In this case, users receive an email claiming that a cybercriminal could access the webcam of the potential victim and has a video recording of one's masturbation.

To get rid of the video, victims are asked to pay a ransom (usually using Bitcoin or another cryptocurrency). Nevertheless, all of these claims are false - users who receive such emails should ignore and delete them.

How to spot a malicious email?

While cyber criminals try to make their lure emails look trustworthy, here are some things that you should look for when trying to spot a phishing email:

• Check the sender's ("from") email address: Hover your mouse over the "from" address and check if it's legitimate. For example, if you received an email from Microsoft, be sure to check if the email address is @microsoft.com and not something suspicious like @m1crosoft.com, @microsfot.com, @account-security-noreply.com, etc.
• Check for generic greetings: If the greeting in the email is "Dear user", "Dear @youremail.com", "Dear valued customer", this should raise suspiciousness. Most commonly, companies call you by your name. Lack of this information could signal a phishing attempt.
• Check the links in the email: Hover your mouse over the link presented in the email, if the link that appears seems suspicious, don't click it. For example, if you received an email from Microsoft and the link in the email shows that it will go to firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0... you shouldn't trust it. It's best not to click any links in the emails but to visit the company website that sent you the email in the first place.
• Don't blindly trust email attachments: Most commonly, legitimate companies will ask you to log in to their website and to view any documents there; if you received an email with an attachment, it's a good idea to scan it with an antivirus application. Infected email attachments are a common attack vector used by cybercriminals.

To minimise the risk of opening phishing and malicious emails we recommend using Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows. 

Example of a spam email:

What to do if you fell for an email scam?

• If you clicked on a link in a phishing email and entered your password - be sure to change your password as soon as possible. Usually, cybercriminals collect stolen credentials and then sell them to other groups that use them for malicious purposes. If you change your password in a timely manner, there's a chance that criminals won't have enough time to do any damage.
• If you entered your credit card information - contact your bank as soon as possible and explain the situation. There's a good chance that you will need to cancel your compromised credit card and get a new one.
• If you see any signs of identity theft - you should immediately contact the Federal Trade Commission. This institution will collect information about your situation and create a personal recovery plan.
• If you opened a malicious attachment - your computer is probably infected, you should scan it with a reputable antivirus application. For this purpose, we recommend using Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows.
• Help other Internet users - report phishing emails to Anti-Phishing Working Group, FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, National Fraud Information Center and U.S. Department of Justice.

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