LockBit ransomware affiliates trick the victims into infecting their devices by disguising their malware as copyright claims.
The targeted victim receives emails that warn about a copyright violation, allegedly having used media files without the creator’s license. These emails demand that the recipient remove the infringing content from their websites, or they will face legal action.
The emails, spotted by analysts at AhnLab, Korea, do not determine which files were unfairly used in the body and instead tell the recipient to download and open the attached file to see the infringement content.
The attachment is a password-protected ZIP archive containing a compressed file, which in turn has an executable disguised as a PDF document, but it is actually an NSIS installer.
The reason for this wrapping and password protection is to evade detection from email security tools.
When the victim opens the supposed PDF to know what images are being used illegally, the malware will load and encrypt the device with the LockBit 2.0 ransomware.
The use of copyright violation claims is not exclusive to LockBit group, as many malware distribution campaigns use the same techniques.
Copyright claims must be seriously taken into consideration by the publishers of content, but if the claim isn’t straightforward but instead requests you to open attached files to view the violation details, it is more likely to be a fake one.
Comments