Hackers Target Zoom Users
Hackers are taking advantage of the surge in Zoom use during the COVID-19 pandemic to target users. Be careful to avoid becoming a victim while using Zoom.
Zoom was already a popular online communication platform – but the COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically increased Zoom’s user base in recent weeks. Hackers are never the type of people to miss an opportunity to make money, so they have already started trying to take advantage of Zoom users by creating fake Zoom domains and files filled with malware to be opened by Zoom users. Whether you are using Zoom for business, to work from home or for school, you should be aware of the risks hackers pose and be careful to avoid compromising yourself or your system.
Zoom and Hackers – What You Need to Know
Hackers are registering new “Zoom” domains at a rapid pace.
According to a recent report published by Check Point, there have been more than 1700 new domains registered using the name “Zoom” in some way since the beginning of the year. They say that around 4% of those domains have shown characteristics deemed suspicious, although there is the possibility that many more of them have been established to serve the needs of cybercriminals at some point in the future.
Everyone is using Zoom now, which makes it ripe for hackers.
Zoom has been in the news quite a lot recently because of how popular its platform has become with just about everyone – including heads of state of various nations, significant businesses and everyday people such as students and employees. Some of the news has indicated that Zoom does not have the best security to begin with, something the company claims to be working on but has not given a timeframe on when all issues will be corrected.
The combination of high-profile – and therefore wealthy – users and lax security protocols has apparent implications in cybersecurity circles. Hackers are going to target Zoom. The evidence of attacks is already here and it is only going to become more likely that Zoom users will be compromised in the coming months.
Cyberattacks on Zoom could take multiple forms.
So far, the attacks on Zoom have focused on malicious files and fake domains. With malicious files, the hackers send files to Zoom users and encourage them to open those files using a variety of pretenses – much like they have been doing with coronavirus files in emails, where they tell recipients that the files contain vital information concerning the virus. Once the Zoom user opens the file it infects their computer with malware.
Fake domains are often used as a way to gather information from Zoom users. If the hacker can convince the user to follow a link to a site that appears to be related to Zoom, they can then request sensitive information from the individual and then later use that information to access financial accounts or for other nefarious purposes.
You can protect yourself by practicing smart cybersecurity.
Fortunately, the methods you use to protect your business and your personal information from hackers still apply to Zoom-related cybercrimes. You need to be just as diligent on Zoom as everywhere else. If you get sent a file from someone, make certain you know where it’s coming from and that you can trust that source before you even consider opening the file. And if you are asked to follow a link to a Zoom site, just say no. Instead, type in Zoom’s URL into your browser or just do a quick search for Zoom and follow the links.
