In another sign that hackers are exploiting the pandemic, Area 1, a security firm, recently released a report about a phishing email scam by the hacker group called Trickbot. Trickbot is also the same name the group has given its malware software. The latest Trickbot scam gets into companies by sending an email to employees, notifying them that they have been terminated. The email tells employees to click a link in the email for further details, and if the link doesn't work, click another link in the email.
Trickbot got its start as a Banking trojan malware but has evolved to target other industries. Trickbot is also a botnet. A botnet is a network of all the devices infected by the malware software (i.e., Trickbot). These infections may have taken place over several years. Once infected, hackers can steal information from the machine and use its computing power without the user ever knowing.
Microsoft orchestrated a takedown of Trickbot in October of this year. However, these groups often remobilize and rebuild their botnet networks, making them even more clever the next time around.
Credit unions can protect themselves against malware such as Trickbot by simply following best security practices and ensuring those practices are distributed to their employees. Credit unions should also keep employees informed about recent scams and what specifically to look out for. Keeping the company's software infrastructure consistently updated is always a good move. The latest software updates will often have patches to help avoid the latest security exploits.
Anyone who knows not to click links in suspicious emails or those from people they don't know has nothing to worry about. While the Trickbot email does try to look official, disguising itself as someone from human resources, wary users can still spot these emails by their language and company-specific terms. If nothing else, employees should confirm with their employer if the email is real.