Hackers use certain search to steal personal info via fraudulent links

According to a recent warning from cybersecurity firm SOPHOS, individuals searching for whether Bengal cats are legal in certain regions are at risk of falling victim to a sophisticated hacking scheme.

Specifically, individuals Googling “Are Bengal cats legal in Australia?” have reportedly had their personal data stolen after clicking on fraudulent links, Caliber.Az reports per foreign media.

SOPHOS, a cybersecurity firm, issued an urgent alert, advising people to avoid entering this phrase into search engines. The malicious links often appear at the top of search results, tricking users into clicking on them.

"Victims are often lured into clicking on deceptive adware or links that appear to be legitimate, or in this case, disguised as a standard Google search," SOPHOS explained.

Currently, the harmful links only appear when the word “Australia” is included in the search, meaning that users in Australia are at the highest risk. Once a user clicks on one of these seemingly legitimate links, they may fall victim to the Gootloader program, which can steal sensitive information, including banking details. 

The program can also lock users out of their devices, further compounding the risk. Although the search term for Bengal cats might seem fairly obscure, the company argues that this makes the hacking threat even more concerning, as you don’t have to be searching for anything suspicious to have your personal information stolen. SOPHOS warns that cybercriminals are increasingly exploiting innocent Google searches using a method known as “SEO poisoning.” 

This practice as an “insidious technique in which criminals manipulate search engine results to push websites they control to the top of the page.” SOPHOS advises anyone who suspects they may have fallen victim to SEO poisoning to change their passwords immediately.

By Naila Huseynova