If you stumbled upon this article, then you indeed had a fair share of online advertisement encounters throughout your online ventures. You may be tired of them, but are you aware that adware may pose risks to your data? That’s right. Some ads could potentially carry malicious code or hide privacy-infesting trackers.
Malvertising is dangerous because such ads can appear on trusted and verified domains. For this reason, they can be difficult to spot. Since malicious ad campaigns are incredibly profitable for cybercriminals, they’re not going away anytime soon. In fact, you can expect an increase in malvertisements. Thus, you must be aware of this concept and know how to prevent your interactions with malvertising.
In this article, we’ll overview what malvertising is, how it works, and why you should concern yourself with this cyber threat. Also, we will introduce the means of preventing interactions with malicious ads.
What is malvertisement?
In short, malvertising is a cyber attack involving injecting malicious code into online ad networks. If you click on an ad that seems safe on a verified website, you might be redirected to a malicious website or have malware installed on your device in a matter of seconds. The worst is that you can unknowingly become a victim of malvertising, even if you don’t have protective software with ad-blocking capabilities, like Total Adblock or AdGuard.
Moreover, malvertising makes it easy for hackers to employ heavy traffic on legitimate websites instead of targeting them directly. This exploitation allows them to infiltrate local networks, which poses a danger for individual users and enterprises alike. It’s also because the recent malvertising campaigns don’t even require you to click anything for malicious code to infiltrate your device. Hence, this cyber threat remains a dynamic and rapidly growing problem.
Malvertising vs. ad malware
Sometimes, you may encounter the terms malvertising and ad malware used as one and the same, though these are different concepts. For example, ad malware, otherwise known as adware, is all about facilitating personalized advertising. Adware is usually built into official software on a computer or mobile device. Ad malware redirects your search inquiries to advertising web pages, depicts ads, and collects user data for targeted ads.
Conversely, malvertising only affects individual users who open the infected website in opposition to adware, which operates from installed applications. This cyber threat utilizes greater scope through network infiltration, even though it also targets individual users. In a nutshell, malvertising takes place online while adware runs on device-based software.
Common kinds of malvertising
As you probably have guessed already, malvertising has become a complex mechanism with plenty of varieties. According to Wikipedia, the very first recorded case of malvertising took place in 2007. The ad vulnerability was discovered in Adobe Flash. Then, malvertisers began targeting popular social hubs like MySpace.
Today, we have several kinds of malvertising to look out for, and the numbers are increasing with the years. Since cybercrooks earn a pretty penny from these exploits, you can expect more advancements in the future. As of now, these are the most common malvertising types that operate as drive-by downloads:
- Scareware. This campaign manipulates users to respond to alarming pop-ups about viruses that just infected your device. This social engineering technique aims to get you to click on the pop-up to ‘salvage’ your device in some way.
- Steganography. In this case, you encounter messages concealed within images or texts. The malware is implemented into tiny pixel bundles, making it hard to discover even by website developers. Thus, they’re quite a popular choice among hackers.
- Fake software updates. We all use some sort of software, so we can all fall for this one. You’re promoted a software or an update on one you have. Once you click on it, the ad installs spyware or infects you with a virus instead. That’s why you must only download software or install updates from official provider websites or stores.
- Polyglot images. Think of it as an upgrade to steganography. The pixels house more than just malware; they also have a script system that helps execute the code. A stenograph, otherwise, also needs an external script for extracting malware, unlike the polyglot image.
- Tech-support scams. Similar to scareware, tech-support scams are less alarming but just as effective at luring people into clicking on a pop-up. The scammy ruse involves informing a user of a technical issue with the device or software, prompting you to fix it quickly by clicking on the button. But the trick is that the ad will first let loose malware that wreaks havoc on your user experience, making the ploy more believable.
- Fake surveys. Ads claiming you won something or require you to fill in a survey should be on your blacklist as they’re also a popular form of malvertising. Instead of receiving money, you get a malware injection, so keep away from those.
Means to protect yourself from malvertisements
Fortunately, you’re not out of options if you want to guard against malvertising. Several tips and pieces of software will keep malicious ads at bay. Plus, they require no special tech knowledge, so even a newbie will get a handle quickly. Here are the top recommendations:
- Use an ad blocker. Don’t go online without an ad-blocking solution, whether an app or browser extension. Make sure the ad blocker runs on the latest version and offers a variety of extras, like script and DNS filtering, whitelisting, and anti-malware features.
- Install an antivirus. Nothing beats well-rounded protection with a dynamic firewall, so snagging an antivirus is a giant leap away from malvertising. A modern antivirus bolsters ad-blocking if you already use an ad block and catches malware even if it slips inside your device.
- Keep your operating system updated. Ensure your OS runs on the latest version so the built-in firewall has a higher chance of dealing with malware should it infect your device. Hackers are eager to exploit devices with systems that aren’t up-to-date.
- Surf on private browsers. Private browsers like Firefox, Brave, or DuckDuckGo have implemented ad blockers. They help reduce potential interactions with malvertising and overall improve your browsing experience.
- Download files from legitimate sources. One of the holy grails of advice in the cybersecurity world is to download files only from verified sources. No APKs, no shady third-party distributors, only official provider sites and app stores.
- Be mindful online. Awareness serves you well in pursuit of safe online ventures. Sure, protective software is the best shield against malvertising, but being educated about modern campaigns makes you a severe challenge to cybercrooks. Continue learning about cyber threat advancements, and you’ll reduce chances of malicious ads ruining your day.
Conclusion
More and more, we venture online to run errands or enjoy ourselves, be it shopping, streaming, or even gaming. Unfortunately, ads embitter those ventures. While they’re annoying, there’s more depth to digital advertising, as you could fall prey to malvertising at any given time. It’s a plague we must learn to fight, as it will only advance due to the millions it earns for cybercriminals.
With robust software and your awareness, you can prevent even the most innovative malvertising tactics, like polyglot images. Ad blockers and antivirus solutions help you two days: preventing as much interaction with malicious ads, then catching and exterminating malware if it slips inside your device. Otherwise, use private browsers, keep your operating system updated, and be critical about the advertisements you encounter.
