1. Malware
March 26, 2018

2. Social Engineering
One method that has proven extremely potent over the years is social engineering—trying to earn the trust of a target.
Call on the phone, claim to be from IT, ask for username and password.
Walk into a store wearing a nametag and Polo shirt, then put a small black box over the self-checkout credit card readers.
Act/dress like you belong there. It’s human nature to trust someone in a suit…

3. Social Engineering
Past example: USB flash drives containing malware left in a Stanford parking lot.
Count on the curiosity of others…
Windows automatically runs certain code on an inserted drive.
A more secure operating system (e.g., macOS) will only permit the user to browse the contents upon inserting a drive.

4. Passive vs. Active Content
“Passive” content such as a .txt file or image file is typically safe to open—it can’t actually do anything.
Programs (i.e., .exe files) are extremely dangerous if they arrive from an unknown/untrusted sender.
If you(r computer) run(s) the code, the computer has been compromised—now it can do the hacker’s bidding.
Think of the White House intruder incident in 2014.
Problem: many seemingly passive file types (e.g., .docx) have “program-like” qualities that can make them dangerous, such as macros in Word and Excel files.

5. Trojan Horse
A “Trojan horse” is malware disguised as something else—the user downloads it but has no idea that it’s malware.
RyanGoslingJPEG.exe
AntiVirus.exe (very common!)
Some operating systems ask you to confirm that you want to open the file if it is from an unknown/unverified developer.
macOS requires the user do a “workaround” to open such a file.
Stay safe: Google the name of the download site before downloading and opening the file.

6. Keylogger
A keylogger is a program installed on a computer that records all keystrokes.
Often runs in the background without the user’s knowledge.
Sometimes used by corporations to track an employee’s computer usage if they suspect illegal/illicit activity.
Be EXTREMELY cautious about using computers provided at Internet cafés!
NEVER log into your or other sensitive accounts from these computers!
Be careful with their Wi-Fi also—use a VPN.

7. Vulnerability
Some programs (such as Adobe Flash) have a vulnerability (or bug) that can allow a hacker to take control.
When the vulnerability is exploited (through software, data, or a series of commands), the program gives access to the machine running it.
Merely visiting the page containing the exploit is sufficient to compromise the visiting machine if it is vulnerable (hasn’t been patched).
Think Microsoft and the constant “critical” updates.
“Zero-day” vulnerability refers to a vulnerability discovered before a patch (fix) has been issued.

8. Vulnerability
Something else to keep in mind: these vulnerabilities are a “strike” against proprietary (rather than open-source) software.
Adobe Flash is proprietary, for instance.
When a vulnerability is discovered, Adobe is responsible for developing and releasing a patch.
In theory, this should happen quickly. In practice, Adobe’s record is very mixed.

9. Additional Malware
Ransomware: User’s files are encrypted (rather than erased); user must pay a Bitcoin “ransom” to obtain the decryption password or key.
Zombie botnets (used in DDoS).
DDoS and phishing attacks are considered malware as well.
Phishing is a type of social engineering attack.