From the monthly archives:

March 2008

UnigrayAntiVirus MonaRonaDona Scam

by certifiedbug on March 5, 2008

in Rogue

Malware that goads people into purchasing a fake rogue anti spyware program to remove it, is old news, only the name changes.

So we have a new spin, MonaRonaDona appears to be malware created to scare people into purchasing a fake anti-virus product, Unigray AntiVirus.

According to an analysis by Kaspersky Lab, MonaRonaDona’s author is hoping the victim will conduct a Google search for instructions on how to remove it and thus to Unigray AntiVirus.

Unigray.com has only been in existence for two weeks now, said the Analyst’s Diary.

It seems very strange that such a new program would include detection for MonaRonaDona while legitimate antivirus products don’t.

Analysing the program further I found that it has only one removal routine. Guess for which malicious program? That’s right - MonaRonaDona. Unigray will clean it up for only $39.90 – this doesn’t sound like the best of deals to me.

A comparison of the code of MonaRonaDona and Unigray Antivirus show that there are many, many similarities. This leaves very little doubt that the same group is behind both MonaRonaDona and Unigray. And this case clearly shows that the bad guys are getting very good at social engineering.

If you have this infection please see this topic: http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r20088377-Re-MonaRonaDona-virus

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Porn Company Settles Spam Charges

by certifiedbug on March 4, 2008

in News

Adult Website Operation Settles FTC Charges Unwitting Consumers Exposed to X-Rated Spam

An X-rated Web operation that paid affiliates who used illegal e-mail to drive customers to its Web sites will pay a $413,000 civil penalty under a settlement reached with the FTC and the Department of Justice. The settlement also bars the illegal marketing practices in the future and requires the operator to monitor its affiliates to ensure that they are complying with the law.

FTC Press Release

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