Java.com Serves Malware To Visitors

Java.com recently was shown to deliver malware by way of malicious ads being served by third-party websites. Criminals are now placing bids on advertisement bidding platforms. The trust that is given to the advertisers, as well as the exploit code not appearing to be an malicious until it is rendered at the client browser, makes it much harder to prevent such so-called malvertising attacks. The following high-profile websites were a part of this attack: Java.com, TMZ.com, eBay.ie, Photobucket.com, and IBTimes.com. The ads were delivered through the AppNexus ad network. A visitor does not need to click on the malicious advertisements in order to become infected. It happens in the background as the ad is loaded by the visitor’s browser. The individual cards are commanding prices of up to $50 or $100 each on one such website.

To protect your computer, always allow web browser plugins to update automatically. Another important protection is to uninstall the Java plugin altogether, if possible. If this is not possible, disable potentially exploitable plugins from running automatically. For more information visit our tech tips article Enable Click-to-run in all browsers.