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2011 e-threat predictions

BitDefender’s 2011 e-threat predictions spotlight DDoS protests, rogue applications, social network plugins and mobile malware.

BitDefender has announced predictions of the major e-threats in 2011, warning users to be prepared for a range of more complex and more sophisticated malware in the year ahead.

The predictions from the BitDefender Lab spotlight the use of distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) as a means of social protest – a trend that emerged in 2010 with the advent of the Stuxnet worm and massive DDoS attacks against institutions that withdrew support for Wikileaks. During 2011, BitDefender expects increased activity from both conventional botnets, as well as from computers voluntarily enrolled in ad-hoc botnets – which will focus on launching DDoS attacks as social protest against institutions that regulate the use of the Internet.

“In 2011, not only do we expect malicious applications will increase it number – BitDefender believes these e-threats will be more complex and pose even greater danger to today’s online lifestyle,” said Catalin Cosoi, head of the BitDefender Online Threats Lab.

BitDefender warned of the possible debut of malware signed with genuine stolen digital certificates or counterfeit certificates, and also predicted a rise in rogue software, a growing and serious security threat to computer users in the form of malware that deceives or misleads users into paying for the fake or simulated removal of malware.

“BitDefender expects an even broader offering of rogue software utilities in 2011, ranging from rogue disk defragmenters to tune-up applications,” said Cosoi.

The increase in access to social networking sites and the introduction of HTML5 will also play a key role, according to BitDefender Lab’s security experts, as in the way malware authors use these increasingly popular online channels to disseminate their creations. “We can expect to see an increase in malware using either HTML5 or Java in order to compromise users’ security,” said Cosoi.

BitDefender also expects the massive acceptance of smartphones and other mobile devices running fully-fledged operating systems will lead to an increase in mobile malware. The availability of software development kits for these devices will make it easier for malware creators to seize control of these mobile devices.

“Android malware such as the Geinimi Trojan is already a reality, and it is only a matter of time before cyber-criminals start infecting users’ phones to gain control over sensitive data such as e-banking and social networking credentials,” said Cosoi.

For more information on the e-threat landscape in 2011, please visit http://www.bitdefender.com/site/view/BitDefender-E-Threats-Landscape-Report.html.

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