Application security, Threat Management, Malware, Phishing

New spam, phishing attacks center on Obama inauguration

Share

With President-elect Obama set to be sworn in to office on Tuesday, businesses should brace for an uptick in inauguration-related spam and phishing, US-CERT has warned.

The agency said in a Thursday advisory that it has received reports of new junk mail campaigns and phishing sites related to the inauguration.

Spammers and malware writers typically coincide their attacks with major current events, US-CERT said.

Users are reminded to run an updated anti-virus package and to not follow links they do not trust or open unknown emails.

The new wave comes despite a report this week from McAfee that spam levels have fallen 40 percent off their highs in November, prior to the shutdown of McColo, a rogue internet service provider that was being used by cybercriminals to host their attacks.

New spam, phishing attacks center on Obama inauguration

Despite spam levels being far less than they were prior to the shutdown of a rogue ISP in November, security experts are warning of an influx of new attacks related to Tuesday's inauguration.

Get daily email updates

SC Media's daily must-read of the most current and pressing daily news

By clicking the Subscribe button below, you agree to SC Media Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.