Cybercriminals Shifting Focus To Non-Windows OSes

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Cybercriminals Shifting Focus To Non-Windows OSes

Posted by CmdrTaco on Thursday January 20, 2011 @03:11AM from the diversification-strategy dept.

Orome1 writes "In a major cybercrime turning point, scammers have begun shifting their focus away from Windows-based PCs to other operating systems and platforms, including smart phones, tablet computers, and mobile platforms in general, according to the a new Cisco report. The report also finds that 2010 was the first year in the history of the Internet that spam volume decreased, that cybercriminals are investing heavily in 'money muling,' and that users continue to fall prey to myriad forms of trust exploitation."

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Re:Thank God.... by Anonymous Coward · 2011-01-20 03:16 · Score: 4, Insightful

That's not really as true anymore, though. I'm not sure if this is the article I read on it, but http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/news/index.cfm?newsId=3235498
Also, even if the underlying architecture protects better... you can't protect people from their own stupidity. They will *absolutely* find ways to infect their machines with malware even if it requires becoming root.
Fucking users.
Re:Thank God.... by Spad · 2011-01-20 03:16 · Score: 5, Funny

Not until you get an equal number of people using Linux who are determined to see the dancing bunnies.
Re:Thank God.... by Monkeedude1212 · 2011-01-20 03:17 · Score: 4, Insightful

What makes you think they haven't?
What you've described would be completely unmeasurable - because the only way you can properly measure exploits is when they are successful. There is no way to distinguish between failing to exploit Linux and not attempting an exploit it at all.
Re:Thank God.... by Mike+Mentalist · 2011-01-20 03:18 · Score: 4, Funny

Stallman? Is that you?

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Re:Thank God.... by oodaloop · 2011-01-20 03:28 · Score: 5, Informative

Yes, Richard Stallman is, to his close friends, also known as Lumpy.

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Re:Android app store now rejecting apps by icebraining · 2011-01-20 03:35 · Score: 4, Interesting

I don't see any problem with the Android App Store restrictions because you can choose to install packages from other sources if you choose. So, if you like feeling safe, don't mess with it. If you don't like the restriction, enable out of store installations.
Motorola's eFuse, on the other hand, seem nothing more than a way for them to control your phone; I don't see how it protects you.

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Re:Thank God.... by Tubal-Cain · 2011-01-20 03:46 · Score: 5, Insightful

Apache holds 50% of the webserver market, often on Linux. Much more valuable targets than a generic PC.
Re:That's part of the protection. by gazbo · 2011-01-20 03:51 · Score: 4, Interesting

Best part of a decade ago there was a Windows email virus (forget which one, sorry) that did rather well for itself. In order to avoid detection, it spread by email in a password protected zip file. In order to become infected, the user had to open the zip by typing in the randomly generated password given in the email, extract the executable within, then run it.
It was then that I realised there will never be a technical solution that makes more than a dent in malware infections.