e-Mail scams around the 2010 World Cup are nothing new but security spam traps recently picked up one that packs a punch. The e-mail attempts to lure unwary football fans into clicking on a false online link to a video allegedly showing Brazilian coach, Dunga, being given a black eye by an irate fan.
According to Symantec’s Roy Meshulam, the e-mail claims that Dunga was punched by a fan angered by the non-selection of a number of Brazilian greats, including Ronaldinho.
“The alleged incident was apparently filmed during a morning training session in Johannesburg and led to the police being called to apprehend the culprit who subsequently fled.
“Recipients of the e-mail are invited to click on a link to a ‘video’ - redyr.thaieasydns.com/videos/[REMOVED].phpDungaFotosVideosver, which leads to a file named Arquivo_ID73862.cpl. This file is in reality a piece of malware known as a ‘Downloader’,” he says.
Meshulam adds that with the World Cup entering the last 16 stage and excitement building to a fever pitch, fans can expect more of these opportunistic attacks.
“Fortunately, the scope of this attack is quite limited and online fans with legitimate anti-spam and antivirus software are protected. Fans can, however, avoid an online bruising by deleting suspicious e-mails and staying with legitimate news sites when surfing for football news,” he says.