McAfee warns of ‘typosquatting’ threat

05 Jan 09

Just when you thought you were on top of the risks online, along comes another threat... Mistyped URLs can land the Internet surfer in extremely hot water, as Greg Day explains.

By Greg Day

Twenty years ago, we learned that infected floppy disks could spread viruses so we determined to deal with that little issue. Then we became used to social engineering techniques, and stopped clicking on every link or file we were sent.

However, the evolution of threats didn’t stop there, and we’ve since been learning to deal with spam, phishing and other online scams to make sure that our personal information isn’t being targeted. However, that’s not the end of the matter as even our own spelling errors, it seems, can land us in trouble, with ‘typosquatters’ just waiting for us to make mistakes.

What is ‘typosquatting’?

‘Typosquatting’ is the term used to describe how malicious-minded Internet fiends prey on those of us who mistype web addresses, registering common misspellings of popular domain names and products such that they might redirect those who make mistakes to alternative web sites. In fact, a typical person misspelling a popular URL has a 1-in-14 chance of landing at a ‘typosquatter’ site.

Run by the ‘typosquatters’ themselves, these sites then generate click-through advertising revenue, lure unsuspecting consumers into scams, harvest e-mail addresses in order to flood unsuspecting Internet users with unwanted mail and can even generate malware infections. This just goes to show that when it comes to keeping yourself secure on the Internet, it’s an ever-moving target and there’s a very real need to continuously question the validity of sites and sources.

The use of URLs that look like the real thing but are in fact far from it should come as no real surprise. Just as phishing e-mails replicate valid messages from banks and the perpetrators of malware attempt to make you download a file by claiming it’s something that will appeal to you, the bad guys know what the average Internet user is interested in and what will appeal to the greatest number of surfers.

Victims of online scams

This tactic is no different to physical retailers trying to pass off fake goods as something altogether more legitimate. It’s important to learn what to look out for, though. At worst, ‘typosquatting’ can lead to innocent computer users becoming the victims of online scams or ‘get-rich-quick’ tricks.

If your business has an online presence, the danger is that your customers may unwittingly be lured from your site on to one that may well look similar at first glance but isn’t the real deal. A recent example of a brand that has been targeted by ‘typosquatters is the iPhone. Although it was released fairly late in 2007, it was predicted that by the end of that year there would be approximately 8,000 URLs using ‘iPhone’. Gaming sites and airline sites also emerged as being highly squatted.

Given the manner with which online villains constantly change their approach to try and trick us, how can we maintain good security and protect our identity? Well, the reality is that those bad guys are always trying to stay one step ahead of us – but we don’t need to let them. The bottom line is that if you’re not sure of the URL you’re looking for, you’re far safer using a search engine than trying to make a guess.

Making good use of security technology

If we stay alert, are careful with the information we share and the web sites we visit, and also use security technology to block or highlight risks, there’s no reason why we cannot continue to realise the most benefits possible from the Internet. With the right approach, the Internet can continue to play a pivotal role in our lives and we can protect our friends and families from those who will continue to try to trick us.