Tag Archive for: ads

Vodafone plans carrier-level user tracking for targeted ads

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Vodafone Germany to test ISP-level tracking for targeted ads

Vodafone is piloting a new advertising ID system called TrustPid, which will work as a persistent user tracker at the mobile Internet Service Provider (ISP) level.

The new system is in test phase in Germany and is intended to be impossible to bypass from within the web browser settings or through cookie blocking or IP address masking.

The mobile carrier plans to assign a fixed ID to each customer and associate all user activity with it. The ID will be based on a number of parameters, so that the system will be able to maintain persistence.

Then, the mobile ISP creates a personal profile based on that ID and helps advertisers serve targeted ads to each customer without disclosing any identification details.

Keeping the internet “free”

According to Vodafone, the problem that arises for its internet subscribers is that the “free” parts of the internet are threatened by stricter cookie blocking and privacy-boosting schemes.

Apple already blocks default tracking everywhere, which destroyed Facebook’s business model, and Google is also expected to switch off its advertising cookie in Chrome by 2023.

These new models threaten the targeted advertising industry, and according to Vodafone, the danger of this is losing content and platforms currently supported by ads.

“Consumers appreciate the idea of a ‘free’ Internet, but this comes with a trade-off: publishers need a sustainable revenue model, meaning that it becomes essential to add subscription paywalls or rely on advertising to maintain free access to high-quality content,” reads the explanation on the TrustPiD website, managed by Vodafone Sales and Services Limited.

The industry is looking for alternative tracking ways, and mobile ISPs are in a position to provide a solution that users are likely to find difficult to circumvent.

Concerns over privacy

Vodafone explains that TrustPiD will be generated through randomness, and its subscribers will have the option to manage their consent over accepting the tracking via the company’s Privacy Portal.

For complete details on how the collected information will be used and who is going to receive it, check out TristPiD’s privacy policy.

No matter the claims made there, however,…

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How hackers are hijacking YouTube accounts to run ads for cryptocurrency scams

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Google’s Threat Analysis Group has shared details about a long-running phishing campaign targeting YouTubers. The campaign, apparently being carried out by hackers recruited in a Russian-speaking forum, uses “fake collaboration opportunities” to attract YouTubers, then hijacks their channel using a “pass-the-cookie attack,” with the goal of either selling it off or using it to broadcast—of course—cryptocurrency scams.

The attacks begin with a phishing email offering a promotional collaboration. Once the deal is agreed, the YouTuber is sent a link to a malware page disguised to look like a download URL. This is where the real action begins: When the target runs the software, it pulls cookies from their PCs and uploads them to “command and control servers” operated by the hackers. 

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Barraged by pop-up ads? Your computer may be infected with malware

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Remember when you could surf the web without being barraged by one pop-up ad after another? Between ”Congratulations! You’ve won $1 million” and “Alert! Virus detected,” constant, unwanted pop-up advertisements have become a frustrating reality of our online experience—and most (though not all) are simply spam in disguise.

Whether a pop-up ad offers you a deal that seems life-changing or presents a warning that scares you half to death, never just click impulsively, warns Adam Levin, founder of Cyberscout, to Yahoo Life. At their worst, pop-up ads—known as adware—are laced with malware, or malicious programming designed to infect your computer as soon as you click on it, stealing your most sensitive data, from social security numbers to online banking information.

“If you don’t want to feel remorse, go to the source,” says Levin. “Which is to say, think before you click. Pause. Think about the kind of security software that you have on your device. Check with that particular software vendor, even just by looking on your computer or your mobile device, but don’t just click on [a pop-up] because it says you’ve got a problem.”



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How do you know if you’re computer’s already been infected with malware though? Here are 5 telltale signs—and how to prevent a system invasion before it happens.

1. Endless pop-up ads telling you you’ve won “a million dollars” or “a free psychic reading” 



graphical user interface, application

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Software like System Mechanic can only clean out already infected machines—meaning you’ve already fallen for the trap. Malware-laced adware makes your screen such a landmine that clicking on the wrong link is easy. It’s designed to be that way. 

“Hackers are very clever, and they want to catch you at a moment when you’re focused on doing something else,” says Levin, also the author of ‘

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Fake Microsoft and Spotify Ads Lead to Ficker Malware

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People tend to be less guarded when they’re dealing with something familiar. Digital attackers know this, which explains why they set up malware behind ads pretending to be for Microsoft Store products and Spotify.

Bleeping Computer learned from ESET that the attackers were using malicious advertisements as part of their attack chain. Once clicked, those ads sent users to the Spotify or Microsoft Store scam websites harboring samples of the Ficker stealer family.

Read on to learn how these websites enticed visitors to infect themselves with malware.

Want a Legit App? Well, Here’s Some Malware Instead…

The attackers used malicious ads to lure in users with promotions for real apps.

Security researchers spotted one ad promoting an online chess app, for example. When clicked, the ad sent users to a fake Microsoft Store page. Clicking on the ‘Download Free’ button retrieved a malware payload disguised as xChess_v.709.zip from an Amazon AWS server.

Some of the other malicious ads directed users to a landing page offering a free bundle of Spotify Music and YouTube Premium for 90 days. No such bundle existed as of this writing.

The website then instructed visitors to click on a ‘Download Free App (1 MB)’ button. It’s worth noting that no music player is that small in size. At this time, the actual size of the real Spotify mobile and desktop apps was at least 150 MB.

Both of those apps downloaded Ficker onto a victim’s device. This malware is capable of stealing users’ passwords, taking screenshots of their computers and lifting documents.

Other Recent Attacks Involving Ficker

Malware analysts took to Twitter to expose Ficker in October 2020. At that time, they observed the malware developer renting out Ficker on Russian-speaking cracker forums.

In the months that followed, researchers learned more about how the digital threat works and observed the malware in action. One of the first eureka moments came from Minerva in early March, when its researchers witnessed Ficker download the Kronos RAT in a lab setting.

A few weeks later, Infoblox detected a malspam campaign that used DocuSign-themed lures to install the Hancitor Trojan…

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