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Genius Monkey wants to extend our most sincere concerns and best wishes to all of our readers during this pandemic storm. Hopefully, this quest for virus protection will all be over with soon so we can go about our day-to-day activities as normal.
We know that many businesses have shut down, or are operating at a slow crawl, and our hearts and thoughts are with them. At Genius Monkey, our production hasn’t slowed down, as we are working hard to keep your programmatic digital platforms up and running like normal. You can be assured that during these tumultuous times, our wheels of production haven’t slowed a bit.
Just as we are all doing our part to protect our bodies from this Coronavirus, we also need to protect our computers. That’s right; your body isn’t the only thing that’s vulnerable to COVID-19 – your computer is, too. Yep, you read that right! Cyber criminals are busy developing dangerous malware campaigns to target millions of users. They are doing this under the cover of this ever-looming pandemic. As disappointing as this may be, these bad guys are trying to take advantage of this global situation, finding new and more cunning ways to hack their way into your data at what is probably the most vulnerable time for so many.
Cyber criminals are setting up websites and campaigns as expeditiously as possible. The malicious rate of coronavirus-related domains has risen 50% higher than the overall rate of all domains registered over the same time period, and even higher than recent seasonal themes like Valentine’s Day! These malicious websites related to the coronavirus are proliferating as quickly as the actual virus is spreading. COVID-19 is a perfect topic to hide behind because people are afraid (and maybe a little desperate), wanting any information they can get about this pandemic.
These attackers are sending malicious virus-laced links and emails with “Breaking Coronavirus News” and other click-baiting information. Here’s what to watch out for:
- First, when you read information about the Coronavirus, be sure that it’s from a credible source
- If any of these info sites prompt you to download anything, it’s most likely malicious
- Another thing to look at is the grammar and spelling of the message. If it seems a little sketchy, you can assume it’s not legit
- Be sure not to open any attachments from unknown senders
- Be certain that any links in your emails are legit, and not part of a phishing scheme or Trojan download. Simply hover over a link to check the URL or copy and paste it in your web browser
Genius Monkey has always set the bar in the war against malware and contaminated web traffic. We do so by using our advanced proprietary software to effectively stop far more bad traffic than that of the industry average. With our sophisticated attribution-tracking capabilities and our highly secure systems, we aren’t hampered by the same malware threats that are plaguing so many.
Just as we must be totally cautious to protect our physical health using social distancing and common sense, we also must retain an online vigilance. Don’t let your actions expose your device to malicious software, which can then access your information, credentials, and other online activity. Don’t click on unfamiliar links, and remember that unsolicited information is rarely trustworthy. Unless it comes from a valid and trusted sender, you’d be better off to just ignore it. It’s like strapping an N95 surgical mask onto your computer. And, as is always the case, use caution and common sense, both online, and off.
