Cybercriminals are taking advantage of the growing popularity of ChatGPT to propagate malware via compromised Facebook accounts, according to a report released by cyber intelligence firm CloudSEK on Monday.
In its recent study, CloudSEK identified 13 Facebook accounts, including those featuring Indian content, with a cumulative following of over 500,000 users. These accounts have been hijacked and are actively used to spread malware through Facebook advertisements.
“Cybercriminals are leveraging the appeal of ChatGPT and Facebook’s extensive user community by taking control of legitimate accounts to distribute malware through ads,” stated Bablu Kumar, a cyber intelligence analyst at CloudSEK. “Our research has shown that 13 compromised pages, with some having been taken over since February 2023, pose a significant risk to user safety. We encourage users to be alert and vigilant regarding such malicious activities on the platform,” Kumar added.
Furthermore, CloudSEK reports having discovered at least 25 websites that impersonate the OpenAI domain. These malicious sites are tricking users into downloading and installing harmful software, which poses serious risks to their security and privacy.
“The malware in question is not only capable of stealing sensitive information, including personally identifiable information, system data, and credit card information, but it also has the ability to replicate itself and spread across different systems using removable media. With features that allow it to escalate privileges and maintain a persistent presence on the system, this malware presents a considerable threat,” Kumar explained.
