As sports events such as upcoming FIFA World Cup or others take place, their activity will only increase.” said Darya Gudkova, Spam Analyst Expert at Kaspersky Lab. “Though In 2017 we saw a slight decrease in spam activities, throughout the year spammers haven’t missed any reason to steal users’ personal information, keeping their eyes on what’s happening in the world. The proportion of spam in email traffic in 2017 At the same time, the number of the phishing attacks increased – the Kaspersky Lab Anti-Phishing system was triggered 246,231,645 times on the computers of Kaspersky Lab users, which is nearly 59% higher than in 2016. Overall, the average amount of spam in 2017 decreased to 56.63%, which is 1.68 percentage points less than in 2016. However, importantly, Cryptolockers, whose creators demanded a Bitcoin ransom, have been detected in spam letters less than in the previous year. Moreover, criminals have distributed different types of malware in spam emails, under the guise of utilities for earning Bitcoins, or instructions for cryptocurrency trading. In more traditional fraud schemes, such as fake lottery winnings, criminals have also started to use Bitcoin as bait, and in addition to targeted address databases advertised through spam, databases with emails for cryptocurrency users have been also offered for purchase, promising great opportunities. But in all cases users became the victims - losing money instead of earning any. the use of specialized data centers for rent. By the end of the year, an extensive arsenal of spammer tools was noted.Īccording to Kaspersky Lab’s discoveries, criminals have been using tricks such as websites disguised as cryptocurrency exchanges, fake services offering cloud mining, i.e. Kaspersky Lab researchers have previously recorded a growth in blockchain-themed tricks in the third quarter of 2017. Thus, they’ve been sending victims fraudulent messages with official logos of the event, including organizers and sponsor brand information, and notifying users about lottery wins and even promising them free tickets.Īnother hot spam and phishing topic in 2017 was cryptocurrency - as Bitcoin’s price has drastically increased. While in 2017 the world has been intensively preparing for FIFA 2018, spammers have been actively spreading related emails. These factors, combined, mean that people are more likely to follow false instructions. Kaspersky Lab’s ongoing research on spam and phishing activities confirms the methods used by spammers are effective, due to users’ decreasing attention and increasing unconditional trust. Spammers have shown themselves to be thoughtful actors, instantly monitoring global issues and major events around the globe with one main purpose – to capture and capitalize on their victim’s attention. According to Kaspersky Lab’s “Spam and phishing in 2017” report, criminals have been following a global agenda and have been using hot topics such as FIFA 2018 and Bitcoin to fool users and steal their money or personal information in the last 12 months.