The sector gaming it has now become gigantic, with millions of people spread all over the world. Given the relatively low age and such a large user base, it is easy to understand how this environment can attract malicious people of all kinds.
On the other hand, by its very nature the gamer is at risk. From in-game purchases to elements external to the video game product (such as mod e cheat), there is certainly no shortage of potential channels for i cyber criminals. All without considering the enormous amount of infections linked to counterfeit games.
The analysts of Sekoia.io they wanted to raise an alarm in this sense, reporting how the infostealer are becoming a real plague for gamers.
According to experts, in fact, there are different strains of this malware that operate in the sector, exploiting messages Discord e malicious websites with specially disguised downloads.
Infostealer: how cybercriminals attack gamers
To make the situation even more alarming, there is a recent attack that targeted the cloud gaming platform Shadow. In fact, through manipulated software spread through Discord, some users of the service are attacked by a malware.
The most common infection techniques involve sending webhook Discordwhich direct the user to a malicious website that promises something very attractive to the affected target.
Regardless of the bait adopted, we are talking about a specific file (ZIP archive/RAR o executable), of a link to file hosting services like MEGA. In fact, once the malware is activated, the victim’s device falls directly into the hands of those managing the campaign.
According to investigations by Sekoia.io, the families of infostealers involved most often appear to be Doenerium, Epsilon Stealer, BBy Stealer e Nova Sentinel. Once access is gained, cybercriminals can access sensitive information such as:
- Browser data such as password e cookie;
- Cryptocurrency wallet;
- Application credentials;
- Profili social.
How to avoid infections?
To mitigate the risk of malware infection, be they infostealers or different malicious agents, the first step is to rely only on siti, platforms e official sources.
This applies to video games, but also to mods and the like. The platforms that offer additional content, if serious, perform accurate test to avoid hosting malicious software. In any case, when it comes to add-ons created by third parties, the advice is limit its use as much as possible.
As already mentioned, i pirated software they represent a strong risk: avoiding them means considerably reducing the risk of infection. Adopt a antiviruskept up to date, represents another way to reduce dangers.
