The use of deepfake videos and company-branded posts on social media to lure victims into fraudulent investment schemes has seen a staggering 335 percent increase. A recent threat report highlights these rising dangers, with Japan, Slovakia, Canada, Spain, and Czechia being the most affected countries. The report, which summarizes threat landscape trends from June through November 2024, underscores the evolving tactics of cybercriminals and the resulting shake-ups in the cybersecurity field.
Infostealers, malware designed to steal sensitive data, have seen notable changes, with the once-dominant Agent Tesla malware being overtaken by Formbook, another well-established threat. Lumma Stealer, another infostealer, has also seen a considerable rise in use, with detections increasing by 369 percent. ESET’s director of threat detection, Jiří Kropáč, commented on this trend, noting that the latter half of 2024 kept cybercriminals busy exploiting security loopholes and devising innovative methods to target victims.
In October 2024, international authorities succeeded in taking down the infamous ‘infostealer-as-a-service’ Redline Stealer. Following its shutdown, there is an expectation that other similar threats will emerge to fill the void.
Deepfake scams surge in fraud
The ransomware landscape has also undergone significant changes, with the removal of former leader LockBit paving the way for other entities. RansomHub, a ransomware-as-a-service, has established itself as a dominant player, accumulating hundreds of victims by the end of 2024. Cryptocurrency wallets have become prime targets for malicious actors, particularly due to record cryptocurrency values.
ESET has observed an increase in cryptostealer detections across multiple platforms, with a particularly dramatic rise on macOS. Password-Stealing Ware, malware targeting cryptocurrency wallet credentials, more than doubled in H2 2024. AMOS (Atomic Stealer), designed to steal data from Mac devices, was a significant contributor to this increase.
Android financial threats have also grown by 20 percent, targeting both banking apps and cryptocurrency wallets. This evolving threat landscape underscores the need for improved cybersecurity measures and vigilance among users as cybercriminals continue to develop and deploy sophisticated methods to exploit their victims.
April Isaacs is a news contributor for DevX.com She is long-term, self-proclaimed nerd. She loves all things tech and computers and still has her first Dreamcast system. It is lovingly named Joni, after Joni Mitchell.
