The Terror of Malvertising

Advertising is at the heart of any business.  It is anything from how employees look and dress going into work, to the radio, TV and social media adverts that customers and potential customers see, as well as the reviews that people write.  Advertising is everything to business.  It builds brand, generates profits, increases awareness and drives the company. 

Due to the importance of advertising, it is essential to get it right. Negative advertising or Malvertising can damage a brand and business in a huge way. It is sometimes hard to tell the difference between legit advertising from what we will discuss today, malvertising. 

If you do not know, Malvertising is a malicious cyber strategy that uses web adverts to spread malware. Many websites and internet domains rely on online advertising for revenue. In order to efficiently reach enormous internet audiences, online networks have become more expansive and complicated than ever before. 

How does it work? For an attacker, the attraction of malvertising is that the malicious ads may be posted on any number of otherwise popular websites. Typically, they choose websites that have a high level of public confidence. Infected advertisements have been seen on websites such as the Daily Mail. It all begins with an attacker misusing ad networks, which now supply a large amount of all online advertisements.

Now, the terror of malvertising does not only rests on the shoulders of the consumer but it can negatively impact a business too. Malware is a serious hazard to any business. Malware causes many security difficulties for enterprises since it compromises a network’s or system’s security infrastructure. For example, malware disrupts and disables services by breaking an organisation’s network and disrupting commercial processes. It can also spoof identity or personal Information as malicious malware if it infiltrates your machine without your knowledge, via emails or downloads, and attempts to acquire personal information.

Malware attacks are becoming more common. The number of malware types surged by 54% in 2017, according to Symantec’s 2018 Internet Security Threat Report. According to Symantec’s 2019 Internet Security Threat Report, cybercriminals’ use of malware has surged by 25%. This is certainly an area where corporations and governments should concentrate their efforts. Otherwise, the consequences could be disastrous.

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