Erin Andrew peephole video links spread malware
ESPN sports reporter Erin Andrews never got as much buzz for her game coverage until news broke that there was a nude video of Erin Andrews, taken through a peephole, floating around the web.
Be careful before searching for Erin Andrew’s peephole video:
Be careful where you put the cursor, you will end up with a dirty virus.
The video, which has since been removed from YouTube, appears to have been taken with some kind of spy camera through a hotel room’s peephole. It has been speculated that the video was taken in Alabama or Portland. The video is reported to have been first posted on Dailymotion.com under the username Goblazers1. Erin Andrews’s attorneys threatened to prosecute anyone who linked to or displayed the video, which of course sent Internet searches for the video skyrocketing.
The video, which was taken without Andrew’s consent, is such an obvious invasion of privacy that even TMZ has stated that it has no intention of buying or publishing it. The video was reportedly grainy and mundane, showing Andrews combing her hair and talking on the phone. There is nothing worth a computer virus and that is just what many curious web searchers have gotten for their trouble.
Internet scammers pay attention to the latest Google trends to set up websites that may look legitimate but will leave you with a computer virus.
“Hackers are not sloppy when it comes to taking advantage of an Internet search trend, and have been quick to set up fake web pages claiming to contain video footage of Ms Andrews in her hotel room,” said Graham Cluley of Sophos.
How do these malware scams work?
Early scammers lure browsers with hot keywords like Erin Andrews. Some fake websites even spelled themselves Aaron Andrews, possibly to trap news listeners who didn’t know how Erin was spelled. The pages can even look like a page from a legitimate site like CNN.
You can then say something like LIVE VIDEO PLAYER BLOCKED, which allows online viewers to believe that the video was blocked by the pop-up blocker.
This is where scammers get curious and disappointed. “To watch your video, please launch the LIVE VIDEO PLAYER below”, and with one click you have just downloaded malicious malware.
Apple users are not immune
Both Apple and Microsoft users have been infected by these viruses, so be careful where you click. Yes, there are far fewer Mac infections compared to Windows, but that doesn’t mean owners of new Mac laptops should feel immune.
There have been cases of Mac malware where viewers are promised pornographic photos if they install an ActiveX component. In fact, viewers are rewarded with a Trojan horse and have handed over control of their computer to the hacker.
Some say there is no bad press. Erin Andrews might not agree. But the naked peephole video has garnered some useful press for web users. Trying to be “naked” on the web is not a safe practice.