Skype

The Dorkbot/Rodpicom worm, which spreads via messaging applications and leads to additional malware infections, is currently doing rounds on Skype and MSN Messenger, warns Fortinet. The vicious circle starts with potential victims receiving a direct message from a contact, asking “LOL is this your new profile pic? http://goo.gl/[removed]”. Those who follow the link land on a malicious site and are infected with the worm. Apart from being able to send out the aforementioned message to further potential victims, the malware is also capable of opening a backdoor into the infected system, downloading more malicious software, spamming, reaching out to its C&C server, downloading a new version of itself, and other malicious activities. The computer is essentially enslaved into a botnet and is ready to do the botnet master’s bidding. It’s interesting to note that the worm waits until the victims log into the chat app they use and then send out the messages. It is also able of changing the language of the message to be consistent with the language of the installed Windows operating system, making it more believable that the message has been sent by the user. According to FortiGuard Labs researcher Raul Alvarez, the malware is also equipped with a number of evasive and obfuscation techniques aimed at hiding its existence both from AV software and researchers. ...

ZDNet Wrote: A new piece of malware is trying to take advantage of Skype’s increasing popularity, especially on mobile devices. Cybercriminals have created a fake version of the Skype for Android app, designed to earn money from unsuspecting users. Trend Micro, which first discovered the malware, is calling this particular threat JAVA_SMSSEND.AB. The Java in the name should not surprise you, given that Android apps are primarily developed in a custom version of the programming language. Thankfully, this is not a very good fake. The app in question only runs on older (pre Software Installation Script) Symbian phones or Android devices that allow execution of Java MIDlet. ...

This is an old story back from September, 2011, but since recently I’ve seen users complaining about this, I want to share it again [Credit to NakedSecurity, SophoLabs]: You may have received an automated call from a user who claim to be from Skype or somewhere which says: Attention: this is an automated computer system alert. Your computer protection service is not active. To activate computer protection, and repair your computer, go to [LINK] ...

The H-Online: According to a blog post, a modified version of the Skype VoIP software can be used to easily find out the IP address of any valid Skype user. No contact has to be made with the user in order to get the information. This IP could then be used to find out other personal details about the user, such as their location or even their employer. With a certain registry key, the manipulated version of Skype will create a log file with information including other users’ external and internal IP addresses. These IPs can be retrieved simply by opening up a user’s profile with the Skype client. In a test conducted by The H’s associates at heise Security, the log file always showed the correct IPs – and when a user was logged in with multiple clients, the IP addresses for all the clients were visible. ...

Mashable: Skype for Windows version 5.8 is out, bringing several interesting features, including full HD video-calling, group screen sharing and Facebook integration. Full HD video calls will be most useful to those who own a HD webcam, for example Logitech C920 which does the video encoding itself thus improving HD video quality on older computers. Video calling for Facebook works even with users who don’t use Skype. To start a video call with a Facebook buddy, select the person in your list and click “video call.” ...

V3.co.uk: Microsoft is a whisker away from an $8bn deal to buy VoIP firm Skype in its biggest ever foray into the acquisition market, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal. The deal, which would total around $8.5bn when including Skype’s long-term debt, could be signed as early as Tuesday, people familiar with the matter told the paper. Microsoft’s biggest acquisition to date is the $6bn paid in 2007 to buy online advertising firm aQuantive. ...

Skype is integrating with Facebook to make it easier to call and video chat with friends and family on the social network. The deal comes amid fevered rumors that Facebook plans to launch a phone of its own. Meanwhile Skype is gearing up for a $100m share issue.

Google announced today that it has made a cash offer to acquire Global IP Solutions (GIPS). A leader in the real-time VoIP processing space for both voice and video, GIPS doesn’t have any consumer-facing products; instead, it provides services that work on the backend for products like Yahoo! Messenger, Citrix and WebEx. This is an interesting acquisition for Google, who already has a number of consumer products that could benefit from GIPS technologies. Not only does GIPS provide voice processing for VoIP calls that could potentially improve gTalk and Google Voice, GIPS also has a large focus on real-time video transmissions, both on the client and mobile side. Our first thought when looking at this announcement was that Google could provide some really formidable competition to Skype. ...

Video chatting is on the rise. Yesterday, we got to take a look at Qik’s mobile video chat client for the Sprint EVO 4G, and today, we get to take a look at Skype’s latest development: five-way video chat. Today, popular VoIP and chat client Skype launched a beta of Skype 5.0 for Windows, which includes a free trial of group video calling, a re-designed call view window, improved video snapshots gallery, and improved browser plugin performance. ...

As Skype prepares to roll out five-way video calling this week — an addition the company plans to charge for at a later date — it’s also thinking of monetizing the now free user-to-user web calling serving with advertisements. In an interview with The Telegraph, CEO Josh Silverman explains that the company — once again its own entity — is challenged by its desire to keep Skype-to-Skype calls free and to maintain the quality of service. As a result, the Skype team is “seriously considering” including ads from third parties in order to continue to operate the service free of charge. ...