Skype on Omid Farhang

Dorkbot worm lurks on Skype and MSN Messenger again

Mon, 11 Feb 2013 19:04:00 +0000

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.

Fake Skype app on Android is malware

Sun, 15 Jul 2012 13:20:00 +0000

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.

Automated Skype calls and Fake Antiviruses

Sun, 03 Jun 2012 15:47:00 +0000

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]

Skype divulges user IP addresses

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 17:36:00 +0000

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.

Skype 5.8 For Windows Brings Full HD Video Calls, Facebook Integration

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 14:31:00 +0000

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.”

Microsoft heading for $8bn Skype acquisition

Tue, 10 May 2011 12:20:00 +0000

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.

Facebook and Skype deal to dial friends and family

Sun, 17 Oct 2010 22:21:00 +0000

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.

Is Google Building a Skype Competitor?

Wed, 19 May 2010 21:01:00 +0000

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.

Skype 5.0 beta brings five-way video chat

Wed, 19 May 2010 20:41:00 +0000

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.

Skype to Introduce Ads?

Tue, 11 May 2010 14:06:00 +0000

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.

Apple reinvents multitasking for the iPhone

Fri, 09 Apr 2010 17:08:00 +0000

Multitasking, the feature that has been the absolute top of every iPhone user’s want list –which, by proxy became a major marketing point for both Android and webOS — has made its way to iPhone OS 4.

“We figured out how to implement multitasking for third party apps and avoid those things [battery life and lag]. So that’s what took so long,” said Apple CEO Steve Jobs this morning.

While it’s not actually full background processing, Apple has devised a way to reproduce the feeling. The company provided 7 APIs to developers which constitute the always-on services that apps can communicate with. These include: background audio, VoIP, Background Location, push notifications, local notifications, task completion, and fast app switching.

Everybody uses Web 2.0, but IT might not know it

Fri, 05 Mar 2010 01:07:00 +0000

Communications security firm FaceTime of Belmont, Calif., has released the results of a survey (of 1654 people) that strongly indicates we are all using a lot of Web 2.0 applications at work and a third of our IT staffs aren’t aware of it. It was FaceTime’s fifth annual survey.
Social media and Web 2.0 apps are being used by virtually all end users (99 percent) to support business processes, but 38 percent of IT professionals surveyed think there is no social networking on their networks.

Skype gives up on Microsoft, will work with operators on Windows Mobile

Tue, 02 Mar 2010 01:12:00 +0000

Popular instant messaging, voice chat, and video conferencing client Skype and Skype Lite are no longer available on Windows Mobile devices.

The company says, “We’ve chosen to withdraw Skype Lite and Skype for Windows Mobile because we want to offer our new customers an improved mobile experience — much like the version that has proved so popular on the iPhone, and which is now available on Symbian phones. Our focus is on providing a rich user experience that allows you to enjoy free Skype-to-Skype and low cost calls as easily on the move as you do at your desktop. We felt that Skype Lite and Skype for Windows Mobile were not offering the best possible Skype experience.“

Beware of Skype Phishing

Mon, 01 Feb 2010 23:11:00 +0000

We were made aware that phishing for Skype credentials is currently taking place. The link the phishing mails direct to are dangerous – they aren’t detected by any phishing filter of the popular browsers yet.

One thing caught my attention. Modern browsers should support domain highlighting so that the real domain is visible when someone surfs the Internet. Like Internet Explorer 8 properly does:

There you can clearly see that you are not on the Skype website, but on another domain.

Safe Computing Tips For All

Thu, 31 Dec 2009 19:13:00 +0000

Jerome Segura, a Security Analyst at ParetoLogic of Victoria, B.C., Canada, just posted a nice piece on computer security practices with a different perspective in his “Malware Diaries” Blog.

He begins his list of security tips by considering four classes of users:

the pre-baby boomers: These folks rarely touched a computer in their lives and if they did, kudos!
Typical use: Work, Solitaire, Printing stuff.
the early and late baby boomers: They have been interacting with computers pre-Internet and have good notions but lack the ‘modern day stuff’.
Typical use: Work, e-mail, Online searches.
the 70’s – 80’s users: These guys are definitely into computers, maybe a bit more gaming and such. They possess quite a good sense of computing.
Typical use: Games, Work, E-mail, Online Dating, Forums
90’s to present: Some of them were born with a computer or handheld device. Their lives would not be possible without the MSN, Skype and more recently all the social engineering glitter.
Typical use: Twittering, Facebooking, Online shopping.

then makes further distinctions by level of security knowledge and awareness: