CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu’s cyber crime wing on Friday issued an alert warning citizens to be wary of cyber attacks in the wake of escalating Indo-Pak conflict, especially from state-sponsored advanced persistent threats known for targeting Indian government agencies, military personnel and critical infrastructure.
The advisory states that there has been a recent surge in malicious content spreading through WhatsApp, e-Mail and social media platforms with respect to the Indo-Pak conflict. This content includes deceptive videos, images,’.exe/.apk’ files and phishing links disguised as news related to the ongoing conflict.
Threat actors are exploiting public interest and tension around the situation to target individuals with malware, fake news and cyber scams. These cybercriminals are circulating malicious content under the pretext of exclusive updates, conflict-related visuals, or leaked footage, with many of these materials carrying malware or links to phishing websites. This content can be in the form of links or even photographs sent from unknown numbers or forwarded in whatsapp/ Telegram/ other social media groups, the advisory said.
Once these malicious links/ image/ .exe/ .apk files are downloaded, a malware is installed in the device which can result in compromising the device, hacking of bank accounts or social media accounts etc, the advisory added.
The public has been asked to be wary of downloading unknown video or image files and avoid installing apk files sent via messaging apps. Two step verification in whatsapp, and following general cyber hygiene has been advised.