Hackers hijack Google AdWords
Criminals have been hijacking sponsored links to attempt to spread malicious code, search company says
Computer users were warned of the potential hazards of Google today after the company admitted that criminals had hijacked links displayed in some lists of search results and attempted to install viruses on users’ machines.
It was unclear how many people were affected by the attack, which targeted the sponsored links that appear on the right hand side of a page and involved the user being sent to a malicious website before being redirected to their desired destination.
Google would not say which search terms were involved, but according to reports, links associated with some 20 terms had to be dismantled, including the “Better Business Bureau”, a US-based consumer organisation similar to Which?.
The offending links were shut down as soon as the problem was discovered on Tuesday, Google said, but the attack will cast doubt on the security of AdWords, the system the company uses to sell the advertisements which make up the bulk of its revenues.
AdWords allows companies to bid to have their link displayed prominently alongside the results thrown up by a particular search term.
In the attack, criminals bought links that appeared to be genuinely associated with search terms but which diverted users to a malicious site that attempted to install malware on their computers.
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Source: www.timesonline.co.uk
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