Fergie's Tech Blog

Phishing URLs Skyrocket

Gregg Keizer writes on ComputerWorld:

The number of phishing Web URLs nearly tripled from March to April, a security group said, as cybercriminals returned to a late-2006 tactic designed to do an end run around browser-based antiphishing filters.

In one month, the number of unique sites soared 166%, from 20,871 in March to 55,643 in April, said the Anti-Phishing Working Group (APWG), an association of more than 1,600 companies and government agencies.

"They're trying to overwhelm the filtering mechanisms" in browsers and antiphishing toolbars, said Peter Cassidy, the secretary general of the APWG, "by using many, many URLs, some which may resolve to the very same phishing site."

Phishers using the tactic don't register any more domains than usual but simply craft unique URLs by randomizing the subdomain to create new addresses.

posted by Fergie @ 5/29/2007 05:31:00 PM