Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Hot on Facebook

Uproar After NC State Agent 'Fixes' Girl's Lunch Preschooler has to eat chicken nuggets instead of mom's meal »

The 10 Riskiest Web Searches

Hackers target popular search terms

By Wesley Oliver, Newser Staff

Posted Jun 2, 2009 4:13 PM CDT

(Newser) – Internet hackers are like pickpockets: They target crowds, and the best place to find them on the web is through search engines, ABC News reports, so thieves tie malware programs to popular word searches. After analyzing more than 2,600 terms, security firm McAfee found these to be the 10 most dangerous:

Word Unscrambler
Lyrics
MySpace
Free Music Downloads

Phelps, Weber-Gale, Jones and Lezak Wins 4x 100m RelayFree Music
Game Cheats
Printable Fill in Puzzles
Free Ringtones
Solitaire

Experts say users downloading ringtones or logging into sites with personal information are most at risk, and caution against using search terms involving online games. “You’ve got to use the safe rules of the road,” said one.

[Images (3)]

[Quotes (1)]

Many popular word searches than lead hackers to your computer. (Shutter Stock)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

The Web is a great resource and we should absolutely be using it, but you've got to use the safe rules of the road. What's true in the offline world is true online, too. - Shane Keats, research analyst

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

To report an error on this story, notify our editors.

More Newser Stories

Three in 4 Americans Hit By Cyber Crime

According to Norton study, two-thirds of all web surfers are victims

(NEWSER) - A whopping 65% of all web surfers and 73% of Americans have been the victim of online crime, according to a new survey from Symantec—the company behind Norton Anti-Virus. That makes the US the fourth-most victimized country in the world, behind China (83%) and India and Brazil (each 76%), ComputerWorld reports. “What we were really surprised by was how common it was that people are being victimized,” says Norton’s Internet safety advocate. More»

Identify Theft Cases Spike, but Hackers Aren't to Blame

Private data lying around in plain view on Internet

(NEWSER) - Last year the number of identity theft victims in the US jumped 12%, while the number of Internet-related fraud cases went up 23%. But the problem isn't just hackers, say experts: In many cases, we're exposing our private data to anyone and everyone who knows where to look. Atlanta officials recently found names, Social Security numbers, and home phone numbers of 1,000 of the city's firefighters online, for instance. More»

Visa, Mastercard Warn of New Data Breach

Alerts issued after malware infects another payment processor

(NEWSER) - Mastercard and Visa have alerted financial institutions about another serious data breach at a payment processor, Wired reports. The breach, like the massive fraud unveiled at Heartland Payment Systems last month, is believed to have occurred through malicious software. The credit card issuers are refusing to name the processor involved because it has yet to go public with the breach. More»

Credit Card Processor Bares Massive Hacker Breach

Sophisticated hackers nab vast amounts credit card data

(NEWSER) - A credit card payment processor has disclosed a data breach that experts believe could be the biggest ever and may be putting millions of consumers at risk of ripoffs, the Washington Post reports. Heartland Payment Systems, which handles 100 million transactions from 250,000 businesses every month, believes malicious software allowed intruders to access customer information records for a period "longer than weeks" late last year. More»

Virus Helps Violate 500K Bank, Credit Accounts

Infects computers through 'drive-by downloads"

(NEWSER) - A computer virus has stolen log-in information for over 500,000 bank accounts and credit and debit cards. The Sinowal Trojan virus has infected computers around the world through “drive-by downloads” that install it without users' knowledge when they visit Web sites running the virus code. Individuals can best protect themselves by being cautious about what sites they visit, the BBC reports. More»

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS

What is Newser?

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser, we choose the most thought-provoking and entertaining stories from hundreds of US and international sources and reduce them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »

Partnering with: Slate

View Newser on the mobile website

The 10 Riskiest Web Searches