New Trojan Can Change IP Addresses

A new Trojan is on the loose that enables attackers to reroute users to phony Websites -- even when the user types the URL out manually.

The Trojan, dubbed DNSChanger.eg, corrupts the process of translating a domain name into an IP address, according to security researchers at security software vendor MicroWorld Technologies, which discovered the vulnerability. The exploit has "high risk potential," the researchers say.

When a user types in a URL, the smart Trojan changes the "NameServer" registry key value to a fraudulent IP address. Phishers can design the fraudulent page to look very much like the pages of the site they are defrauding -- such as a bank or retailer -- and fool the user into typing in their account information.

"Phishing usually requires you to be lured through emails that lead you to impostor Websites, but this requires nothing of that sort," says Govind Rammurthy, CEO of MicroWorld Technologies. "While the unsuspecting user continues an online transaction in good faith, he could be playing directly into the hands of a remote fraudster."

DNSChanger.eg can also be used to corrupt the DNS server itself, according to the researchers. Attackers can poison the DNS cache so that Website requests are answered with fraudulent IP addresses, effectively rendering the servers ineffective.

MicroWorld said it is updating its antivirus software to detect the Trojan and prevent clients from being rerouted to fraud sites. The exploit has been posted on vulnerability sites such as Kaspersky Labs, but, as of this writing, other antivirus tool vendors have not yet posted updates to patch the vulnerability.

— Tim Wilson, Site Editor, Dark Reading

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