Hackers hide malware behind CNN headlines about Gaza conflict

Hackers love to jump on the tails of breaking news stories in their attempt to infect as many people as possible.

One of the latest examples we have seen is a campaign of spammed-out messages that claim to come from CNN. The emails claim to link to a CNN news report that contains graphic and striking video footage from Al Jazeera about the hostilities between Israel and Hamas.

However, if you click on the link you will actually be taken to a website hosting malicious code.

In this example the email pretends to have come from [email protected]:

The whole world is watching the events in Gaza with concern, and naturally many people are getting their updates on the latest developments via the internet. Sadly, many people might be tempted to click on the link without thinking – risking putting their computer and the data contained upon it in danger.

Our advice would be to never trust an unsolicited email like this, but visit established sites like the BBC and CNN directly for your news-fix.

Of course, this isn’t the first time that hackers have posed as a breaking news email from CNN. See an example from last August in the video below.

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Graham Cluley •   @gcluley

Graham Cluley is an award-winning keynote speaker who has given presentations around the world about cybersecurity, hackers, and online privacy. A veteran of the computer security industry since the early 1990s, he wrote the first ever version of Dr Solomon's Anti-Virus Toolkit for Windows, makes regular media appearances, and is the co-host of the popular "Smashing Security" podcast. Follow him on Twitter, Mastodon, Threads, Bluesky, or drop him an email.