Non-Trusted Sites

Non-Trusted or Malicious Web Sites contain code that may intentionally modify your computer or network without your consent or knowledge, causing harm. In many cases infections can occur without having to run any programs or open any attachments. This is due to vulnerabilities on Web browsers, operating systems or lack of security software.

Currently there are tens of thousands of malicious websites on the Internet.  Some of these sites can be reputable and trusted companies that have unknowingly had their Web servers compromised.

Web Site Delivery Techniques Include:

• The inclusion of HTML disguised links within popular web-sites, message boards.
• The use of third-party supplied, or fake, banner advertising graphics to lure you to the Phishers web-site.
• The use of web-bugs (hidden items within the page – such as a zero-sized graphic) to track a potential customer in preparation for a phishing attack.
• The use of pop-up or frameless windows to disguise the true source of the Phishers message.
• Embedding malicious content within the viewable web-page that exploits a known vulnerability within the customers web browser software and installs software of the Phishers choice (e.g. key-loggers, screen-grabbers, back-doors and other Trojan horse programs).
• Abuse of trust relationships within the customers web-browser configuration to make use of site-authorized scriptable components or data storage areas.

Malicious web sites

A malicious web site contains code which installs a harmful program such a Trojan, computer virus or adware onto your computer. If visited, the web site may appear to be completely ordinary, but behind the scenes it will be installing the malicious code and this may not be apparent, although sometimes a program will launch unexpectedly, or you may notice a lot of activity on your Internet connection as the files are downloaded. The malicious code may be disguised within the page, so cannot be easily be identified, unless you have specialist knowledge. Even the plainest looking page can conceal malicious code behind the scenes.

Example malicious web site pretending to be an empty page:

Malicious web site