Financial malware threatens bank accounts

Security firm Trusteer has found that a Microsoft Windows malware platform attacks North American financial institutions and their customer accounts. The trojan called "Sunspot" has been known for a while, but now it has financial fraud capabilities.

"It is currently targeting North American financial institutions and has already achieved SpyEye and Zeus–like infection rates in some regions. There are confirmed fraud losses associated with Sunspot, so the threat is real," Trusteer's Chief Technology Officer Amit Klein wrote.

The trojan strikes computers using 32-bit or 64-bit Windows XP, Vista and 7, and infects Internet Explorer and Firefox browsers. It can run "man-in-the-browser" attacks on a user's computer and therefore is able to track what user is doing on a bank Web site. It can see account balances and requests additional information from the user such as password or PINs.

Read more -here-