Your uncle’s frozen Mac says it’s infected after viewing a Google ad. Now what?
Summary
Researchers found that Google ads were used to deliver a tech support scam that freezes users’ computer screens on both Windows and Mac. The ads instructed users to call fake support centers and pay fees or share personal information, but security firms blocked many attacks before harm could happen.Key Facts
- The scam ads appeared on popular websites like maps, weather, sports, and real estate sites.
- When clicked, the ads froze the browser, hid the cursor, and showed fake infection warnings.
- The scam urged users to call a bogus support number to fix the problem.
- Calls to the fake centers could lead to paying fees, giving remote access, or sharing personal data.
- Security firm Netskope blocked the scam on devices in 619 customer organizations between August 31 and September 14.
- About 62% of affected organizations were in the United States; Japan and Australia also had significant exposure.
- The scam ads were hard to detect because they encrypted their code and disabled normal browser exit keys.
- Google said it is investigating and removing offending ads but did not explain how the scam bypassed its filters.
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