Security News > 2021 > March > CopperStealer Malware Targets Facebook and Instagram Business Accounts

Dubbed CopperStealer, the malware acts similarly to previously discovered, China-backed malware family SilentFade, according to a report from Proofpoint researchers Brandon Murphy, Dennis Schwarz, Jack Mott and the Proofpoint Threat Research Team published online this week.

CopperStealer is in the same class not only as SilentFade-the creation of which Facebook attributed to Hong Kong-based ILikeAD Media International Company Ltd-but also other malware such as StressPaint, FacebookRobot and Scranos.

Researchers have deemed Stressfade in particular responsible for compromising accounts of social-media giants like Facebook and then using them to engage in cybercriminal activity, such as running deceptive ads, to the tune of $4 million in damages, researchers noted.

"Previous research from Facebook and Bitdefender has exposed a rapidly increasing ecosystem of Chinese-based malware focused on the monetization of compromised social media and other service accounts," they wrote.

Specifically, researchers analyzed a sample of the malware targeting Facebook and Instagram business and advertiser accounts.

Historically the malware has used a variety of payloads delivered from a handful of URLs, researchers said.

News URL

https://threatpost.com/copperstealer-hijacks-accounts/164919/