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Porn websites riddled with malware says new research

  • 11-04-2013 9:20am
    #1
    Closed Accounts Posts: 11,835 ✭✭✭✭cloud493


    Browsing some of the internet's most popular pornography websites is increasingly putting visitors at risk, research has found.

    Advertisements displayed by the sites, which are visited by millions every day, were found to be installing harmful files without users' knowledge.

    Researcher Conrad Longmore found that two popular sites - xhamster.com and pornhub.com - posed the greatest risk.

    He said it should be easier for users to report malicious advertising.

    He said it was primarily Windows users at risk, but that criminals were increasingly turning their attentions to mobile devices.

    While none of the porn sites observed hosted any malware themselves, it was the embedded advertisements within their pages that created problems for users.

    "We call these malicious advertisements 'malvertising'," explained Mr Longmore.

    "The way the ads are bought and sold across all websites is incredibly complex.

    "Ads can often be repackaged and resold so that it is hard to tell where they originated from, and the criminals behind them go to great lengths to disguise what they are doing."



    'Sudden spike'

    Mr Longmore compiled his figures using Google's diagnostic advice service, which regularly analyses websites for harmful content.

    The data showed that xhamster.com - listed by monitoring firm Alexa as the 46th most popular site on the internet - had malvertising on 1,067 out of 20,986 pages (5%) screened in the past 90 days.

    According to Alexa's statistics, the average user of xhamster.com would look at 10.3 individual pages - meaning a potential 42% risk of stumbling across harmful adverts in each viewing session.

    Another site, pornhub.com, was found to have dangerous advertising on 12.7% of its pages.

    Mr Longmore said: "There seems to have been a sudden spike in malware on popular sites, especially in the past week or so. "

    However, the web's most popular porn site, xvideos.com, was not found to have any harmful adverts in the time sampled by Google's system - a sign the site had "cleaned up".



    Reporting mechanism

    Mr Longmore believes a culture of users being afraid to "kick up a fuss" means many instances of malvertising go unreported.

    "Part of the problem is that porn is a taboo subject," he said.

    "But the reality is that these are hugely popular sites with many of them in the top 100 most popular sites globally. Some of them pull in more traffic than the BBC, so this is potentially a very big issue.

    "Site operators could put a quick reporting mechanism on their sites to flag up bad ads and other concerns, and ad networks should also take some responsibility here.



    "I don't see that happening any time soon, and perhaps the best thing that users of these sites can do is ensure that their machines are up to date."

    The BBC has approached the owners of xhamster.com and pornhub.com but has yet to receive any comment.

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-22093141


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Comments

  • Closed Accounts Posts: 34,809 ✭✭✭✭smash


    And this is new research?


  • Registered Users Posts: 13,295 ✭✭✭✭Duggy747


    Streaming sites for Movies + TV shows are a haven for adverts carrying these viruses, too. Up until recently, the Gardaì virus was doing the rounds through these sites.

    You'd think the above article would be common knowledge but people just assume viruses come from downloading torrents.


  • Registered Users Posts: 17,568 ✭✭✭✭VinLieger


    LOL thats some fine hard hitting investigative journalism especially the complete lack of any mention of ad blocker


  • Registered Users Posts: 10,364 ✭✭✭✭Kylo Ren


    The most fun research ever undertook.


  • Registered Users Posts: 51,054 ✭✭✭✭Professey Chin


    Well I for one am shocked. I thought all those girls in my area were genuine!


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  • Closed Accounts Posts: 29,930 ✭✭✭✭TerrorFirmer


    Chinpool wrote: »
    Well I for one am shocked. I thought all those girls in my area were genuine!

    All 100,000 of them in my small Irish town....


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,641 ✭✭✭Hardonraging


    The only words that stood out for me in that article were 'Sudden spike'




  • So.. how many people went to do a malware scan after reading this thread?


  • Registered Users Posts: 8,338 ✭✭✭cml387


    Who's Kate?


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 1,235 ✭✭✭returnNull


    Am i the only one that uses adblock?amateurs!
    EDIT: by amateurs i was refering to people that dont use adblock not eh amateurs on eh those websites


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  • Registered Users Posts: 10,381 ✭✭✭✭Allyall


    I'm not entirely sure i believe them.. Going off to check it out myself..


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 3,753 ✭✭✭davet82


    so this malware is computerised gonorrhea for your computer?


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 6,785 ✭✭✭Ihatecuddles-old


    I wish I knew what any of this meant.


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,324 ✭✭✭BillyMitchel


    What sort of eejit clicks on the adverts anyway? Most only go there for a quick peddle and crank not to sign up to fùckbook and other crappy fake sites.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 6,785 ✭✭✭Ihatecuddles-old


    What sort of eejit clicks on the adverts anyway? Most only go there for a quick peddle and crank not to sign up to fùckbook and other crappy fake sites.

    When you click play on the video, the adverts pop up in a new window.

    Or so I've heard...


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 88,978 ✭✭✭✭mike65


    So.. how many people went to do a malware scan after reading this thread?

    Did mine yesterday, it took 3 hours. Only had 32 dodgy files as well!

    (I got one of those bogus Java update pop ups and while I didn't do anything so stupid like click it, these can be sneaky ****ers and infiltrate the system anyway).


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,441 ✭✭✭Dave0301


    Viruses from online sex sites, it's just like real life sex for me now :(


  • Registered Users Posts: 933 ✭✭✭hal9000


    Other fine investigative journalism from this writer include "Sky Blue" & "Kettle Black"


  • Moderators, Technology & Internet Moderators Posts: 17,129 Mod ✭✭✭✭cherryghost


    Anyone who clicks on dodgy links deserves to have virus'/malware anyway


  • Registered Users Posts: 10,381 ✭✭✭✭Allyall


    Nope, Couldn't find any malware.


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  • Registered Users Posts: 14,325 ✭✭✭✭jimmycrackcorm


    If you suffer from premature ejaculation then the malware won't have time to take effect.

    Not that I'd know anyway....


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 965 ✭✭✭johnr1


    All 100,000 of them in my small Irish town....

    Haha, reminds me of that other great porn site "plentyoffish"

    There used to be about 5 or 10 astoundingly hot women based in each tiny village eg Adrigole Co Cork or Ahatsgra or Cullahill - plsces with about 5 houses each. All said wimmins were into theatre, golf, Gaa, fishing :pac: or some other hobby a fiftysomething might enjoy, and all were devoutly Catholic. "Taking care of their man" was their greatest motivation in life.
    Anyone that stupid has bigger issues in their lives than malware tbh.




  • Does the malware exist on those sites themselves or is it only if you click on any links that are within them? In all honesty, you gotta be pretty silly to click on them.

    Though I am intrigued to know how Ron Jeremy can help make my penis bigger ...


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,376 ✭✭✭Anyone


    I should stop....think I am watching too much porn anyway and its affecting my everyday life....this morning for example, I spat on the keyhole before I put the key in.


  • Posts: 0 [Deleted User]


    Thats why one should use linux for viewing porn sites.


  • Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 6,798 ✭✭✭karma_


    Does the malware exist on those sites themselves or is it only if you click on any links that are within them? In all honesty, you gotta be pretty silly to click on them.

    Though I am intrigued to know how Ron Jeremy can help make my penis bigger ...

    Yes, I'd like to know this too. Just out of curiosity like... no rush... but the sooner the answer the better!!


  • Registered Users Posts: 7,041 ✭✭✭Seachmall


    Does the malware exist on those sites themselves or is it only if you click on any links that are within them? In all honesty, you gotta be pretty silly to click on them.

    Though I am intrigued to know how Ron Jeremy can help make my penis bigger ...

    They could load when the advert loads so you don't need to click them.

    Adblocker + Browser Updates + OS Updates + Regular Scans and you'll be fine.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 965 ✭✭✭johnr1


    Anyone wrote: »
    I should stop....think I am watching too much porn anyway and its affecting my everyday life....this morning for example, I spat on the keyhole before I put the key in.

    :D:D:D
    Fcuk you !!!! I spat my coffee over my phone..... (its always coffee, isnt it)


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 33,733 ✭✭✭✭Myrddin


    surfing free porn sites has many risks , most of them are now riddled with underage - illegl material , scattered amongst the general stuff and no ive never clicked but the windows are clearly visible

    Ah so thats why the BBC sacked you?


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  • Registered Users Posts: 1,010 ✭✭✭ringadingding


    BBC, sponsored by xvideos it seems


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