[Infographic] Computer Malware Threat: The Koobface Problem

You may think that you’ve seen the worst of cyber threats, but unfortunately, there‘s far more. Forget everything that you know about malware and how they work because there is a new threat on the loose and this one is refusing to play by the rules. Popularly known as Koobface, the notorious computer worm is not only capable of making cross-platform attacks, but also has an innate ability to quickly spread the infection across different platforms without prejudice. There's a lot you should be worried about.

Koobface started drawing attention in 2009, taking the Internet users by surprise and leaving the security experts dumbfounded as it treated both Windows and Mac computers with similar disdain. Capitalizing on the negligence of Internet users, especially those of social networking websites such as Facebook and Twitter, email outlets such as Gmail and Yahoo Mail, and messenger services such as Yahoo Messenger and Skype, the malware hardly had any trouble getting around the cyber space and spreading across different platforms to expand its list of victims. In order to keep its victims from fighting back, it blocked access to websites from where anti-malware protection could be acquired.

The threat has used many aliases over the years and scooped up over $2 million from its victims during a span of just one year. Of course, the actual damage is far greater.

Despite all the damage and frustration it caused, there just hasn’t been enough talk on Koobface or mention of the measures that can make mitigate the threat to an extent.

Our Infographics takes a look at the malware that gave security experts a run for their money and many. Take a look at it and share with us what you think. Do you feel you’re susceptible to Koobface? Are you aware of the measures that can help you mitigate the threat?