Endpoint security software faces a tough challenge — it needs to be able to rapidly distinguish between desired and unwanted behavior with few false positives and false negatives, and attackers work hard to obfuscate (or cloak) their malicious code to prevent detection by security scanners. To maximize protection, security software wants visibility into attack chainsContinue reading “Defensive Technology: Antimalware Scan Interface (AMSI)”
Tag Archives: malware
Attack Techniques: Encrypted Archives
Tricking a user into downloading and opening malware is a common attack technique, and defenders have introduced security scanners to many layers of the ecosystem in an attempt to combat the technique: With all this scanning in place, attackers have great incentives to try to prevent their malicious code from detection up until the momentContinue reading “Attack Techniques: Encrypted Archives”
Attack Techniques: Full-Trust Script Downloads
While it’s common to think of cyberattacks as being conducted by teams of elite cybercriminals leveraging the freshest 0-day attacks against victims’ PCs, the reality is far more mundane. Most attacks start as social engineering attacks: abusing a user’s misplaced trust. Most attackers don’t hack in, they log in. The most common cyberattack is phishing:Continue reading “Attack Techniques: Full-Trust Script Downloads”
Browser Extensions: Powerful and Potentially Dangerous
Regular readers of my blogs know that I love browser extensions. Extensions can make using your browser more convenient, fun, and secure. Unfortunately, extensions can also break web apps in bizarre or amusing ways, dramatically slow your browser performance, leak your personal data, or compromise your device. The designers of the Chromium extension system createdContinue reading “Browser Extensions: Powerful and Potentially Dangerous”
Enforcing SmartScreen with Policy
Microsoft Defender SmartScreen provides protection against the most common forms of attack: phishing and malware. SmartScreen support is built-in to Microsoft Edge and the Windows 8+ shell. The SmartScreen web service also powers the Microsoft Defender Browser Protection extension for Chromium-derived browsers. While SmartScreen provides powerful controls to block attacks, the user remains in fullContinue reading “Enforcing SmartScreen with Policy”
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