The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has released a warning to alert users about an ongoing threat involving pop-up security messages that appear on the Internet. These pop-up messages may contain seemingly legitimate antivirus software. Users who click on these pop-up messages to purchase and install the bogus software may become infected with malicious code or to become victims of a phishing attack.

US-CERT encourages users and administrators to do the following to help mitigate the risks:

• Review the FBI Press Release titled Pop-Up Security Warnings Pose Threats.
• Install antivirus software, and keep the signature files up to date.
• Use caution when entering personal and financial information online.
• Install software applications from only trusted sources.

Read more: US-CERT Current Activity