Mal/Iframe-AL

Mal/Iframe-AL is a rogue Apache module that is used to inject malicious Iframes into compromised websites in order to force visitors to visit attack web pages hosting the Black Hole Exploit Kit. The BlackHole Exploit Kit remains one of the most threatening, widespread malware threats today. In fact, it accounts for the vast majority of all malware attacks. One of the most common tactics involving this dangerous exploit kit is forcing computer users to visit its attack websites through malicious redirect scripts. Mal/Iframe-AL is one of these kinds of dangerous scripts, used to open an Iframe without the computer user's knowledge in which Mal/Iframe-AL loads data from the attack website, compromising the victim's computer's security and exposing it to a BlackHole Exploit Kit attack.

Mal/Iframe-AL is Used to Compromise Numerous Legitimate Sites

The main danger of malware attacks involving Mal/Iframe-AL is that they rely on compromising legitimate websites in order to reach their victims. By taking advantage of poor security measures such as weak passwords or lack of strong security software, criminals can place malicious content in an otherwise legitimate websites. This malicious content typically consists in malicious scripts in Java, which are designed to expose the victim to the BlackHole exploit kit. These kinds of scripts are typically detected by some security products as Mal/Iframe-AL. Mal/Iframe-AL attacks are among the most frequent malware threats, accounting for nearly one third of attacks reported in the first two months of 2013. These attacks are increasing in frequency, with a very large wave of attacks detected during the first week of March 2013.

Preventing Malware Attacks Involving Mal/Iframe-AL

To prevent Mal/Iframe-AL attacks, measures must be taken both by website administrators and by common computer users. In the case of website administrators, it is important to ensure that websites are protected with strong passwords, security software and that the server software is always kept up to date. In the case of regular computer users, Mal/Iframe-AL attacks can be avoided by using a real time security program to scan your online activity. It is also advisable to disable JavaScript unless it is essential since Mal/Iframe-AL attacks require the use of JavaScript to invade your computer. Finally, it is important to scan your machine for malware if you suspect that you have been exposed to any of the many legitimate websites that have been compromised as part of Mal/Iframe-AL attacks in the past couple of months.