In a recent story on the growth of one of the most dangerous computer Trojans every discovered, tech magazine, Network World, opened with the line “Banks and antivirus powerless to stop attacks.”

It’s been almost a year since I first started warning about the dangers of Zeus, a powerful banking Trojan that was wreaking havoc with financial institutions around the world. Zeus operates by infecting your computer – often through an infected email or web site, or an unpatched computer – then breaking into your bank account and cleaning you out.

What made Zeus so dangerous was its sophistication and its ability to outsmart the multiple layers of security most financial institutions have in place. Looks like Zeus is not going away any time soon, and there are numerous reports of attacks on financial institutions around the world pointing the finger at this complicated Trojan.

A bank in the United Kingdom recently reported that the Zeus Trojan had managed to compromise more than 3,000 customer accounts at the bank, stealing more than $1 million in just four weeks. That came on the heels of a report by a security firm that found more than 100,000 personal computers infected with the Zeus Trojan.

And in early July, more than 15 U.S. banks were also the target of Zeus, although it’s not yet clear how successful the attacks were. But what is clear is that the Zeus Trojan is a highly effective tool for emptying bank accounts, and is only likely to get more effective and attack more banks.

The only piece of good news is that Zeus targets unprotected personal computers like yours as a back door to your bank account, and there’s plenty you can do to make that door more secure.

Lessons learned?

• You’re not actually powerless, and there are steps you can take to avoid Zeus.
• Keep up to date with the latest security patches, as well as your anti-virus definitions.
• Be more cautious and particular about where your surf and what you download. Many Zeus infections require you to click on something or download something in order to get infected.
• Some experts suggest you use one computer just for online banking, and never use it for surfing or email. That way you minimize the chance that your bank account will be compromised through an infected computer.

RELATED STORY: Zeus Trojan raids 3,000 UK bank accounts

http://www.networkworld.com/news/2010/081010-zeus-trojan-raids-3000-uk.html?source=NWWNLE_nlt_security_2010-08-11

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