The top-selling newly released book “Fire and Fury,” which details the goings on inside U.S. President Trump’s White House, could be the source of a major malware attack for users who download the unofficial digital copy online.
There is a pirated PDF version of the book being made available online.The book’s cover even resembles the original design.
However, the first giveaway is that the pirated PDF book has only 230 pages, while the original book should have 328 pages.
The biggest risk for those who download this PDF file is that it is laden with malware that can help hackers steal all data in the infected computer’s systems, including bank login details.
Using E-Books to Plant Malware
Hackers find every backdoor opportunity they possibly can to break into any given vulnerable system. The fake digital “Fire and Fury” book, in PDF form, is one of those methods.
The fact remains that these hackers play on the psyche of the general public, and juicy content plays a role in this case.
The book details the inner workings of the Trump administration, with all its divisive and combative characteristics.
The cover claims to provide an account spotlighting “Inside the Trump White House.” The irresistibility of this subject cannot be overlooked by eager people wanting to know the inside scoop.
The hard copy or the official digital version would cost a few dollars.
That’s why the developers of the malware planted their pirated version in strategic locations on the web so anyone can download it free of charge.
Kaspersky Labs Employee Behind the Revelation
The malware in the pirated digital version of “Fire and Fury” was detected by a specialist working for the Russian cybersecurity firm Kaspersky Labs.
This led some to raise the Russia-U.S. collusion allegations all over again. It is public knowledge that the U.S. intelligence agencies feared that Kaspersky Labs had been associated with the Russian government.
As such, entrusting their systems with the Moscow-based developer’s anti-virus software may not be a bright idea. Following this, all U.S. federal departments were banned from using Kaspersky products on their systems.
Kaspersky has, in fact, sued the U.S. government for the ban against its products.
Malware Can Steal Banking Information
Experts suggest that the way the fake “Fire and Fury” malware would work is to first install keyloggers to access a backdoor.
This would allow the hackers operating remotely to steal information like the user ID and password for bank accounts or email networks.
Once it reaches the hands of these unscrupulous elements, there is very little that can be done to stop them from cleaning up victims’ accounts, and the savings therein.
The Book Has Had Record Sales Nevertheless
“Fire and Fury” has remained controversial from the beginning. The author of the book, Michael Wolff, stands by what he has written.
He claims he spent quite some time among White House staff, even having one-on-one conversations with Donald Trump himself.
At the same time, President Trump in his own inimitable style has claimed the book is filled with lies.
Still, “Fire and Fury” has gone on to reach record numbers in sales, in all its forms. Some 29,000 hard copies have been sold and a quarter of a million e-books have been downloaded and read.
Even the audio version of the book has been downloaded 100,000 times.
Perhaps the post-release controversy helped raise readers’ curiosity.
But it also offered the opportunity for hackers to make a fake e-book laden with malware and lure the gullible public into believing it’s the original.