As a result of a report by AdGuard, 5 downloadable ad blockers on the Google Chrome Web Store have been removed because they are identified as malicious. Compliant copies of other applications, they fed the server of a group of hackers.
These are no less than 5 malware whose presence has just been detected on Google Chrome , and infiltrating the browser with impunity. Even worse, these extensions were part of the Chrome Web Store catalog and were therefore directly downloadable through this platform.
False ad blockers introduced on the Chrome Web Store
Downloaded by about 20 million users, these malware took the form of anti-advertising blockers, but which were actually intended to take some control of Google’s browser.
Reported by the adblocker AdGuard, these parasitic extensions hid a code to inform a remote server, web pages viewed by the user of the browser Chrome. This type of practice is known to then be able to send commands from the server in question to the targeted browser to hack.
Chrome Web Store: the 5 extensions to erase absolutely
In this case, the choice for hackers to have sought to break into Chrome via fake ads blockers probably has nothing trivial. Indeed, it is notorious that a large audience of Internet users today uses these software to give themselves a little air, on many sites or services often infested with ads and other invasive pop-ups.
The maneuver of the pirates having been apparently interrupted in time, the story does not say what were their final objectives. In any case, it is strongly advised to always check the credibility of a developer before making a download in a hurry. Moreover, Andrey Meshkov, the founder of AdGuard also advises: ” If you want to install an extension, think twice. And then think about it twice “.
Following the AdGuard report, 5 malicious apps were identified: Adblock Pro, AdRemover for Google Chrome, HD for YouTube, uBlock Plus, and Webutation. It is of course advisable to uninstall these programs, which have already been removed from the Chrome Web Store.
