This morning I stumbled across what seems to be a new malware-spreading technique: A fake updates for Google Chrome and a fake 'media player' update that is designed to look like it's coming from Adobe.
Chrome://components Adobe Flash Player Update
The Adobe Flash plugin lets you hear and see Flash audio and video content on Chrome on your computer. Note: Adobe will stop supporting Flash at the end of 2020. Visit the Chrome blog to learn more about how Chrome will work with Flash until 2020.
Adobe released the Flash Player Update for IE and Mozilla based browsers. Using 'chrome://components/', as suggested above, to 'force' an update is useless as it doesn't even pick up the Pepper Flash version number next to the button - and the normal updater also doesn't pick up any update. Enable Adobe Flash Player on Chrome 1) Open your Google Chrome browser, type chrome://settings/content in the address bar and press Enter. 2) On the content settings screen, locate Flash player settings.
Adobe Flash Player Update For Windows
Both updates are digitally signed by valid VeriSign code signing certificates. This is not unprecedented, but it's highly unusual for malware authors to use an expensive provider like VeriSign. VeriSign Authentication Services are now part of Symantec.
The fake Chrome update uses a logo similar to Chrome's, but obviously distinguishable from it. The page correctly identifies the version of Chrome I was running (the current version) and then says that it 'may be outdated'.
Adobe Flash Player 2018 Free Download For Chrome + Mac + Windows Key features include: Advanced compression technology and video clip that is multi-threaded provides High-quality, Low bandwidth video. Current Flash Player users who have enrolled in the 'Allow Adobe to install updates (recommended)' update mechanism will be automatically updated to Flash Player 29 over the next 24 hours. Users who have selected 'Notify me to install updates' will receive an update notification dialog within 7 days from today.
The file is named Chrome_Security_Plugin_Setup.exe and is 1.74MB. The file information identifies it as 'Express Install' version '3, 7, 1, 0'. The publisher, also identified in the VeriSign code signing certificate, is 'TINY INSTALLER'.
GeForce® GTX 1080 Ti is the fastest gaming GPU that delivers 35% faster performance than the GeForce GTX 1080. Adobe® Flash® Player is a lightweight browser plug-in and rich Internet application runtime that delivers consistent and engaging user experiences, stunning audio/video playback, and exciting gameplay. Installed on more than 1.3 billion systems, Flash Player is.
According to VirusTotal Friday morning, five out of the 48 products they work with recognized the file. Fortinet and ESET recognize it as W32/Kryptik. A Fortinet blog entry from earlier this year described a different variant of Kryptik as being focused on stealing FTP information, and congratulated the author on the high quality of his code.
The fake Adobe update is a little less clear on what product is mimicking. It commands the user 'Upgrade your Media Player now [required]' and uses the look and feel of an Adobe update.
The file name is 'Flash Player 12.exe' and is 814KB. The publisher in both the PE header and VeriSign code signing certificate is identified as 'Air Software' and the PE Product name is 'Adobe Flash Player' version 2.0.4.54. VirusTotal finds 9 of 48 companies that identify it, often as adware.
I discovered the files by accident. Through a typo in the address bar I went to an address from which the browser was redirected a couple of times until it ended up on a page which loaded one of the two attacks described above. I have notified the Administrative contact for the domain, which appears to have been parked.
The first time I encountered the files I got to the pages with no problem. Shortly thereafter, Google Safe Browsing API blocked access to them in Firefox and Chrome.
Related Topics:
Security TV Data Management CXO Data CentersHow to Troubleshoot the Flash Player Not Working on Chrome Error
Flash Player Not Working
One of the common Google Chrome browser issues is Adobe Flash Player not working. It is something that can happen in Windows or Mac PC, but there are many simple workarounds to troubleshoot the issue, such as the ones mentioned below.
Install Latest Browser Updates
A new version of Chrome may have bug fixes if Google developers integrate that in the browser as per reports from users concerning Flash Player issues. To update Google Chrome to a new version, click the three-line menu to the upper right and navigate to Help > About Google Chrome and wait while it Checking for Updates. Wait until Google Chrome completes checking the same, and then install the new version, if it finds any.
Enable Flash Option in Settings
Click the Settings button in Chrome and go to the Advanced tab in the next window. Then, look for Content Settings under the said tab. After that, click Flash and ensure that you have selected the Ask First (Recommended) option. Also, see to it if any website is listed under Blocked, and unblock them if you find any.
Disable a Chrome Flag
Key in chrome://flags/#prefer-html-over-flash verbatim on the address bar of the browser and press Enter. In case your Google Chrome browser is outdated, you will land up on a page titled Experiments and can find Prefer HTML Over Flash. If you find that option in Chrome Flags, disable it to see if that fixes the Adobe Flash Player not working on Chrome error due to its unresponsiveness.
Clear Browser Cache
This particular workaround for the Flash Player not working on Chrome browser issue only takes away a few seconds of your session of surfing the web. Navigate to Settings > More Tools and select Clear Browsing Data. You can then choose the beginning of time and choose only cached images and files to clear only that and see if it works.
If not, it is high time to uninstall the Flash Player from the computer, be it that of Windows or Mac PC, and reinstall its latest version from the official website. There can be a bug in the software sometimes, so reinstalling it might fix the issues.