Chatgpt: How ChatGPT’s popularity is helping hackers target Facebook, Google accounts – Times of India

ChatGPT, the chatbot developed by OpenAI, has been all over the news of late. Its popularity can be gauged by the fact that it took only 5 days for an AI chatbot to reach a million users. However, it seems that this recognition has made ChatGPT a hotspot for hackers and exploit it for their gains.
As per Kaspersky researchers, hackers are running a new malware campaign that capitalises on the increasing popularity of the ChatGPT AI chatbot. They claim that cybercriminals are distributing the malware via Facebook communities by offering a fake desktop version of ChatGPT.
This fake version is nothing but Fobo, a Trojan horse malware that misleads users of its true intent. Fobo is stealing sensitive information and the attackers are targeting users in Africa, Asia, Europe, and America.

How hackers are targeting users
Kaspersky researchers claim that hackers create groups on social networks that convincingly mimic official OpenAI accounts or at least appear to be communities of ChatGPT enthusiasts.
Then these fraudulent groups share posts, such as the news about the service, that seem to have come from official sources. They promote a program posing as a desktop client for ChatGPT. The potential victims, after believing that the community is legitimate, click on the link from the post and are directed to a well-crafted website that looks almost identical to the official ChatGPT website.
“The site prompts the user to download a purported ChatGPT version for Windows which is in fact an archive with an executable file. The installation process begins but stops abruptly with an error message stating that the program could not be installed. Users may think the program simply was not able to install and forget about it,” Kaspersky said.

While the message on the front end says that the installation has stopped, the program proceeds to install without the users’ knowledge in the background and Fobo Trojan is placed on the user’s computer.
What data is being stolen
The Fobo Trojan is designed to steal information from saved accounts from various browsers, including Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Brave, among others. The Trojan steals login credentials from Facebook, TikTok, and Google accounts, especially those related to businesses.
It also attempts to obtain additional information, like the amount of money spent on advertising and the current balance of business accounts.
“This campaign targeting ChatGPT is a prime example of how attackers are leveraging social engineering techniques to exploit the trust that users place in popular brands and services. It is important for users to understand that, just because a service appears to be legitimate, it doesn’t mean that it is,” said Darya Ivanova, security expert at Kaspersky.
How to stay protected
Users are advised being cautious when downloading software from the internet, especially if it’s from a third-party website. Software must be downloaded from the official website of the company.
Look for the website’s URL. If it starts with “https://”, it means that the website is secure. Use strong, unique passwords and enable two-factor authentication.