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Microsoft Explains How Windows 10 Users Are Protected Against Fireball Malware

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Windows 10 and Windows 10 S immune to Fireball infections
But fortunately, this figure won’ t include up-to-date Windows 10 systems, as Microsoft explains in an analysis of the malware that users running its most recent OS with all patches installed are completely secure.
Microsoft points out that Fireball typically compromises computers through software bundles, as it’s installed with programs that users download from sources that aren’ t really legitimate. The infection most often happens because of pirated content, cracks, and key generators, with Fireball hijacking the browser’s home page and the default search settings to generate revenue from searches.
Security company Check Point warned in an analysis posted on June 1 that Fireball is also capable of running on the victim’s computer and download additional payload that can be then used to collect information, including personal details, or to even get full control of the system.
The security firm has discovered that a major Fireball campaign was started by a Chinese digital marketing agency, with more than 250 million systems already infected, 20 percent of which are part of corporate networks. India and Brazil are the countries with the biggest rate of infections.
Data provided by Microsoft reveals that BrowserModifier: Win32/SupTab and BrowserModifier: Win32/Sasquor, which are the most prevalent families in the Fireball suite, experienced a major decline in the number of compromised systems once the company added detection to the Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool.
Microsoft goes on to explain that Windows 10 users are fully protected against Fireball, not necessarily thanks to MSRT detection, but also because of a powerful set of tools that are integrated in the operating system.
For example, Microsoft Edge itself is not affected by the browser hijacking techniques used by Fireball, and this is particularly important because the malware uses browsers to generate revenues for its authors. Then, Windows Defender Antivirus and MSRT can detect and clean the infection, identify bundlers that include it, stop the malware from reaching systems, and remove them entirely.
And last but not least, Windows 10 S, which is Microsoft’s most recent Windows 10 SKU, provides extra protection because it’s limited to apps in the Windows Store, meaning that no treats can compromise a system because bundlers and software distribution mechanism to deploy malware are blocked.
The company ends by recommending users to upgrade to Windows 10, which is the only OS that includes these protection tools, and to keep systems fully up-to-date to always be protected against the most recent threats.

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