AMMAN -- A programme known as Trojan horse, which gives hackers remote access to a targeted computer system, is the most common cyber threat targeting Jordanian Internet users, according to a security expert.
Internet users in Jordan face several cyber threats and are vulnerable to these attacks as they do not adopt proper security solutions, the expert said.
A Trojan horse attack tops the list of threats affecting Jordanians followed by viruses, David Emm, a senior regional researcher with the Global Research and Analysis Team of Kaspersky Lab, a Russian computer security company, said in an a recent interview with The Jordan Times.
A Trojan horse is a programme with a benign capability that conceals another malicious programme. When the user executes a Trojan horse, the programme controls the targeted computer. Trojan horses encourage users to click on certain links to get gifts and tend to be persuasive to victims.
A computer virus, however, attaches itself to a programme or a file enabling it to spread from one computer to another, leaving infections as it travels, according to webs sources.
"Users in Jordan are considered vulnerable to Trojans and viruses due to a low level of awareness, but Jordan is not among the top areas in the region where malware originates and spreads to other states," said Emm.
Noting that the Kingdom is not subjected to well-organised attacks that target financial institutions and major companies, he added that the "small" Jordanian market does not attract hackers.
"The level of e-commerce in Jordan and the reliance on e-transactions... is not big yet, this is a reason that targeted attacks against major firms are not big," Emm said.
However, he called on Internet users in Jordan, who exceeded 50.5 per cent of the population by the end of 2011, to adopt advanced security solutions, regularly update security programmes, change passwords of e-mails and accounts on regular basis and avoid using the same password for many e-mail accounts.
Emm noted that around 70,000 malicious programmes that target Internet users are discovered worldwide every day.
"People should also be careful of what they share on their Facebook pages and other social networking sites as they may be spreading viruses without knowing. They should verify what they share before they share it," he said.
© Jordan Times 2012
