Kaspersky: Hackers are Exploiting Fake GitHub Projects to Steal Cryptocurrency, Advises Users to Thoroughly Check Third-Party Code Behavior Before Download

BlockBeats News, February 26th, cybersecurity company Kaspersky recently released a study showing that hackers are creating hundreds of fake projects on the GitHub platform to deceive users into downloading malicious software containing stolen cryptocurrency and credentials. Kaspersky has named this malicious software activity "GitVenom."

Kaspersky analyst Georgy Kucherin pointed out in a report on February 24th that these fake projects include Telegram bots that manage Bitcoin wallets and tools for automating interactions with Instagram accounts. The hackers carefully design the project documentation, potentially using AI tools to generate content and artificially increasing the number of project "commits" to make the project appear to be actively developed.

According to Kaspersky's investigation, these malicious projects can be traced back to at least two years ago and all contain malicious components regardless of how the project is presented. These components include information stealers that upload user-saved credentials via Telegram, cryptocurrency wallet data, and browsing history, as well as clipboard hijackers that replace cryptocurrency wallet addresses. In November 2023, a user lost 5 bitcoins (approximately $442,000) as a result. Kaspersky recommends users to carefully inspect the behavior of third-party code before downloading. (Cointelegraph)