Outline:
Email claims that singer Michael Jackson has made a suicide attempt and asks the recipient to click on the link to read more information
Status:
False information and link leads to a trojan
Subject: Re: Suicidal aattempt
Last night, while in his Neverland Ranch, Michael Jackson has made a suicidal attempt.
They suggest this attempt follows the last claim was made against the king of pop. 46 years old Michael has left pre-suicid note which describes and interpretes some of his sins.
Read more…
Detailed Analysis:
An email claiming to contain breaking news about singer Michael Jackson is currently hitting inboxes. The email claims that Jackson has attempted suicide and urgers the recipient to click on a link to read more information.
However, clicking the link leads the recipient to a website that attempts to download and install a malicious trojan on the user’s computer. According to Sophos, the malicious website displays a message that the site is too busy. However, this is just another trick. While users are waiting to access the “busy” site, malware is being downloaded to their computer without their knowledge. The malware is a variant of the Borobt-Gen trojan.
Jackson’s high profile and the current media frenzy surrounding the singer’s trial mean that many curious recipients will be lured into clicking the link included in the email.
If you receive this email DO NOT CLICK ON THE INCLUDED LINK.
References
Michael Jackson suicide spam leads to Trojan horse, reports Sophos
Importance Notice
After considerable thought and with an ache in my heart, I have decided that the time has come to close down the Hoax-Slayer website.These days, the site does not generate enough revenue to cover expenses, and I do not have the financial resources to sustain it going forward.
Moreover, I now work long hours in a full-time and physically taxing job, so maintaining and managing the website and publishing new material has become difficult for me.
And finally, after 18 years of writing about scams and hoaxes, I feel that it is time for me to take my fingers off the keyboard and focus on other projects and pastimes.
When I first started Hoax-Slayer, I never dreamed that I would still be working on the project all these years later or that it would become such an important part of my life. It's been a fantastic and engaging experience and one that I will always treasure.
I hope that my work over the years has helped to make the Internet a little safer and thwarted the activities of at least a few scammers and malicious pranksters.
A Big Thank You
I would also like to thank all of those wonderful people who have supported the project by sharing information from the site, contributing examples of scams and hoaxes, offering suggestions, donating funds, or helping behind the scenes.I would especially like to thank David White for his tireless contribution to the Hoax-Slayer Facebook Page over many years. David's support has been invaluable, and I can not thank him enough.
Closing Date
Hoax-Slayer will still be around for a few weeks while I wind things down. The site will go offline on May 31, 2021. While I will not be publishing any new posts, you can still access existing material on the site until the date of closure.Thank you, one and all!
Brett Christensen,
Hoax-Slayer
