Cameron Diaz is bad news. The new McAfee “Most Threatening Celebrities release puts her at the top of the list. Web users downloading subject matter for instance screensavers and wallpaper featuring stars are often duped by destructive hackers who hide malware behind such subject matter and Most dangerous Superstars is a list of the Hollywood stars they use most often.
Spyware makes these celebs very threatening
The fourth annual Very threatening Celebs list is created by McAfee to promote SiteAdvisor, a free program that tests sites for detrimental subject matter. A recent MSNBC article on the most risky stars list said that SiteAdvisor is used by McAfee to pinpoint the stars most often linked to detrimental downloads and formulate the odds of that happening to unsuspecting users. Internet users who search for downloading and photos of Cameron Diaz are directed to websites 10 percent of the time where malware is detected that could glean sensitive personal data or disrupt PC performance.
Celebs used as bait by cybercriminals
The hot topics that interest every person else on the web are especially enticing for cybercriminals. ABC News reports that these cybercriminals build delivery systems for detrimental code within content material featuring the hottest names of the moment. Followers downloading a hot screensaver or compromising video get compromised themselves with stolen passwords and other vulnerable personal data. Dave Marcus, director of security research at McAfee Labs, told ABC News that the harmful software being created is not new, but it is spreading at an ever-increasing rate. In the second quarter, a record number of adware incidents was detected by McAfee. McAfee detected 6 million unique, freshly-minted malicious downloads in that time period–about 60,000 pieces per day.
Models and actors are used by Cybercriminals
Although the names change yearly, probably the most harmful celebrities list follows a typical pattern. The top 10 names are generally actors and models. When SiteAdvisor was asked to search “Cameron Diaz and screensavers,” CNET reports that harmful subject matter was revealed on 19 percent of the site results . Other actors dominated the top 10. Julia Roberts had to settle for second place. Jessica Biel came in 3rd after leading the pack last year. Gisele Bundchen, the world’s highest paid supermodel, was fourth. Brad Pitt moved up five spots from last year to rank fifth. Some of the safest celebrities to search for are politicians. Barack Obama ranked no. 49. Sarah Palin, who craves the spotlight, might have been disappointed by straggling in at no. 50.
The McAfee Very threatening Celebrities
1. Cameron Diaz
2. Julia Roberts
3. Jessica Biel
4. Gisele Bündchen
5. Brad Pitt
6. Adriana Lima
7. Jennifer Love Hewitt and Nicole Kidman: tie
8. Tom Cruise
9. Heidi Klum and Penelope Cruz: tie
10. Anna Paquin
Discover more details on this subject
MSNBC
msnbc.msn.com
ABC News
abcnews.go.com
CNET
news.cnet.com
