CrowdStrike recently caused a global disruption with a buggy update.
CERT-In has issued a warning about a phishing attack campaign targeting affected CrowdStrike users.
The attackers are impersonating CrowdStrike support staff.
In the wake of a recent global CrowdStrike outage, Indian cybersecurity agency CERT-In has issued a warning about a phishing attack campaign targeting affected users. The attackers are impersonating CrowdStrike support staff, attempting to trick people into downloading malicious software under the guise of system recovery tools.
For those who are unaware, the major outage occurred on July 19th due to a faulty update to the CrowdStrike Falcon Sensor software, which led to widespread crashes of Microsoft Windows operating systems. The incident disrupted flights, businesses, banks, and hospital systems worldwide, including in India. Although CrowdStrike and Microsoft have released fixes, some organisations are still recovering from the disruption.
Also read: CrowdStrike sends gift cards to partners after global outage, even they aren’t working
CERT-In’s advisory, released on Saturday, said that phishing attackers are targeting crowdStrike users leveraging the recent global outage, reports PTI (via The Indian Express). They are sending emails and making phone calls posing as CrowdStrike support, offering fake software scripts that claim to help users recover from the system issues. The phishing attackers also are distributing ‘Trojan’ malware pretending to be recovery tools, which could steal sensitive data, cause system crashes, and result in data loss.
Phishing attacks involve impersonating reputable entities through emails, texts, or phone calls to deceive victims into revealing personal information like banking details or login credentials. CERT-In, India’s federal technology agency responsible for combating cyber attacks, has urged users to stay vigilant.
Also read: Apple 1, Microsoft 0: Why Mac devices weren’t affected during CrowdStrike-Windows outage
How to stay safe
The advisory recommends several safety measures to protect against these scams:
1. Obtain software updates only from official websites and sources.
2. Avoid clicking on links in documents with “.exe” extensions, as they are likely malicious.
3. Be cautious of suspicious phone numbers; scammers may use email-to-text services to hide their identity.
4. Only click on URLs from clear and recognisable domains.
5. Use safe browsing tools, filtering software, and appropriate firewalls.
Additionally, before providing any sensitive information, users should ensure the website has a valid encryption certificate, indicated by a green lock in the browser’s address bar.
By following these guidelines, individuals and organisations can better protect themselves from phishing attacks and safeguard their sensitive information.
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Ayushi Jain
Tech news writer by day, BGMI player by night. Combining my passion for tech and gaming to bring you the latest in both worlds. View Full Profile
