Experts Warn of Malicious Brexit Spam

Following the historic referendum in the United Kingdom’s decision to leave the European Union, there has been an uptick in Brexit-themed spam designed to deliver malware via email. Using current events to create a sense of urgency is a rather common strategy among cyber criminals enticing people to open emails they shouldn’t. An example of one of these spam emails is titled, “Brexit causes historic market drop.” Sporting events have also been a major source for this type of spam, with the latest example being the 2014 World Cup. Emails were sent offering free tickets, or mentioning notable players. Avast has also mentioned that apps are now also a threat, with apps on Google Play bombarding the user with ads without any real functionality, which at the time were trying to leech off of the popularity of the FIFA app. This strategy will most likely continue into the Rio Olympics.