The Spam Omelette #45

Bogdan Botezatu

October 09, 2009

Week
in Review:  September 30 – October 7

1. Need
a watch to fake your time?

  Ranking first in
this week’s issue of the Spam Omelette, the word WATCH is a new addition to the
spam landscape. The word dominates by far and is also encountered in
conjunction with other keywords such as ROLEX
and Watches, which is enough of a
hint that product spam has enjoyed a dramatic boost over the week.

2. MaxGentleman
offering PILLS

As if Canadian Pharmacy spam weren’t enough, the spammers
behind MaxGentleman started bombing users’ inboxes with their latest offering
on the sexual enhancement market. They misleadingly advertise their products as
Genuine Viagra and Cialis, although their products are knock-off pills with no
relation to their trademark owner whatsoever.

3. Discounted,
counterfeit Windows software

Ranking third in this week’s issue of the Spam Omelette, the
word WINDOWS has been identified in
messages advertising cheap OEM software from Microsoft and Adobe. As tempting
as it may look, these offerings can only get the user into trouble, as OEM
software is not for sale as retail products. Users who buy this kind of
products can get their licenses blacklisted, not to mention that they are not
eligible for technical support.

4. We
sell, you BUY

The word BUY has been detected by
BitDefender’s spam researchers in a variety of unsolicited messages mostly
advertising sexual enhancements. What is particularly interesting about these
spam waves is the fact that the embedded links do not lead to a Canadian
Pharmacy website, but rather to an adult / online dating website called
HitTheRich. It is currently unknown whether spammers are actually affiliated
with the website or if they have forcefully injected their offerings in the
system.

 

5.  Need
a site? China is here to help!

The word SITE concludes this week’s spam top and has been
identified mostly in a spam wave advertising the services of a “unique design
studio from China” that is willing to take care of you visual identity on the
web and, of course, to pinch your credit card afterwards. As a rule of thumb,
never trust the services of a company that advertises itself through spam.

Bogdan Botezatu

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