Check Point: Desperate Job Seekers Are Ready To Work For Cybercriminals

job seekers work for cybercriminals

CheckPoint experts found that the number of job search ads on the darknet and on hacker forums is growing – job seekers that were desperate to find a job are now ready to work for cybercriminals.

Check Point reports that a new trend has emerged at the beginning of 2021: not hackers do not post their “vacancies” there, but applicants themselves publish ads and inform that they are ready for any illegal activity.

According to the observations of the researchers, in the last quarter, from 10 to 16 new messages of this kind appeared on the forums every month. Given that such ads were rare in the past, this is an impressive number.

Researchers attribute this to the desperation of people who cannot find work and are experiencing financial difficulties due to the coronavirus pandemic, which has affected the global economy and led to an increase in unemployment around the world.

In the ads, desperate job seekers offer their help to cybercriminals, “promising not to ask stupid questions”, “24/7 availability” and “the desire to make money in any way.”

Until this year, we have rarely seen messages from people who are ready for illegal work and, moreover, are looking for it on the darknet themselves. We were alarmed and amazed. People who offer their services to cybercriminals themselves put all of us in great danger. Therefore, we have selected several hacker forums and have been monitoring them for the last few months. We noted that the number of posts from job seekers on these forums has grown steadily. We suspect the situation is the same in other hacker forums on the darknet. In our opinion, the dark web should be the last place where people can look for work. This trend shows the dire financial situation many have found themselves in since the pandemic. This “cry for help” should be a signal to anyone looking to minimize illegal criminal activity.said Oded Vanunu, head of Product Vulnerability Research at Check Point Software Technologies.

In their report, Check Point experts provide examples of such job search ads.

Below are a couple of such ads.

job seekers work for cybercriminals
The applicant writes: “I am ready for any possible job … I am at home 24 hours a day, 7 days a week because of this pandemic.”

job seekers work for cybercriminals
A 25-year-old woman from Ukraine, “experienced in fraud in logistics, sales and wholesale”, understands the risks involved in doing such work, and is looking for a position with monthly pay.

Let me remind you that I also talked about the fact that Cybercriminals fake letters from WHO to distribute HawkEye and trick money into fight with COVID-19.

By Vladimir Krasnogolovy

Vladimir is a technical specialist who loves giving qualified advices and tips on GridinSoft's products. He's available 24/7 to assist you in any question regarding internet security.

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