Each year, around autumn, ESET releases a new version of its Windows offering for home customers. This year sees the arrival of the fourteenth version of the home Windows lineup, with a long list of new and improved features for users. With cyberattacks surging massively over the past few months, this update meets users’ need for comprehensive online security in times of uncertainty and increased threats.

Included in the updates are ESET Internet Security, an advanced security solution that brings rock-solid protection for modern web users; ESET NOD32 Antivirus, a fast and light solution that is perfect for gamers and everyday users who don’t want any interruptions; and ESET Smart Security Premium, a comprehensive product built without compromise for users who want it all, including extra data encryption and easy password management. With the aim of creating a safer digital world for everyone to enjoy, version 14 adds a series of new features to these products, along with improvements in malware detection, online banking and password security.

A crucial upgrade was made in the Advanced Machine Learning module, which now has better detection while retaining a tiny footprint. The improvements in the data selection and algorithm components will lead to increased detection of threats, including those transmitted via email. Synchronous Advanced Machine Learning in the Cloud, which runs more heavyweight detection models on cloud platforms, also brings considerable improvements for the detection of new malware.

Similarly, ESET is continually working to improve behavioral detection, with a focus on extending protection across system components that are typically abused by malware. To this end, the Host-Based Intrusion Prevention System, which utilizes advanced behavioral analysis to protect your system from malware and unwanted activity, has also been bolstered with further detection methods. This includes improved detection of ransomware and other malware using suspicious encryption and decryption API calls.

The update also provides users with new protection in the form of the Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) and System Registry Scanner, which are capable of detecting malicious uses of the WMI and the system registry.

Finally, version 14 also brings changes to Banking & Payment Protection, including a “secured browser” mode through which you can safely pay online. This mode gives users the option to run any supported browser in secured mode by default; after it has been set up, the browser will always start in secured mode. The improved Banking & Payment Protection automatically protects users when banking online and when accessing web-based cryptocurrency wallets. The update encrypts the communication of your keyboard and mouse for safer transactions in your browser, and notifies you when Remote Desktop Protocol is on – a possible sign that malware is spying on you.

For more information about the full list of features included in ESET’s home Windows offering, please see here.

Botnets are one of the top cyber threats to look out for in 2020, according to Forrester, and with a dispersed, remote workforce, many organizations may be more vulnerable than ever before. Botnet operations can become incredibly sophisticated, carrying out a wide range of illicit activities: collecting browser information, harvesting passwords, stealing login credentials from banking websites, or deploying ransomware.

One of the most infamous botnets is Trickbot, which has compromised over a million computing devices around the world since 2016. Earlier this month, ESET helped to disrupt Trickbot in a global collaboration with Microsoft and other partners.

ESET first detected Trickbot in late 2016, and it has since been recognized as one of the most prevalent banking malware families across the globe. The botnet has targeted several different industries – including education, real estate and government – but the most frequently targeted seems to be the financial sector. With its capabilities for stealing banking credentials and performing fraudulent transactions, Trickbot is a threat to financial data at any business, so businesses must be prepared to protect themselves against this threat.

Trickbot is extremely versatile, with a modular design that allows it to perform an array of malicious actions using a variety of plugins. ESET analyzed nearly 30 different plugins, of which over a third were infostealers. One of these, named injectDll, uses browser hooks to steal user credentials from banking websites, allowing Trickbot’s operators to perform fraudulent bank transfers and steal money from individuals and organizations. Another plugin, known as pwgrab, steals passwords from Filezilla, Microsoft Outlook and WinSCP. These are just two examples of the damage Trickbot could wreak on businesses once it has infested your systems.

A prolific distributor of ransomware – one of the largest threats to the upcoming US election – Trickbot is also a potential danger to election infrastructure. Operators of the botnet could infest a computer system used to report results or store voter rolls, sowing high levels of chaos and distrust among the electorate. The collaborative operation to disrupt Trickbot helped cut off key infrastructure, meaning that the botnet operators are no longer able to initiate new compromises or deploy ransomware as easily.

ESET telemetry shows Trickbot detection numbers plummeting in tandem with the disruption effort:

Figure 1: Trickbot detection numbers from July to October 2020

While the threat of Trickbot seems to have lessened for now, maintaining vigilance for other botnet attacks is still paramount. At the same time as Trickbot’s disruption, the rising detections in ESET telemetry for the Emotet botnet indicated a ramping up of Emotet’s activities, even downloading Trickbot, as well as Qbot, malware:

Figure 2: Emotet detection numbers from July to October 2020

The Emotet malspam campaign was recently bombarding users in Greece, Japan and Lithuania:

Figure 3: Countries most targeted by Emotet from July to October 19, 2020

Facing such a threat may seem like a daunting task, but there are a few ways businesses can protect themselves from botnet operations. Primarily, it is crucial to protect all endpoints with a security solution that has robust detection modules, such as ESET Endpoint Security. Businesses also need to ensure that their networks are always patched with the latest security updates to avoid falling victim to vulnerabilities that threat actors may exploit. Additionally, remote ports can provide an access point for hackers, so restrict access as far as possible – especially to remote desktop protocol (RDP) ports.

To find out more about ESET’s efforts to disrupt the Trickbot botnet, read ESET takes part in global operation to disrupt Trickbot on WeLiveSecurity.

Bratislava – Slovakia, October 21, 2020 – ESET, a global leader in IT and cybersecurity, today announces that its exclusive partner in Japan, Canon Marketing Japan Inc., has received the #1 ranking in the security products category of the Nikkei Computer’s customer satisfaction survey for the eighth year in a row.

Nikkei Business Publications, Inc. is the largest content provider in the country. The prestigious 2020 survey was completed by the IT departments of over 12,000 businesses and local governments, assessing providers across seven groups of criteria; Overall Satisfaction, Performance & Functionality, Reliability, Operability, Cost, Support and Intent to Renew. Respondents assigned satisfaction scores to their selected products on a scale from Satisfied to Dissatisfied for each sub-category. Final scores were calculated as an average of all given points in each respective sub-category.

Canon Marketing Japan Inc. won first place in the survey and is noted as particularly competitive in pricing, performance and functionality – having exceeded the industry average for the last five years. ESET’s portfolio of Endpoint Security solutions, a central part of Canon Marketing Japan Inc.’s security product portfolio, combines multi-layered antivirus capabilities with intuitive software and a low system footprint. The result is award-winning, comprehensive protection for organizations of all sizes.

Hiroya Kuroda, Country Manager at ESET Japan, commented, “We are extremely pleased for our Partner, Canon Marketing Japan Inc., and our products to be recognized in Japan for helping to support cutting-edge security services. The threat landscape faced by businesses today is ever evolving and marked by never-ending attacks. To stay ahead of the game, ESET has doubled its R&D investment worldwide over the past five years with almost 40 per cent of employees working in research and development. This has allowed us to protect our customers with industry-leading security solutions that are innovative, powerful, reliable and easy to use.”

Learn more about ESET Endpoint Security solutions here.