Online poker just got a little riskier as an online poker cheating hack which uses malware to take screenshots of player’s hands has been uncovered.
The hack was exposed by San Diego-based security experts at Eset. The hack involves players on PokerStars and Full Tilt.
Basically, malware infects a player’s computer, takes a screenshot of their hand, and then sends the unique ID of the player to the hacker. The hacker can then use that ID to find the table the player is on within the sites, and then join their game with the obvious benefit of being able to see their hands.
Eset said it began detecting the malware in March and has since found newer versions that threaten other information, such as passwords.
The spyware is called Win32/Spy.Odlanor, according to a report in Yogonet.com. The malware can installed on a computer if the user downloads infected apps or software online.
As of mid-September, ‘several hundred’ users have been infected with the malware, Eset said.
‘We have observed several versions of the malware in the wild, the earliest ones from March 2015,’ said Robert Lipovsky, Senior Malware Researcher at Eset in a blog post.
According to Eset LiveGrid telemetry, the largest number of detections comes from Eastern European countries, but the group said all players on the sites could be at risk.
