Illegal downloads of ‘one war after another’ contain dangerous malware

One battle after another It’s tied as one of the best movies of the year, generating oscar buzz in all the major categories. But if you’re hoping to watch this movie at home, it’s best to steer clear of illegal downloads, especially this time. Security researchers have found malware in some movie torrents that can turn any Windows PC into a zombie agent.
Bitdefender reports that some torrents of One battle after another Currently available online, it contains powershell scripts and image archives, when executed, it creates a virtual memory for control and control (C2). Users who download torrent files expect a video file, but in fact they get a remote Teslan (rat) placed by agent tesla.
Simply put, the file can give hackers access to your computer where they can access all kinds of personal and financial data. Or they can use your computer to hack other computers.
“Agent tesla rat itself is not novel, but the deployment of serialized attack methods that follow the power of Powershell and Lots of other methods (that live outside the world) is very interesting,” the post on Bitdefender explains. “To our knowledge, this type of attack has only been used in this torrent download.”
Once the user has downloaded the torrent folder they are directed to Open CD.LNK to launch the movie. Malicious scripts are hidden inside the bottom file, labeled paper2.Subtitles.SRT, which are executed after the user gets to open the movie. The file below actually has real subtitles, but lines 100 to 103 contain the batch code that starts the attack on the user’s computer, according to Bitdefender.
Hiding malicious code in underlying files has been a known method of sending malware since at least 2017, but these particular methods are new. Bitdefeur notes that agent Tesla has been used in the past for e-mail approval efforts in 2023 and Covid-19 vaccination registration information in 2021.
Pirates with media knowledge are unlikely to fall for this attack, because they release a strange program that is not necessary for watching movies, which are distributed illegally in file types including .mp4 and .MKV. This torrent is “targeted at novices who don’t usually download pindid content or understand the dangers of torrents,” according to Bitdefender, which makes sense given the hype surrounding this movie. Something this popular is likely to get newbie pirates just looking for a free way to check it out.
The film was directed by Paul Thomas Anderson and has an impressive cast including Leonardo Dicaprio, Sean Penn, Regina Hall, Benicio Hall, Benicio Hall, Teyana Taylor, Newcomer Chase Infiniti. The New York Film Circle named it the best picture of the year. The film took the ninth nomination at the London Cristics’ Circle Awards, which were announced on Monday, most of the film. And it is expected to be well done in time for the next Academy Awards Centemony in March.
HBO Max also announced on Monday that the film will be broadcast in the prime time starting on December 19. So there is no reason to pet the film. Especially if you can turn your computer into a malware-infected zombie.



