Friday, May 23, 2025
HomeCyber Security NewsHackers Deliver Weaponized Notepad++ Via Google Ads

Hackers Deliver Weaponized Notepad++ Via Google Ads

Published on

SIEM as a Service

Follow Us on Google News

Cybercriminals are known to exploit malicious advertising techniques for targeting the widely-used Notepad++ text editor for Windows. This could lead to the dissemination of ransomware and malware.

In these malvertising efforts, threat actors take advantage of Google advertisements.

According to Malwarebytes, it appears to have completely evaded detection for at least a few months. It is unique in its ability to fingerprint users and distribute time-sensitive payloads.

- Advertisement - Google News
Document
FREE Demo

Deploy Advanced AI-Powered Email Security Solution

Implementing AI-Powered Email security solutions “Trustifi” can secure your business from today’s most dangerous email threats, such as Email Tracking, Blocking, Modifying, Phishing, Account Take Over, Business Email Compromise, Malware & Ransomware

Malvertising Campaigns Targeting Notepad++

Researchers discovered malicious advertising distributed by the same threat actor but from different compromised ad accounts.

The first screening step occurs when a user clicks on one of these ads. This is probably an IP check that ignores VPNs and other fraudulent IP addresses and displays a decoy site.

The decoy site
The decoy site

Nevertheless, targeted users will see a copy of the genuine Notepad++ website, which is hosted at notepadxtreme[.]com.

When a user clicks on the download link, JavaScript code runs a system fingerprint as a second step of filtration.

Although the malware being utilized is different and more advanced here, it has been observed that certain malicious advertising campaigns check for the existence of emulators or virtual computers. 

The user is sent to the official Notepad++ website if any of the tests don’t match. A distinctive ID is given to each prospective victim, enabling them to download the payload.

In addition to making each download distinct and restricted in duration, the unique ID is probably used for tracking reasons.

The payload of this malicious advertising campaign is a.hta script. If trying to download the file from the same URL, it encounters a 404 error.

“We believe this is part of the malicious infrastructure used by threat actors to gain access to victims’ machines using tools such as Cobalt Strike,” researchers said.

Recommendation

As a result, during the past few months, a rise in both the scope and sophistication of malvertising efforts has been noticed. Tracking harmful advertisements enables us to recognize and promptly stop the infrastructure threat actors utilize swiftly.

Following the malware distribution chain enables us to discover new methods that may be used to bypass existing security measures and update our detections accordingly.

Protect yourself from vulnerabilities using Patch Manager Plus to patch over 850 third-party applications quickly. Take advantage of the free trial to ensure 100% security.

Gurubaran
Gurubaran
Gurubaran is a co-founder of Cyber Security News and GBHackers On Security. He has 10+ years of experience as a Security Consultant, Editor, and Analyst in cybersecurity, technology, and communications.

Latest articles

Zero-Trust Policy Bypass Enables Exploitation of Vulnerabilities and Manipulation of NHI Secrets

A new project has exposed a critical attack vector that exploits protocol vulnerabilities to...

Threat Actor Sells Burger King Backup System RCE Vulnerability for $4,000

A threat actor known as #LongNight has reportedly put up for sale remote code...

Chinese Nexus Hackers Exploit Ivanti Endpoint Manager Mobile Vulnerability

Ivanti disclosed two critical vulnerabilities, identified as CVE-2025-4427 and CVE-2025-4428, affecting Ivanti Endpoint Manager...

Hackers Target macOS Users with Fake Ledger Apps to Deploy Malware

Hackers are increasingly targeting macOS users with malicious clones of Ledger Live, the popular...

Resilience at Scale

Why Application Security is Non-Negotiable

The resilience of your digital infrastructure directly impacts your ability to scale. And yet, application security remains a critical weak link for most organizations.

Application Security is no longer just a defensive play—it’s the cornerstone of cyber resilience and sustainable growth. In this webinar, Karthik Krishnamoorthy (CTO of Indusface) and Phani Deepak Akella (VP of Marketing – Indusface), will share how AI-powered application security can help organizations build resilience by

Discussion points


Protecting at internet scale using AI and behavioral-based DDoS & bot mitigation.
Autonomously discovering external assets and remediating vulnerabilities within 72 hours, enabling secure, confident scaling.
Ensuring 100% application availability through platforms architected for failure resilience.
Eliminating silos with real-time correlation between attack surface and active threats for rapid, accurate mitigation

More like this

Zero-Trust Policy Bypass Enables Exploitation of Vulnerabilities and Manipulation of NHI Secrets

A new project has exposed a critical attack vector that exploits protocol vulnerabilities to...

Threat Actor Sells Burger King Backup System RCE Vulnerability for $4,000

A threat actor known as #LongNight has reportedly put up for sale remote code...

Chinese Nexus Hackers Exploit Ivanti Endpoint Manager Mobile Vulnerability

Ivanti disclosed two critical vulnerabilities, identified as CVE-2025-4427 and CVE-2025-4428, affecting Ivanti Endpoint Manager...