PokerAgent

Posted: January 29, 2013

Threat Metric

The Threat Meter is a malware assessment that SpywareRemove.com's research team is able to give every identifiable malware threat. Our Threat Meter includes several criteria based off of specific malware threats to value their severity, reach and volume. The Threat Meter is able to give you a numerical breakdown of each threat's initial Threat Level, Detection Count, Volume Count, Trend Path and Percentage Impact. The overall ranking of each threat in the Threat Meter is a basic breakdown of how all threats are ranked within our own extensive malware database. The scoring for each specific malware threat can be easily compared to other emerging threats to draw a contrast in its particular severity. The Threat Meter is a useful tool in the endeavor of seeking a solution to remove a threat or pursue additional analytical research for all types of computer users.

The following fields listed on the Threat Meter containing a specific value, are explained in detail below:

Threat Level: The threat level scale goes from 1 to 10 where 10 is the highest level of severity and 1 is the lowest level of severity. Each specific level is relative to the threat's consistent assessed behaviors collected from SpyHunter's risk assessment model.

Detection Count: The collective number of confirmed and suspected cases of a particular malware threat. The detection count is calculated from infected PCs retrieved from diagnostic and scan log reports generated by SpyHunter.

Volume Count: Similar to the detection count, the Volume Count is specifically based on the number of confirmed and suspected threats infecting systems on a daily basis. High volume counts usually represent a popular threat but may or may not have infected a large number of systems. High detection count threats could lay dormant and have a low volume count. Criteria for Volume Count is relative to a daily detection count.

Trend Path: The Trend Path, utilizing an up arrow, down arrow or equal symbol, represents the level of recent movement of a particular threat. Up arrows represent an increase, down arrows represent a decline and the equal symbol represent no change to a threat's recent movement.

% Impact (Last 7 Days): This demonstrates a 7-day period change in the frequency of a malware threat infecting PCs. The percentage impact correlates directly to the current Trend Path to determine a rise or decline in the percentage.

Threat Level:	9/10
Infected PCs:	23

First Seen:	January 29, 2013
Last Seen:	December 1, 2023
OS(es) Affected:	Windows

PokerAgent is a Trojan that specializes in stealing credentials for the well-known social networking website of Facebook, with over ten thousand confirmed account hijacks at this time. So-named for its capacity of taking advantage of the financial and account-related features of Zynga Poker, PokerAgent is a particular concern for Israel, which has inadvertently been the host for the greatest numbers of PokerAgent-infected PCs. PokerAgent also is capable of using compromised Facebook accounts to post malicious content, and Spywareremove.com malware researchers urge anyone who sees such symptoms of a PokerAgent infection to use anti-malware programs as necessary to delete PokerAgent before re-securing their accounts by appropriate methods.

Wants to Look at More Than Just Your Hand

PokerAgent gains its name from targeting one of the most popular card game applications on the Internet, the Facebook application known as Zynga Poker. With a botnet of hundreds of infected PCs at its disposal, PokerAgent attempts to steal Facebook login information, Zynga Poker game scores and information on any credit cards associated with the aforementioned Facebook profiles. Notably, PokerAgent can manipulate online credit-purchasing features related to Zynga Poker.

One of PokerAgent's secondary functions also targets Facebook users who aren't active in Zynga Poker. Facebook users who fall under these prerequisites (such as a low game score) will find that their accounts are automatically posting links to a malicious phishing site. This site, although PokerAgent imitates the appearance of Facebook, actually is a phishing attack site that lures victims into logging in to 'Facebook' so that PokerAgent can steal their login information, too. Naturally, Spywareremove.com malware researchers recommend watching for this symptom of a PokerAgent infection and warning contacts away from these automatically posted links.

Calling PokerAgent's Bluff Against Your PC's Security

PokerAgent was first identified by many PC security companies in 2012, although some anti-malware applications have been able to block PokerAgent with generic (heuristic, or behavior-based) detection methods. Additionally, you should be able to detect fraudulent Facebook sites posted by PokerAgent by examining the web addresses or URLs, which Spywareremove.com malware experts note will fail to match the address of the real Facebook site.

PokerAgent infections are most prominent in Israel but are capable of compromising computers in other countries through the world without any additional trouble. Spywareremove.com malware experts suggest the usage of a good anti-malware program for deleting PokerAgent entirely. After PokerAgent is deleted, you should strongly consider switching your Facebook password and related information, which may be compromised and in criminal possession even with PokerAgent removed from your PC.

However, the easiest way to avoid a PokerAgent infection is to practice web-browsing safety techniques, such as avoiding suspicious links, disabling exploitable browser features, keeping your programs updated and, of course, having access to anti-malware protection software.

PokerAgent

Threat Metric

Wants to Look at More Than Just Your Hand

Calling PokerAgent's Bluff Against Your PC's Security

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