Backdoors, Password-Stealers Most Common Threats to Windows 8 Security, Bitdefender Test Reveals

Last week, Bitdefender carried out a Windows 8 security test on the most frequently-encountered 100 families of malware. The test revealed that 15 percent of these well-known pieces of malware can bypass security mechanisms built into Windows 8.

As Windows 8 in conjunction with an antivirus solution can block rootkit-based malware via ELAM technology and the SafeBoot option stops bootkit interference, Trojans and worms are the most likely to work out of the box if not detected when they get copied on the computer.

With every new operating system release since Windows Vista, Microsoft has sought to preserve backwards compatibility with previous operating systems. This compatibility extends to malicious software that, ever since the introduction of User Account Control, has been designed to run in user-accessible locations such as the temporary folder, the Application Data directory or even the Desktop and the Downloads folders.

The test on Windows 8 confirmed that most Trojans, once they reach the PC, can run without any compatibility issues. Among the most dangerous applications that ran smoothly on Windows 8 were backdoors and password-stealing applications. Other e-threats that can pose significant damage to the system are Brazilian banker Trojans – bank phishing tools embedded in executable files.

Malware breakdown in the Windows 8 test

Infection with backdoor-capable malware poses serious threats to computer users. Backdoors are applications that run on the computer and allow an attacker remote access to the infected machine. The attacking party can fully control the PC, access data stored on it, see what the user does and also “rent” the PC to other cyber-criminals for other malicious purposes.