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Discord Users Be Careful Of Malware And Information Theft

By November 11, 2019May 9th, 2022Cybersecurity

Do you use the Discord chat service?

If so, be advised that malware developers have been using the service to not only host various types of malware, but also to use it as a command and control server.

In addition, they are abusing the chat client to force it to perform a variety of malicious behavior.

Unfortunately, this is not a new problem.  Anyone familiar with the chat service knows that it has a long history of being abused.  Although designed primarily as a chat service, Discord also allows its members to use a chat channel where other users can download them.

Users can even right click on a hosted file to get a sharable download link. This is, in practice, one of the ways that hackers are abusing the system.  Of significance, these sharable links work even for non-Discord users, which gives malicious actors a convenient place to stash harmful files to be spread far and wide via email campaigns.

Even more interesting is the fact that the uploader can delete the file inside Discord itself, but the URL can still be used to download it.  This means that although the chat service gives the outward appearance of deleting the file, it still exists on the server. That gives malware developers an incredibly convenient, completely anonymous method of hosting their files.

In addition to that, Discord contains a feature called ‘Webhooks’ that allow third-party applications or websites to send messages to a Discord channel.  When a user creases a Webhook, the server owner will be given a special URL that is used with the Discord API to send messages to a specified channel.  In this case though, if a user has been previously infected by a hacker’s malware, this service can be used to exfil collected data directly to the attacker.

All this to say, if you use Discord, beware.  To say that the chat service has problems is an understatement.

Jason Manteiga

Jason J. Manteiga, Vice President of Olmec Systems, has been part of the company for over the past 20 years. He believes that having a great work environment and supportive team, is the ultimate key to success. Since being in the IT realm for over 25 years, Jason, along with Olmec Systems, has been on the Inc. 5000 “List of America’s Fastest Growing Private Companies” and Channel Futures MSP 501 “Top Managed Service Providers in North America,” along with other awards and nominations. Jason earned his Bachelor Degree in Information Systems from the New Jersey Institute of Technology. He also holds certifications in Microsoft MCSE, VMWare VCP, and Cisco CCNA. In his spare time, Jason is a contributor for The Center for Social & Legal Research (Privacy Exchange) and a member of the Morris County Chamber of Commerce. His hobbies include cycling and kayaking. He currently lives in New Jersey with his wife, two daughters and son.