If you use this popular messaging app, beware this Trojan that’s stealing private data

The Telegram messaging app has been one of the beneficiaries of some of the migration we've seen away from the biggest messaging platforms, like Facebook-owned WhatsApp which recently rolled out some controversial changes and thus spurred an exodus of users. And anywhere there are lots of users of a digital product or service, it should go without saying, you can rest assured that hackers will soon follow. Telegram is one of the latest examples of this reality, given that hackers have been using it to disseminate a remote access Trojan called ToxicEye, which is malware that lets a hacker-operated Telegram account control a victim's computer.

According to researchers at Check Point Software Technologies, ToxicEye can install ransomware as well as steal data from a victim's computer. "Over the past three months," the researchers explain, "Check Point Research has seen over 130 attacks using a new multi-functional remote access Trojan dubbed ‘ToxicEye.’ ToxicEye is spread via phishing emails containing a malicious .exe file. If the user opens the attachment, ToxicEye installs itself on the victim’s PC and performs a range of exploits without the victim’s knowledge."