Google Ads Promoting Malware Websites - Google Ads filled with malware websites for programs like OBS, VLC and more.

[Swordfish]

Recently there has been an issue with Google ads that pop up when you search for certain programs, such as OBS, VLC, MSI Afterburner, and Notepad++. Usually they have a similar or exact layout to the actual website of the program, but with a different URL. They're hard to spot with VirusTotal due to the spamming of empty code which makes it appear as an empty file. These websites usually appear first on a Google search, which can make people who are not tech aware click on them and unknowingly install malware on their system.
They usually use RedLine Stealer or other infostealer malware, which is able to grab account information that is saved in a browser or onto the system.

This should be a good reminder to use DuckDuckGo Brave Browser and an ad blocker.

News article about the topic.
Video about the topic:

 

[We Are The Witches]

Good to know, although I already treat ads as malware and potential scams as a general rule.

As for people who live with others who are not careful about these things, they should already have warned them. Maybe (some of) the people who fall for this are those who're simply not paying attention, rather than ones who don't know this could happen. So if you download anything, triple check the URL for starters.

The only good click on an ad, is one that bypasses Google's system to not deem it invalid and getting the advertiser charged for it, but with no benefit in return.

 

[Ghost of Wesley Willis]

This shit almost happened to me last year when trying to install MSI Afterburner because google prioritizes ads over actual results. After I almost got a trojan horse on my PC, I immediately installed an extension called google search ad remover because adblocker didn't block the search ads.