Facebook Launches Major Anti-Malvertising Campaign

Mike Moore,

Social network teams up with RiskIQ to tackle pesky malware

Facebook has taken a significant step against annoying and potentially dangerous viruses by signing a new partnership to tackle malvertising on its site.

The social media giant has today announced a deal with security firm RiskIQ to detect unauthorised and malicious activity.

The deal will see RiskIQ monitor millions of Facebook advertiser landing pages to ensure nothing malicious gets through, with the data helping Facebook proactively take down online threats and protect its users.

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“RiskIQ helps Facebook detect and block threats planted in third-party ads that violate our policies and can put people at risk,” said Jennifer Henley, Facebook’s director of security operations.

“The additional insight they provide helps us protect the integrity of our global network and create a trusted environment for the people on our platform.”

Facebook now joins a stellar line-up of organisations using RiskIQ’s services, including eight of the 10 largest financial institutions in the U.S., six of the top 10 European financial institutions and five of the seven leading Internet companies in the world.

“We are extremely proud that Facebook chose RiskIQ to help protect their users from malicious and fraudulent activity,” said Elias Manousos, CEO of RiskIQ. “Our platform’s global visibility into the user experience on Facebook allows us to provide the social network giant with the intelligence they need to keep users safe every day.”

Malvertising has grown steadily to become a significant threat to many online organisations over the past few years, with many companies following Facebook’s lead to provide protection for their users.

Earlier this week, security researchers have spotted malware being distributed through malicious advertisements on popular adult website xHamster. Fashion retailer Hugo Boss also revealed earlier this month that some of its adverts had been compromised, with malware appearing on the Huffington Post and several other news sites.

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