Criminals have been disguising Adobe Flash updates as malware for a while now.  They are quite fond of compromising a legitimate website with a fake update pop up. Now there is a new twist on this old tactic.  If you choose to install the fake update it actually does update Adobe Flash. however a cryptominer comes along for the ride.

Because the software does what it says it will do, most people don’t notice what is going on in the background. This allows the malware to go undetected. It isn’t until a few days or weeks have passed and the user finally gets fed up with their slow machine that the malware is discovered.

To avoid fake software updates, remember to visit the application’s site directly for downloads or select check for updates from the software’s menu. Those popups that appear while you are browsing are often loaded with malware.