Hackers have trapped Google by copying one of the most downloaded browser extensions.

If you have recently downloaded an ad blocker to your Google browser, you may need to remove it. A fake extension almost perfectly resembling the famous AdBlock Plus has infested nearly 37,000 users’ computers.

A SwiftOnSecurity security researcher discovered this fake program resembling AdBlock Plus, the famous ad blocker. It has been published on Google’s Chrome Web Store, which allows you to add extensions to your browser. The resemblance between the two “AdBlock” was striking.

An avalanche of tabs and ads

Alerted, Google then removed this extension, but nearly 37,000 users had already downloaded this “malware.” Once installed, Internet users were surprised to discover an avalanche of tabs and advertisements when they opened their browsers.

adblock plus

How was such piracy possible? According to the specialized site Bellping Computer, it seems that a homographic attack has trapped the giant of the Web. The name of the software mixed Latin and Cyrillic characters in such a way that it looked like two drops of water to the word “AdBlock Plus.” In reality, it was “Adblock plus.”