A New Banking Virus Has Pinched £20 Million From UK Citizens

You might want to give your bank balance a check.

The National Crime Agency (NCA) is warning that a "significant strain of malicious software" is enabling cyber criminals to steal millions of pounds from UK bank accounts.

The malware (known as Dridex, Bugat and Cridex) is thought to originate from criminals based in Eastern Europe.

"Computers become infected with Dridex malware when users receive and open documents in seemingly legitimate emails," explains the NCA, which is currently carrying out 'sinkhole' measures to prevent criminals from interacting with infected computers - and they're not alone.

"The FBI and the National Crime Agency, with support from EC3 and JCAT at Europol, the Metropolitan Police Service, GCHQ, CERT-UK, the BKA in Germany, the Moldovan authorities and key private sector security partners are developing and deploying techniques, to safeguard victims and frustrate criminal networks. This has resulted in a significant arrest, with more expected, and worldwide disruption of a sophisticated cyber criminal network."

Here's what you should do to safeguard yourself from any malware attacks.

Check your bank balance

If you see any unusual transfer activity from any of your accounts - saving or current - make sure you report them to your bank.

Update your security software

And that doesn't mean Googling "banking security software" and downloading the first thing you find.

If you're running Windows, head to Microsoft's official security page. If you're on an Apple machine, head here.

This current bug is mainly targeting Windows users, with businesses most at risk - but if you access your bank details via your computer or even your mobile, its best to update any security software it supports.

What else?

These are the anti-virus options that the NCA is recommending you look into:

F-Secure

McAfee

Microsoft

Sophos

Trend Micro

Otherwise - DON'T download attachments from unknown emails, and DON'T forward them to anyone.