A dangerous virus lurked in a popular program for Windows users. This was reported by BleepingComputer.

Avast experts found that the network began to distribute a fake version of CCleaner, a program for optimizing Windows. According to experts, unknown people modified the utility by inserting several dangerous viruses into it. Thanks to the program, attackers learned to steal users’ personal data.

The report says that the dangerous version of CCleaner is distributed through a network of fake sites impersonating the utility’s web source. The scammers used the “black” promotional Black Hat SEO method to get the site as high as possible in the search engine rankings. Experts found a virus in one of the distribution’s distributed resources.

The malware, described by experts, was used to scan the victim’s browser cache and RAM to obtain passwords and other information. The rogue program then stored the stolen data and forwarded it to a remote server.