Malware or computer virus can infect your computer in several different ways, but one of the most common methods of its delivery is through malicious file attachments over emails that execute the malware when you open them.

Therefore, to protect its users from malicious scripts and executable, Microsoft is planning to blacklist 38 additional file extensions by adding them to its list of file extensions that are blocked from being downloaded as attachments in Outlook on the Web.

Previously known as Outlook Web Application or OWA, “Outlook on the Web” is Microsoft’s web-based email client for users to access their emails, calendars, tasks and contacts from Microsoft’s on-premises Exchange Server and cloud-based Exchange Online.

The list of blocked file extensions currently has 104 entries, including .exe, .url, .com, .cmd, .asp, .lnk, .js, .jar, .tmp, .app, .isp, .hlp, .pif, .msi, .msh, and more.

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It’s been a summer of ransomware hold-ups, supply chain attacks and fileless attacks flying under the radar of old-school security. With malware running amok while we were lying on the beach, here’s a recap of the most burning strains and trends seen in the wild during the months of July and August 2019.

Malware Evolution Trends

The heat must have had an effect as this summer saw malware continuing to evolve, particularly around three core trends:

Evasion-by-design

Malware has been increasingly designed to bypass security controls leveraging a host of tactics, most notably by:

• Changing hashes via file obfuscation to evade AVs.
• Using encrypted communication with C2 servers to foil EDRs.
• Using feature manipulation and tampering to trick AI, machine-learning engines, and sandboxes through the detection of such environments and the deliberate delay in execution.

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