Racing Cars Tab Could Spy on Your Web Browsing Habits
Racing Cars Tab is a malicious browser extension that was discovered by our research team while inspecting untrustworthy websites. After investigating, we found out that it is a browser hijacker promoting the fake search engine racingcarstab.com. It alters browsers' settings such as homepages, default search engines and new tab/window URLs to the address of the promoted website. When installed on our test machine, it redirected all searches and new tabs to racingcarstab.com.
Moreover, this browser hijacker has techniques in place to ensure its persistence and prevent users from removing or undoing any changes made by it. Fake search engines usually cannot provide results so they redirect users to genuine ones; in this case, Racing Cars Tab redirected us to Bing (bing.com). However, this could change depending on various factors like user geolocation etc.
Furthermore, Racing Cars Tab likely spies on users' browsing activity and collects data such as URLs visited, webpages viewed, search queries typed and other personal information which can be sold to third-parties or abused for profit.
What are rogue browser extensions?
Rogue browser extensions are malicious software programs that are installed onto a user's web browser without their knowledge or consent. These extensions can modify the settings of the browser, such as the home page, default search engine, and new tab/window URLs, to redirect users to websites promoting malicious content. They can also collect data from users' browsing activity and use it for various purposes such as selling it to third-parties or using it for profit.
How can browser extensions change your browser's settings?
Browser extensions can change your browser's settings by altering the homepage, default search engine, and new tab/window URLs to redirect you to websites promoting malicious content. They can also modify other settings such as disabling access to removal-related settings or undoing user-made changes. Additionally, they may collect data from users' browsing activity such as URLs visited, webpages viewed, search queries typed, usernames/passwords, personally identifiable details, finance-related information and more. This data can then be sold to third-parties or abused for profit.
