Have you recently downloaded or updated a PC tool called Ccleaner? If so, there may be cause for concern, as the Popular PC software was reportedly infiltrated by hackers. The people who are at risk of getting their personal data compromised are those that downloaded CCleaner version 5.33 between August and September, which means that a virus may have been lurking inside their machines for almost a month.

The malicious software was detected on September 12.

If you are one of them, it’s highly recommended that you upgrade your CCleaner to the 5.34 version.

Otherwise, hackers might take control of your machine and steal your personal data and other credentials.

It seems cybercriminals are finding new ways to do their evil deeds. At first, hackers only disguised themselves as legitimate entities to trick people into downloading their malware. However, hackers are now directly attacking real servers to do their bidding.

Millions of users may have been affected by the malware

CCleaner is being used by 130 million people, including 15 million on mobile devices such as Android. According to Piriform, the developer of the PC tool, 2.27 million users have downloaded and installed the infected CCleaner.

According to a report by Business Insider, researchers stated that “We confirmed that this malicious version of CCleaner was being hosted directly on CCleaner’s download server.” This means that the perpetrators may have had access to the build process of the software because it was signed by the Piriform itself, which guaranteed the software safe to download.

An inside job could also be possible; however, Piriform does not want to speculate on where the malware came from and is instead focusing on working with the proper authorities to find the attacker.

The good news is Piriform was able to stop the virus before it could do any harm to the users.

People may become wary of trusting antiviruses again

An antivirus software is the last thing people would expect to be compromised by cybercriminals. It’s understandable if people become more cautious in the future after learning this kind of attack.

However, people trusting CCleaner might be one of the reasons hackers chose that particular software to distribute their malware.

Hackers know that users won’t suspect the software to be equipped with a virus. This only proves that cyber criminals are willing to do anything just about anything to accomplish their criminal acts.