Users visiting the Laoairlines Web site (laoairlines.com) are up for a surprise without them knowing it. Sophos Australia (via iTnews) has reported that visiting the said site for online bookings or any other activities can lead to downloading a malware.

Upon further analysis by Trend Micro threat analyst Ryan Flores, the compromised site automatically redirects unsuspecting users to cs.{BLOCKED}ick.cn , which is known to host several malware, including the following:

• JS_AGENT.WLN
• JS_PSYME.ACK
• TROJ_DLOADER.BZQ

Fortunately for Trend Micro users, the said site is already blocked by the Web Reputation Service. The malicious files are also detected as early as 2006.

Now that the holiday season has officially kicked off in most countries, this incident should serve as a reminder that malicious authors are not only targeting online shoppers and online bankers (as is the usually the case during this time of the year). Travels - and therefore online bookings - are also bound to increase. With the rise of Web-based attacks, computer users should have all bases covered.

Job hunters are in danger yet again. Monster.com, a job-seeking site, has been attacked for the second time, affecting Monster Company Boulevard, in particular.

The said page was said to contain an iFrame, which redirected users to servers hosting Neosploit, The Register reported. Neosploit is said to be as destructive as Icepack and Mpack, two of the more known exploit kits. The said attack sabotaged searches for well-known companies such as Toyota, Eddie Bauer, and Best Buy, making the exploit successful, as many people are probably seeking for jobs from companies as huge as the said three.

This latest attack is a sequel to another Monster.com hacking where user names were stolen by hackers for phishing and spamming purposes.

A spokesman from Monster.com assured users that the Web site is now up and running, and that the sabotaged pages have been restored. It was also said that only a small percentage of users were affected. This is the good news. But the bad news, and the one that matters more, is that there is no guarantee that these incidents won’t happen again. We should remember that this is already the second time. Who knows if there would be a third, a fourth and, a fifth?

Caution should be practiced by online job-seekers out there. Before they can even get employed, the bad guys are already out there to get them.