Here we go again… Fake Arc browser sites and links were deployed via Google Ads, timed with the Arc for Windows launch. The ads show the correct “www.arc.net” but direct people to URLs that look similar but have malware downloads.
Google Ads permits the URL displayed on their ads to be different from the actual link when visited. This misleads users into taking actions they did not intend to. See examples in the articles below.
(FYI: I have added some info about ad-blocking with Chrome & Firefox at the end of this post.)
From BleepingComputer (article below):
Users looking to download software should skip all promoted results on Google Search, use ad blockers that hide those results, and bookmark official project websites for future use.
Additionally, always verify the authenticity of the domains you’re about to download installers from, and always scan downloaded files on an up-to-date AV tool before executing them.
I posted here on TidBits-Talk about a similar incident in April.
For those wanting an “ad blocker”, I strongly suggest the free uBlock Origin (by Raymond Hill) on Firefox and Chrome. It is also available for Edge, Opera and older Safari (no longer works on Safari v13 and later, unfortunately).
Be aware, there are copycat uBlock extensions out there so be sure to look for “uBlock Origin” by Raymond Hill.
NOTE: On Chrome you sometimes have to manually re-activate or update uBlock as Chrome has a habit of disabling and/or not updating it. If you see the uBlock shield in GRAY color (ie. inactive) after a Chrome update, do the following: Google menu (top, right button with 3 vertical dots) > Extensions > toggle uBlock off > wait a few seconds, then toggle uBlock back ON. I also tend to check for updates each month by toggling Developer Mode ON in extensions (located top, right just beneath the 3 dots button) and pressing Update to check. uBlock should automatically update its filter lists when active, but you can check that from time to time in uBlock’s settings under “Filter list”.
Google is very much against ad blocking so you often have to do this extra work in Chrome.