Cyber-criminals have created an "evil twin" website which aims to dupe unsuspecting visitors into believing that they are visiting the Google Italy site. 

IT security firm SurfControl said today that it is currently tracking the malicious website, which attempts to install ActiveX controls on a visitor's PC.

The site uses 'typo-squatting' to ensnare victims, a technique that mimics a legitimate domain using a slightly different spelling. It has been configured to deliver a fraudulent Google Italy page that looks identical to the original.

ActiveX is installed automatically if Internet Explorer security settings allow installation of ActiveX controls. Otherwise, the end user will have to accept the installation for the infection to occur.

If the ActiveX control is accepted, a Trojan redirects the homepage to a website featuring adult content.

In addition to browser hijacking, the website installs a key-logging Trojan that monitors keystrokes and sends information to a remote location.

SurfControl has also witnessed incidents of infected machines attempting to send spam email that could have malicious intent.