Is Someone Else Controlling YOUR Computer?
A \’bot\’ is another term for \’robot.\’ The word robot in this case, is being used to describe some software that can perform tasks automatically. \’Malware\’ is a type of program created to sneak into a computer without the owner\’s knowledge. When a computer has been infiltrated by malware, more software is downloaded to place the computer under remote control. That computer is then called a Zombie or a bot because it is under the control of a new master, rather than the original owner.
Remotely controlled computers can be combined into networks known as \’botnets\’. The people who control botnets are called \’bot herders\’ or \’botmasters.\’ As a botnet adds more infected computers, it becomes more powerful. In early 2010 a botnet called Mariposa was taken down by Spanish authorities, the FBI and several private Internet security firms. The Mariposa network contained 12.7 million computers. Most botnets are not nearly that big, but may contain hundreds of thousands of infected computers. Every one of those infected computers belongs to someone like you, or one of our friends or family.
What is the point of hijacking hundreds of thousands of computers? The bad guy\’s goal is to make money. They do that by committing Internet crimes. Hijacking your computer makes it difficult for authorities to trace the crime back to the criminal. Once hijacked, computers are further infected with malware to search for anything of value. Account numbers with passwords and IDs, social security numbers, credit card numbers, are just a few examples. This information has value on the black markets of the Internet.
The computer might also be use to send thousands or hundreds of thousands of spam e-mails. The e-mail might be commercial, in an attempt to sell products such as pharmaceuticals, or the e-mail might be sent in an attempt to infect other machines, or to steal other passwords and user ids. That last process is called phishing. Yet another use of botnets is mount denial-of-service attacks intended to shut down websites, servers or networks. Large, sophisticated cyber attacks can even affect entire countries. Such was the case of Estonia in 2007 when the country was basically shut down for 3 weeks.
This is a great quote from Rik Ferguson, a senior security analyst at the Internet security firm Trend Micro. It sums up the situation we\’re all facing. \”…most non-commercial spam these days is aimed solely to get you to click on a link, even out of curiosity. As soon as you click on that link, you\’re infected, most likely to become yet another botnet victim, have your identity and information stolen and go on to participate, all unknowingly in the infection of further victims.\”
In spite of the billions spent every year to protect ourselves from malware like Trojans, phishing, worms, etc. There is no end in sight. The worldwide criminal gangs that create malware are organized, well-funded, sophisticated. Their only goal is to make money – by whatever means necessary. They\’ve found an endless variety of ways to reach that goal, and now they want your money. The authorities are struggling to keep up with this worldwide crime wave.
