Zombies and Botnets

Download or read book Zombies and Botnets written by Kim-Kwang Raymond Choo and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page 6 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Bot programs allow attackers to remotely control vulnerable computers and form virtual networks of zombies - botnets. Botnets can be leveraged to orchestrate concerted attacks against other computing resources, for example, distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks against targeted networks. The shift in motivation from curiosity and fame seeking to illicit financial gain has been marked by a growing sophistication in the evolution of bot malware. The ABS estimated that there were over 6.65 million active internet subscribers in Australia in September 2006. Most subscribers are households, with over 5.83 million household users compared with 826,000 business and government users. This paper examines the activities and consequences associated with botnets and provides examples of existing incidents so that subscribers can be better informed of the risks. Business, government and individual householders need to be aware of risk mitigation strategies and to ensure that these strategies are implemented and updated, as attacks on the internet are not likely to disappear any time soon.