Kaspersky Analysis: Black Market in Botnets
Virus analyst Yury Namestnikov investigated the structure, functionality and business model of botnets for antivirus firm Kaspersky Lab with some surprising results.
Since the time decades ago when networks consisted of a few dozen centrally controlled computers, botnets have steadily increased in number. Kasperky's Namestnikov speaks of the current widely distributed systems of millions of hijackable systems with decentralized control. The reason behind these zombie networks, as he calls them, is the money to be made, and that with little technical know-how.
Getting on board the cybercrime business no longer requires you to be a programmer. Cybercrime forums are now easily available on the Web to help in creating zombie networks and infecting them with netbots. "Bots for sale" signs are everywhere. And to make it even more egregious, obfuscation and encryption can also be applied to the bot code to keep it from being detected.
A netbot generator next has to work for its distribution, per spam, forum and social network postings or drive-by downloads. Bots often include self-replication functions that act as viruses or worms.
The tricks cybercriminals employ are often quite simple. One is drive-by downloads. Before downloading an interesting video, a user might first need to install a special program. When the user visits a prepared website, the drive-by download exploits a security hole in the browser to download malware, without the user suspecting a thing.
Income for cybercriminals can come from distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, theft of confidential information, spams, phishing, search engine spamming, click fraud and distribution of adware and malicious programs. As Namestnikov notes in his analysis, "if chosen, any of these sources can provide a cybercriminal with a good income. But why choose? A botnet can perform all of these activities- at the same time!"
Gallery (3 images) |
---|
![]() ![]() ![]() |
Issue 270/2023
Buy this issue as a PDF
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Find SysAdmin Jobs
News
-
OpenMandriva Lx 23.03 Rolling Release is Now Available
OpenMandriva "ROME" is the latest point update for the rolling release Linux distribution and offers the latest updates for a number of important applications and tools.
-
CarbonOS: A New Linux Distro with a Focus on User Experience
CarbonOS is a brand new, built-from-scratch Linux distribution that uses the Gnome desktop and has a special feature that makes it appealing to all types of users.
-
Kubuntu Focus Announces XE Gen 2 Linux Laptop
Another Kubuntu-based laptop has arrived to be your next ultra-portable powerhouse with a Linux heart.
-
MNT Seeks Financial Backing for New Seven-Inch Linux Laptop
MNT Pocket Reform is a tiny laptop that is modular, upgradable, recyclable, reusable, and ships with Debian Linux.
-
Ubuntu Flatpak Remix Adds Flatpak Support Preinstalled
If you're looking for a version of Ubuntu that includes Flatpak support out of the box, there's one clear option.
-
Gnome 44 Release Candidate Now Available
The Gnome 44 release candidate has officially arrived and adds a few changes into the mix.
-
Flathub Vying to Become the Standard Linux App Store
If the Flathub team has any say in the matter, their product will become the default tool for installing Linux apps in 2023.
-
Debian 12 to Ship with KDE Plasma 5.27
The Debian development team has shifted to the latest version of KDE for their testing branch.
-
Planet Computers Launches ARM-based Linux Desktop PCs
The firm that originally released a line of mobile keyboards has taken a different direction and has developed a new line of out-of-the-box mini Linux desktop computers.
-
Ubuntu No Longer Shipping with Flatpak
In a move that probably won’t come as a shock to many, Ubuntu and all of its official spins will no longer ship with Flatpak installed.