botnets

Features

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  Is your PC bot-infested? here's how to tell

  As fireworks boomed on the Fourth of July, thousands of compromised computers attacked U.S. government Web sites. A botnet of more than 200,000 computers, infected with a strain of 2004's MyDoom virus, attempted to deny legitimate access to sites such as those of the Federal Trade Commission and the White House. The assault was a bold reminder that botnets continue to be a massive problem.

• Latest malware trick: outsourcing quality assurance

  Creators of Waledac malware enlisted the Conficker botnet as a tool to spread malware of their own, marking the first time Conficker was made available for hire, according to Cisco's mid-year security report.This was symptomatic of a wider trend Cisco noted of malware purveyors using established business practices to expand their illegal enterprises. Cisco likened the arrangement between Waledac and Conficker to a partner ecosystem, a term Cisco uses to describe its collaboration with other vendors.

• Botnets: 4 Reasons It's Getting Harder to Find and Fight Them

  The perpetual proliferation of botnets is hardly surprising when one considers just how easy it is for the bad guys to hijack computers without tipping off the users.
  

• Up next: Cellular botnets, cyber militias

  The ability of malware writers to consistently stay ahead of those seeking to stop them has been a constant factor in the security industry over the past several years.