Zombies are negatively popular characters in Hollywood movies but in the cyber world Zombies are notorious characters known as spam zombies. In cyber world Zombies are most hated entities by Netizens.
Recently Microsoft Internet Safety Enforcement investigators carefully experimented with a tiny piece of malicious code used by computer criminals to hijack personal computers. They started by placing a single copy of that malicious code onto a healthy computer and then connected the computer to the Internet.
The infection spread so rapidly that the infected computer sent an alert with its Internet location and hijack status to a distant server. Then, connection requests from hundreds of Internet Protocol (IP) addresses move in large numbers into the machine, commanding the infected computer to distribute millions of illegal Spam e-mails. Thus the investigators successfully created a zombie computer.
Microsoft and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) have launched a campaign aimed at helping consumers prevent their computers from getting turned into zombies. They alert computer users against the threat of zombie computers and how to protect their personal computers from being infected with malicious code. Microsoft also announced a legal enforcement action against illegal e-mail operations that connect to zombie computers to send spam.
How does PC Turn into Computer Zombie?
As you know zombie computers are silent stalkers similar to Zombies of Hollywood movies. People, who use the unprotected Internet PCs from computer criminals, may never know that their machines have been compromised, causing problems for other people.
Since the strict action has been taken by FTC and Microsoft against computer criminals to protect the interest of the innocent users, many computer criminals have turned their attention to creating zombies. Instead, they spoof the people by sending the e-mails embedded with malicious code as attachments in the form of music, video or other downloadable files.
According to studies conducted by experts illegal Spam sent by zombie computers has increased dramatically in recent months and as of this summer now accounts for more than half of all Spam. The red alert has been given by the experts that computer criminals might have been using zombie computers to launch phishing attacks that try to steal personal information, such as password, Social Security and credit-card numbers.
The increase in the density of high-speed Internet users at home
is the bonanza for the computer criminals. They have set their targets on a growing population of potential zombies that never sleep. According to Microsoft's Internet-safety enforcement attorney "High-speed connections are an extremely convenient and powerful way to access the Internet, but people need to realize that their connections don't turn off when they walk away from their computers."
Within a span of three weeks, the Microsoft lab's zombie computer received more than 5 million requests to send 18 million Spam e-mails. These requests contained advertisements for more than 13,000 unique domains. On a regular computer, these Spam mails would have ended up in e-mail inboxes or, if nabbed by a Spam filter, in junk e-mail folders. But Microsoft's researchers quarantined the zombie machine, preventing it from sending any Spam onto the public Internet.
Guide to spam zombie fix
Use proper firewall
Install computer security update
Use antivirus software and keep it up to date. Always download latest antivirus update.
Use antispyware software
Do not open e-mail file attachments
Visit a website, OnGuardOnline.gov for more information.
Steps taken by Microsoft to stop spam zombies
Microsoft is planning to take Spammers to Court. Microsoft maintains more than 130,000 MSN Hotmail "trap" accounts to investigate patterns within spam. These accounts trap e-mail sent by spammers to potential e-mail addresses. But most spammers try to hide their identities by sending mail through zombies or using other spoofing tricks, making it helpless to trace spammers based on the name listed in the "From" line in the e-mail's header. To overcome this problem Microsoft's zombie investigation gave the company new insight to fight against spam and zombies, as well as how to take Spammers to Court.
Microsoft and the FTC recently launched OnGuardOnline.gov, a Web site that provides tips, articles and videos to help protect computer users and their information from online threats. The company also has acquired new products and technologies, including Microsoft Windows AntiSpyware, to provide consumers additional protection.
If you don't want to be a phishing victim & if you want to know more about how the innocent people are getting duped by the phishers by various phishing techniques? Subscribe to our FREE 'COMPTECH' ezine & prepare yourself for avoiding phishing scams.
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