Post: Computer worm goes out of controll
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01-19-2009, 06:08 PM
#1
shadeyb
bury me a G
It is sweeping through thousands of offices in the UK and has affected computers at the Ministry of Defence.
The virus - known variously as Conficker, Kido or Downadup - burrows deep into the operating system and tricks the machine into running the infected program.
Once the worm is running on the computer it automatically starts to download more malicious programs from hackers' websites, with devastating effects.
The majority of computers infected by the worm, which was first identified in October, are in Russia, China, Brazil and India. But the virus is now taking hold in the UK.
The worm has password cracking capabilities, often successful because company passwords sometimes match a predefined password list that it carries.
Eddy Willems, a security analyst with anti-virus firm Kaspersky Labs, said that a new strain of the worm was now causing additional problems.
Computer users are advised to ensure their anti-virus software, operating system and firewall is up to date, and that they have installed a Microsoft patch designed to combat the problem.
Experts have also warned the virus could spread by copying itself to USB memory sticks shared between computers, and urged users to use caution.
does anyone have or know anymore info on this
02-08-2009, 03:26 AM
#12
killmerat
Bounty hunter
sounds like a bunch of crap. lol imma look it up
oh crap nvm this crap is real!!! lol... i read that like 6% of all computers have been effected so far.
wait imma copy paste sumthing from this website :
ZoomCurrently the Downadup/Conficker virus has infected an estimated 6 percent of PCs worldwide, and researchers are waiting for its climactic "second act" of doom.
So what exactly is the overall plan now that hackers have taken control of so many PCs? That's the question experts are asking now, feeling a confusing mixture of bafflement and astonishment. These same experts are claiming that the Downadup/Conficker virus is a "very well-engineered" piece of malware. In fact, there's speculation that the author of the fast-spreading worm is no novice in malware programming.
"This is a very well-engineered piece of software," said Alfred Huger, vice president of development at Symantec Corp.'s security response group. "It's very well thought out. Whoever wrote it, it's not their first time writing malware. It looks as if the author has had a great deal of experience writing software, and is fully versed in writing network-level code." He even went on to describe the Downadup worm as "downright elegant," meaning the author didn't write the malicious code on the fly.
Experts say that it's the second stage payload that is the source of concern. At the moment, the worm isn't doing anything truly harmful like stealing information or destroying precious hardware. In fact, the worm's only apparent mission is to procreate (or rather build its network of hosts), then remain dormant and wait for further instructions. However, the worm doesn't wait in silence without repercussions: not only does it have the ability to download external malicious code, the worm also blocks infected users from antivirus websites, preventing necessary updates designed to protect the PC from its malicious behavior.
However, F-Secure believes that the infection has peaked. "Today seems better than the day before and we think that growth of Downadup has been curbed. Disinfection of the worm remains a challenge." The company charted yesterday's IP count, logging just over one million unique addresses, with the largest number of infected computers reporting from China (15.1 percent), Russia (13.9 percent), and Brazil (11.9 percent). The company also noted that there may be any number of computers sitting behind a single IP address, so the overall count may be smaller than the actual infected numbers.
But even if Downadup has reached its peak, there's no question that the worm will eventually dump its payload. Just exactly what the worm actually executes remains the big issue, however experts are also wondering what is taking so long for the payload to rear its head. Is the author still waiting to acquire more PCs into the overall network? What's the method to all this madness? "They've obviously put a lot of thought into the worm. They've been very methodical," Huger told ComputerWorld. The overall consensus is that if the author doesn't get down to business soon, some other hacker will dissect the worm and finish the job themselves.
The Downadup worm infects computers by way of file sharing and USB drives, copying itself using Windows' "AutoRun" feature. PCs that are already patched can still get infected, however disabling the AutoRun feature will help deter any malicious infestation.
oh crap nvm this crap is real!!! lol... i read that like 6% of all computers have been effected so far.
wait imma copy paste sumthing from this website :
ZoomCurrently the Downadup/Conficker virus has infected an estimated 6 percent of PCs worldwide, and researchers are waiting for its climactic "second act" of doom.
So what exactly is the overall plan now that hackers have taken control of so many PCs? That's the question experts are asking now, feeling a confusing mixture of bafflement and astonishment. These same experts are claiming that the Downadup/Conficker virus is a "very well-engineered" piece of malware. In fact, there's speculation that the author of the fast-spreading worm is no novice in malware programming.
"This is a very well-engineered piece of software," said Alfred Huger, vice president of development at Symantec Corp.'s security response group. "It's very well thought out. Whoever wrote it, it's not their first time writing malware. It looks as if the author has had a great deal of experience writing software, and is fully versed in writing network-level code." He even went on to describe the Downadup worm as "downright elegant," meaning the author didn't write the malicious code on the fly.
Experts say that it's the second stage payload that is the source of concern. At the moment, the worm isn't doing anything truly harmful like stealing information or destroying precious hardware. In fact, the worm's only apparent mission is to procreate (or rather build its network of hosts), then remain dormant and wait for further instructions. However, the worm doesn't wait in silence without repercussions: not only does it have the ability to download external malicious code, the worm also blocks infected users from antivirus websites, preventing necessary updates designed to protect the PC from its malicious behavior.
However, F-Secure believes that the infection has peaked. "Today seems better than the day before and we think that growth of Downadup has been curbed. Disinfection of the worm remains a challenge." The company charted yesterday's IP count, logging just over one million unique addresses, with the largest number of infected computers reporting from China (15.1 percent), Russia (13.9 percent), and Brazil (11.9 percent). The company also noted that there may be any number of computers sitting behind a single IP address, so the overall count may be smaller than the actual infected numbers.
But even if Downadup has reached its peak, there's no question that the worm will eventually dump its payload. Just exactly what the worm actually executes remains the big issue, however experts are also wondering what is taking so long for the payload to rear its head. Is the author still waiting to acquire more PCs into the overall network? What's the method to all this madness? "They've obviously put a lot of thought into the worm. They've been very methodical," Huger told ComputerWorld. The overall consensus is that if the author doesn't get down to business soon, some other hacker will dissect the worm and finish the job themselves.
The Downadup worm infects computers by way of file sharing and USB drives, copying itself using Windows' "AutoRun" feature. PCs that are already patched can still get infected, however disabling the AutoRun feature will help deter any malicious infestation.
02-08-2009, 05:09 AM
#14
Oneinfamous
Former Staff
02-13-2009, 03:53 AM
#18
LordOfSpoon™
Banned
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