Threat of Hackers on the Internet

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Research Critique The ability of the attackers to rapidly gain control of vast number of Internet hosts poses an immense threat to the overall security of the Internet (Staniford, Paxson & Weaver, 2002). Once compromised, these hosts can not only be used for massive Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks, but also steal or corrupt great quantities of sensitive information by confusing and disrupting the network in more subtle ways (Honeynet, 2005). The attackers accomplish this task by sending an intrusion agent commonly known as ‘worm'. There are "two major types of malicious codes in the wild" (Todd, 2003, pp. 2). These codes are differentiated by their means of propagation: worms are self-replicating, self-propagating, whereas, viruses require some form of human interaction. Much like biological viruses cause disease in humans by compromising their body defence mechanism, a worm can not only damage or shut down host or networks but they are also mutating and becoming more complex. Worms can carry payloads designed for specific malicious intent (Todd, 2003). According to Geer (2005) there is a less familiar threat that many experts say could be just as dangerous: malicious bot software. According to Nazario et al. the evolution of the Internet worms will prove to be more difficult to identify and eradicate (Nazario, Anerson, Wash & Connelly, 2001). Hackers can install bots on multiple computers to set up "Malnets" or "Botnets" that they can use for massive DDoS attacks. Network security experts identify and shut down Malnets with 10 to 100 compromised hosts several times a day. Large malnets with 10,000 compromised hosts are rare but they still happen weekly, besides security investigators have found one malnet of ... ... middle of paper ... ...ENIX Security Symposium (Security '02). Retrieved from http://citeseer.nj.nec.com/staniford02how.html. Sun, K and Ouyang, Q., (2001). Distance distribution and reliability of small-world networks, Chinese Physics Letter, 18(3), pp. 452-454 Thompson, K. (1984). Reflections on trusting trust. Communications of the ACM, 27(8), 761-763. Todd, M. (2003). Worms as attack vectors: theory, threats, and defence. SANAS Institute, 1(1). Retrieved from http://www.giac.org/certified_professionals/practicals/gsec/2556.php. Watts, D., & Strogatz, S. (1998). Collective dynamics of 'small-world' networks. Nature, 393, 440-442. Zheng, H., & Duan, H. (n.d.). Active technologies to contain Internet worm. Retrieved November 3rd, 2005, from Network Research Center of Tsinghua University Web site: http://wiki.ccert.edu.cn/doc/spark/ActiveTechnologiestoContainInternetWorm.pdf

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