Explore the latest news and trends  

Sign up for our weekly security newsletter


Be the first to receive important updates on security





Send

A botnet comprising Infected Cell-Phones Triggers DDoS


During any DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) assault, the attackers try to disable an Internet service via sending massive volumes of traffic, which various sources generate, to the extent that the service is overwhelmed. The attackers aim at various vital websites such as news and bank websites while making it really hard for the visitors to access and publish the critical data in them.

According to John McAfee cyber security specialist, a compromised network of bots called botnet likely started off one continuous and huge distributed denial of service assault that certain undetected application helped trigger from more than a million smart-phones.

John McAfee explains the latest DDoS assault executed during 30th November to 1st December which attacked thirteen servers likely was started from a botnet unknowingly through over a million cell-phones. Lifars.com reported this dated December 13, 2015.

Albeit many thousands subsidiary servers globally could be regarded as tentative substitutes, most of these act as repository systems which can allow data to be stored on them for certain specified time-period. When the DDoS blast was at its maximum, more than 5m queries/second flooded the servers. In all, over the 2-day period, more than 50bn queries were shot at the servers.

IBTimes reports that many cyber security specialists, of whom Eddie Mize, organizer of DEFCON and Chris Roberts, a hacker besides John McAfee are included, observe that the most plausible factor responsible for the DDoS assault is the smart-phones with the attack initiated from a botnet. The specialists highlight a most uncomplicated app in the devices - the flashlight application, which maybe unwittingly contaminated with malicious software.

John McAfee while highlighting how a very strong botnet as in the current case an army of contaminated cell-phones can potentially make a significant impact, explains that for 100m people using an app, it required to activate just 0.1% of the cell-phones for getting the impact as it had occurred. He further observes that no defenses would really be there to overcome such a massive scaled threat, while an increasing number of phones would actually mean an even greater number of adverse consequences.

ยป SPAMfighter News - 12/18/2015

3 simple steps to update drivers on your Windows PCSlow PC? Optimize your Slow PC with SLOW-PCfighter!Email Cluttered with Spam? Free Spam Filter!

Dear Reader

We are happy to see you are reading our IT Security News.

We do believe, that the foundation for a good work environment starts with fast, secure and high performing computers. If you agree, then you should take a look at our Business Solutions to Spam Filter & Antivirus for even the latest version of Exchange Servers - your colleagues will appreciate it!

Go back to previous page
Next