Botnet Software Can Hijack A Computer
[author:zyk06 Public time:Apr 8, 2007] |
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PC users should watch out and make sure that their computers are not hijacked and forced into criminal work.
"Hackers are increasingly trying to take control of other computers using botnets," Matthias Gaertner of the Federal Office for Information Technology Security (BSI) in Bonn told Deutsche Presse- Agentur dpa in an interview.
A botnet can turn a private computer into a zombie, which the hacker can use along with a host of other controlled computers, to send spam. In some cases, these networks or botnets are even rented out for third parties to use.
A watchful eye is the only form of protection, says Gaertner. "First-time victims of these kinds of hijacking usually don't notice the crime." Thanks to increasing computing power and today's broader internet bandwidth connections, most people cannot tell whether a dangerous program is running secretly in the background.
Having up-to-date and regularly updated virus protection that reviews the operating system is one good way of protecting a computer. Users should also be on the lookout for dangerous software when opening unexpected e-mails or downloading files from the internet. It's also a good idea not to register yourself as the computer's administrator to limit the amount of damage a hacker can do, if he breaks into your system.
More than 6 million PCs were hit by these kinds of attacks in the second half of 2006, according to a study by software producer Symantec. A study by the European Commission shows that more than 60 per cent of spam is sent by botnets.
Source: http://www.playfuls.com/
Printed From:http://www.free-press-release.com/news/200704/1176038507.html
Source:Free Press Release
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