Botnet Bust Slashes Size of Coreflood

The Justice Department has filed a preliminary injunction against the operators of the Coreflood botnet– a network of hundreds of thousands of computers infected with malware.

In addition to banning the defendants from using Coreflood to commit fraud and to illegally intercept electronic communications, the injunction authorizes the U.S. Marshals Service and FBI to use a substitute server to stop Coreflood from running on…

Vengeful Hacker Gets 2 Years for Infecting 100K Computers

A hacker was last week sentenced to two years behind bars for launching a virus that infected nearly 100,000 computers worldwide and directed them to attack media outlets that published stories about him, federal prosecutors said.

Bruce Raisley, 48, of Kansas City, Mo., was convicted six months ago of launching a malicious computer program designed to attack computers and websites. Raisley previously volunteered for…

FBI’s Gordon Snow Testifies on Cyber Threats

Assistant director for the cyber division of the FBI, Gordon Snow, testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee’s subcommittee on crime and terrorism this week to talk about how the bureau is responding to the ongoing threat of cyber crime terrorism.

Snow discussed the overall cyber threat and said he couldn’t overstate …

Massive Increase in Botnet Attacks in 2010

2010 saw a dramatic increase in cyber crime and targeted botnet attacks, and at its peak around Christmas, the total number of unique botnet victims was 654 percent greater than the victim population at the beginning of the year, according to a new report.

“Prior to 2010, many people thought in terms of spam and DDoS whenever the …

New ‘Geinimi’ Trojan Targets Android Devices

A new Trojan affecting Android devices has recently emerged in China, and security researchers say the malware can compromise a significant amount of personal data on a user’s phone and send it to remote servers.

Dubbed “Geinimi,” this Trojan is the first Android malware in the wild that displays botnet-like capabilities, according to smartphone security company Lookout. Once the malware is installed on a user’s phone,…

Ohio-based Whistle-blower Site Attacked

You do not have to be an infamous, mighty secret-spilling organization to attract the wrong kind of attention. Just ask an Ohio-based web designer, whose whistle-blower site recently fell victim to cyber attacks.

Chris Avell, who runs idontgiveascam.com–a whistle-blower site aimed at exposing online business scams– said a DDoS attack caused him an estimated $10,000 in damages and revenue loss, according to San Antonio Express-News.

Avell said a California-based…

FBI Hunts Down Alleged Super Spammer

A Russian man believed by the FBI to be responsible for one-third of the world’s spam is scheduled to be arraigned in a Milwaukee, Wis., court today.

According to CNN, researchers began tracking down the “Mega-D” spam automated botnet as a prime source of selling counterfeit goods. Allegedly managed by Oleg Nikolaenko, the botnet accounted for 32 percent of all spam, the court documents said,…

Kroxxu Botnet Infects 100,000 Domains, 1 Million Users

During the past year, the Kroxxu bot network, a self-generating network of password-stealing malware, has possibly infected more than 1 million users around the world, but researchers say they have yet to uncover how the botnet herders are making money off their efforts.

“There are a number of ways they could be supporting themselves,” said Jiri Sejtko, head of virus research at the avast! Virus Lab. “The four most likely…

European Union Considers Stronger Cybersecurity, Stricter Penalties for Hackers

Europe must build stronger defenses against cyber attacks and enforce harsher punishments against convicted hackers, the European Commission said yesterday.

According to AFP, the commission proposed a new regulation imposing a prison sentence of at least two years for using malicious software or stealing computer passwords to commit a crime. For more serious crimes…

Man’s Vendetta, DDoS Attacks against ‘Perverted Justice’ Land Him a Guilty Verdict

A computer programmer was last week convicted of launching a virus that infected approximately 100,000 computers around the world and directed them to attack media …