Tackling Well-Planned Cybercrime Requires Fresh Defenses

Recently, Rik Ferguson, senior security advisor at security firm Trend Micro, provided a picture about the operational trends within the world of cybercrime while stating that new methodologies and technologies were required for combating the associated criminals. ITWeb BUSINESS published this news on May 13, 2010.

Ferguson said that during 2004 the number of people who used Internet was slightly less than 680 Million and that those people encountered 3 Million different malicious files. Thereafter, it took just 18 months to notice a real transformation in criminal activity, he added.

Incidentally, well-planned cyber-crime is increasingly beating security agencies, since it is no longer enough to have the conventional pattern pertaining to desktop anti-virus solutions towards safeguarding data, end-points and users.

As for, in the modern times, the online population has become three-fold totaling 1.7 Billion, while malicious programs have escalated to 30 Million.

This large population of naïve Internet operators isn't familiar about frauds involving Trojans, botnets, spam mails, rogue anti-virus software, and phishing schemes that grab personal data for monetary benefits.

According to Ferguson, well-planned crime is no less than a business. For, gangs of criminals present crafty services like trading malware code or building botnets, which control innumerable hijacked computers and which are given on hire for distributing malicious software. A well-known bot network 'Zeus' utilizes techniques of polymorphism on the service-side, implying that if, in case, the malware is downloaded on two separate computers, it will appear completely different. As a result, detection of malware becomes hard.

Furthermore, Ferguson showed how criminals sell a data-stealing Trojan for $80 as well as "personal identification number" for just $10, both in black. Stolen data consists of victims' names, addresses, mobile phone numbers as well as bank Personal Identification Numbers.

Additionally, spam or junk messages too can cause dangers of viruses and ID fraud to end-users. Therefore, such messages should be immediately removed from mailboxes.

The Office of Fair Trading reported that during 2009, 73% of the adult population got a spam mail, and 21% of end-users became the target of scammers through a letter whilst 12% received text messages.

» SPAMfighter News - 5/25/2010