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20,000 Zombie PCs -- $3000
Saint Aardvark writes "From F-Secure blog comes these links to two USA Today articles on spamming. The first gives an example of how a grandmother ended up becoming a security expert after Comcast cut her connection for spamming. The second quotes spammers advertising networks of Zombie PCs for sale. The price? $3000 for 20,000 machines."
GTRacer
- Things to do
Defending IP by destroying access to it? That makes sense, RIAA/MPAA. Go to the corner until you can play nice!
I, for one, welcome our new security grandmother overlord. All bow to thee.
I wonder how the processing power would compare to WETA's supercomputer cluster and their pricing. It would be slower to coummunicate data among the computers and ensure data quality, but I wonder how it compares.
"When I pay my water bill, I expect my water to be drinkable out of the tap. Today, when you pay your Internet bill, the data you get is not consumable."
Not without some kind of sauce or dressing. Plain 1's and 0's taste like cardboard.
Holy crap. That makes me a secuirty expert! Time to update the resume!
no
I didn't realize the zombies of voodoo legend were online.
Are these Scoobie Doo type zombies? They aren't all that bad it's just some guy with a mask. As long as it's not the new "Dawn of the Dead" uberzombies I think we'll all be ok, just walk around them.
...the ability to DoS SCO for the rest of the century...priceless.
There are some things money can't buy. For the rest, there's my Zombie Army of Evil.
adam b.
Yeah, she installs NAV and she's a security expert.
By that token, everyone who's installed SP2 for XP is now a security expert.
Are you linux guys listening? Huh?
When's the last time YOU updated YOUR virus definitions? If you ever wanted proof that linux is a hobby OS, and not for security experts like Gramma Carty, this is it.
I don't need no instructions to know how to rock!!!!
Imagine a beowulf cluster of these :)
Zombie victim Carty took matters into her own hands: She did research on how to clean up and protect her PC
So which distro is she running, then?
We have more to fear from the bungling of the incompetent than from the machinations of the wicked.
It's funny you should mention computer problems.
Whenever I view this it.slashdot.org site, everything on my screen is all washed-out.
Is this a symptom of being a zombie PC?
________________________________________________
suwain_2
The first article states, Cyberintrusions traditionally have been the domain of socially inept males launching electronic attacks for fun and bragging rights...
Sorry maybe it's just me, but aren't nerds by definition socially inept. Let's be honest, it's the socially inept who keep the world running.
hmmm.. That gives me an idea, I think it's time I updated my resume.
:)
Chewie does not get a medal. Come on, George. Can a Wookie get a medal?
what a big ... mailbox you have.
Holy crap. That makes me a secuirty expert! Time to update the resume!
If I were you I'd brush up on my spell checker skills before firing off those CVs...
Code, Hardware, stuff like that.
Errr, have you looked up the zombie auction and did you detect any familiar sounding subnets? ;-)
Not to mention that if they get the spammer, they can probably get the money back!
10,000 Homo DJ's - $14.99
I was going to root my GF's box last night..but she gets made when I refer to it as linux.
from the article:
Zombie victim Carty took matters into her own hands: She did research on how to clean up and protect her PC and diligently updates programs that scan her computer for various types of malicious code. Her PC now runs clean. "I had no clue at Christmas that I would become a security expert," she says.
Umm, riight. Anyone who downloads ad-aware and turns on their firewall is a security expert now? Shit, my networking prof must be a god damn diety then.
The "Insert Quote Here" line is almost as predictable as inserting an actual quote.
How many % of all end-user machines are running Microsoft Windows?"
Significantly less than the % af rooted Win boxes.
There are more rooted Windows boxes than there are Windows boxes?
Actually that should be read as "The percentage of end-user machines running windows is (significantly) less than the percentage of windows machines that have been compromised (rooted).
It's possible that that could be true, though not likely, since if 95% of users run windows, its unlikely that more than 95% of those systems have been compromised. It's certainly not possible for it to be a statistically significant number.
That said, I would just like to point out that this whole thing is rather silly.
Word.
StrategyTalk.com, PC Game Forums
Why ask for what people will give you for free?
It would be a bit alarming to see if your own computer is in the list. Should be enough of an epiphany for some to actually do something about their personal computer security.
w3 0wn y00r pc & w1ll r3nt 1t b@ck t0 y00
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
That's funny, because Grandma laughs at people who buy frozen pizza and pre-fab cookie dough who think they are 'cooking'.
Breaking into someone else's computer without permission is illegal. A zombie network of 20,000 PCs means that someone has compromised 20,000 computers and, apparently, advertising that fact for personal gain. How hard would it be for a cop to shell out the $2000, then arrest spammer? Of course anyone who has read Sterling's The Hacker Crackdown realizes just how clueless law enforcement can be with technical issues, but this one looks like a no brainer:
...
How embarrassing would it be for the police to discover their own machines in the zombie network
No sig for you. YOU GET NO SIG!
Breaking into someone else's computer without permission is illegal.
It isn't breaking in if you ask to be let in and they let you in.
Speak truth to power.
She did research on how to clean up and protect her PC and diligently updates programs that scan her computer for various types of malicious code. Her PC now runs clean. "I had no clue at Christmas that I would become a security expert," she says.
Wow! this makes me some sort of God since in addition to her security practices I have NAT and two software firewalls. Admittedly one of the firewalls in Norton Internet Security, so really I only have one software firewall, Zone Alarm.
What the hell do you mean my Karma is fuc*in' negative?
Basically the Undead could have rights too, I suppose.
"Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us." -Jesus Christ The Lord's Prayer
One indication of the going rate for zombie PCs comes from a June 11 posting on SpecialHam.com, an electronic forum for spammers.
And you guys didn't put that link in the main Slashdot article?!?!?! Oh come on! If there's a site that deserves to be slashdotted, that one must be it.
-S
--- What parts of "shall make no law", "shall not be infringed", and "shall not be violated" don't you understand?
I know Zombified Humans tend to call out "Brains! Brains!"
Now does that mean that Zombified PC's call out "CPU Cycles! Need CPU Cycles!"?
or perhaps "Bandwidth! Need Bandwidth!"?
DEAD DEAD DEAD DELETE ME
I'm going to wait til I can get one second hand. It's bound to come down in price to something more like $1000.
meh