Slashdot Mirror


Microsoft's Vigilante Investigation of Zombies

Morgalyn writes "According to an article at Information Week, Microsoft has decided to fight zombie-launched spam in their own way. In conjunction with the FTC and consumer rights groups, Microsoft set up a clean computer and then infected it. They monitored the 'zombie' over the course of 20 days - 'In those 20 days, this one computer received 5 million connection requests from spammers, and sent 18 million spam messages'. This whole operation has led to the (partial) identification of 13 different spamming groups, some of which reside in the US and may be prosecuted under the CAN-SPAM act."

24 of 341 comments (clear)

  1. Steve Ballmer on Zombies by ponds · · Score: 5, Funny

    Microsoft should just have Steve Ballmer fucking kill them.

    1. Re:Steve Ballmer on Zombies by conJunk · · Score: 5, Funny
      Microsoft should just have Steve Ballmer fucking kill them

      Gives new meaning to "i've burried them before and i'll burry them again" eh?

    2. Re:Steve Ballmer on Zombies by ackthpt · · Score: 2, Funny
      Microsoft should just have Steve Ballmer fucking kill them.

      I understand a new measure of punishment available in Washington State is to stand a man up before a wall, offer him a last cigarette, blindfold him and then have Steve Ballmer throw a chair at him.

      Sounds unusual, if not cruel, to me.

      --

      A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
    3. Re:Steve Ballmer on Zombies by mctk · · Score: 4, Funny
      Why should he have all the fun? I've been training my whole life for this, just let me at 'em.

      :: grabs sawblade with gravity gun ::

      --
      Paul Grosfield - the quicker picker upper.
    4. Re:Steve Ballmer on Zombies by Slashdot_Gandhi · · Score: 0, Funny



      They forgot to mention if installing windows was part of the "infection" process?

  2. Microsoft fighting zombies? by MrFlannel · · Score: 5, Funny

    Not a moment too soon! With Halloween on Monday and everything, this comes at a perfect time to save my brain. I'll still lock my doors though.

    --
    Clones are people two.
  3. In other words... by shades66 · · Score: 5, Funny

    "Microsoft set up a clean computer and then infected it."

    So they switched it on and connected it to the net?

    --
    ---- There are 10 types of people in the world. Those that understand binary and those that don't
    1. Re:In other words... by misleb · · Score: 2, Funny

      But cars don't break down after 26 minutes because they come with a firewall.

      -matthew

      --
      "THERE IS NO JUSTICE, THERE IS ONLY ME." -Death
    2. Re:In other words... by vsprintf · · Score: 3, Funny

      So they switched it on and connected it to the net?

      They were far too impatient to wait 30 minutes, so they infected it themselves. Remember these are the guys who do code reviews every twenty years.

    3. Re:In other words... by tomhudson · · Score: 2, Funny

      I

      I've driven at least 350,000 miles. Nobody has ever shot a grenade launcher at my Ford.
      Why waste a grenade? Its a Ford. Just leave it for a while, and it will fall apart on its own.
  4. Right. by psbrogna · · Score: 5, Funny

    Ok, raise your hand, who thinks there's more than 1 infected windows machine on the Redmond campus?

  5. and sent 18 million spam messages by frovingslosh · · Score: 3, Funny
    and sent 18 million spam messages

    So I guess, Microsoft being above the law, it's OK when they do that. The end justifies the means, after all.

    --
    I'm an American. I love this country and the freedoms that we used to have.
  6. Re:Vigilante? by KingSkippus · · Score: 4, Funny
    Since when is setting up a honeypot considered "Vigilante"?

    Since someone wants Microsoft to sound like a tough SOB out to wreak havoc on those who would do us harm.

    Would you go see a movie that is described as "A New York City architect becomes a one-man honeypot after his wife is murdered..."?

  7. Won't work. by pellik · · Score: 5, Funny

    [i]"some of which reside in the US and may be prosecuted under the CAN-SPAM act."[/i]

    Common. We all know the only way to deal with zombies is massive head trauma.

  8. Oracle to the rescue? by jrsp · · Score: 5, Funny

    From article:

    "In those 20 days, this one computer received 5 million connection requests from spammers, and sent 18 million spam messages," said Cranton.

    That amount of data was impossible to analyze, so..."

    So, seems 18 million records is too much for poor little SQL Server, hmm? I bet Oracle could help, or maybe MySQL/PostgreSQL.

  9. HOORAY FOR MICROSOFT! by Medievalist · · Score: 2, Funny


    I've always wanted a reason to say that.

  10. Zombies by Deanasc · · Score: 2, Funny
    Now if only Microsoft could protect me from the real thing. Then I could rest easy at night.

    On the otherhand imagine Paperclip... It looks like you're trying to fight off a zombie attack. Would you like me to (A) Shoot some of them in the head (B) Open the main gates and let some more in?

    New meaning to Blue Screen of Death.

    --
    I've hit Karma 50 and gotten a Score:5, Troll... I win!
  11. Bastards... by p!ngu · · Score: 2, Funny

    ...I wondered why my gmail inbox had 18million new spams...

  12. Re:Vigilante? by pclminion · · Score: 2, Funny
    How is this vigilantism? I thought we called it honeypots. Except, perhaps, when Microsoft does it?

    Yeah... And it's even MORE vigilante if they do it in cooperation with a Federal agency!

    Sheesh.

  13. Re:why can't our law enforcement agencies by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    Are you kidding?

    After a two year investigation they only found one person in the Whitehouse who tells lies!

  14. I can imagine the costumes! by Spy+der+Mann · · Score: 4, Funny

    Costume 1: Guy disguises himself as a zombie and puts on a cardboard monitor. Here instead of "brainssssssss" he should say: "mailssssssssssss"

    Costume 2: A fat guy carrying a chair, with a Google T-Shirt (and the handwritten letters above: "I'll F**ing Kill". Obviously his secondary target would be the guy wearing costume 1.

    Now the following may be off-topic, but what the heck, I got started!

    Costume 3: Just put on a Bill Gates mask, and wear a Microsoft T-Shirt. And instead of "Trick or treat", you say: "End User License Agreement".

    Costume 4: Disguise yourself as a Lawyer and stick the logos of BMG, Sony, Time Warner (did I miss any?) on the back. Instead of "Trick or treat", say "Court or Settlement"

    Costume 5: Disguise yourself as Zombie, but instead of wearing the cardboard monitor, just put an AOL sticker on your shirt. You're an official "AOL user". Instead of moaning "brainssss" you'll say: "Me, tooooo!"

    Costume 6: Disguise yourself as a monitor, and paint the front in blue. :)

    Costume 7: Paint your face black and buy fake jewelry. Pretend you're the relative of a Nigerian prince who just died.

  15. Oops! Forgot the scariest one! by Spy+der+Mann · · Score: 2, Funny

    "Hello there! Looks like you're trying to run a party!"

  16. I will give $10,000 to charity... by mindaktiviti · · Score: 2, Funny

    I will give $10,000 to charity if someone creates a game where Steve Balmer goes on a rampage killing hundreds of spammers with his deadly bloody chair (as the default weapon), and in Quake 3 Arena fashion to also have a key bound to various choice quotes uttered by Mr. Balmer like "I will fucking bury that guy" and an animation of Mr. Balmer's model pointing in front of him to go along with those utterances.

    (Disclaimer: I won't really donate the money because I'm a poor college student)

  17. Re:How it was infected. by Stephen+Samuel · · Score: 2, Funny
    And of course, by 'infected it' they mean 'installed Windows XP' and left it unpatched and connected to the net for 30 seconds.

    And what does connecting it to the net have to do with the infection? Once you install XP, you're doomed. Period.

    --
    Free Software: Like love, it grows best when given away.