Researchers Build Malicious Facebook App

narramissic writes "Back in January, a team of researchers uploaded a malicious program to Facebook to demonstrate the possible dangers of social networking applications. Called 'Photo of the Day,' the app serves up a new National Geographic photo daily, but every time it's clicked it sends a 600 K-byte HTTP request for images to a victim's Web site. Photo of the Day is still listed on Facebook, with its authorship attributed to Andreas Makridakis, one of the researchers. The application has 514 active users now, with several comments praising it. The study was published by the Foundation for Research and Technology in Heraklion, Greece, and the Institute for Infocomm Research in Singapore."

Comments

social networking considered harmful

[suck_burners_rice]

First of all, let's get something straight. Social networking is a BAD idea. Especially the sort of social networking that takes place at bars, clubs, parties, etc. The only safe place in the world is safe and sound all by your lonesome in your parents' basement.

Re:social networking considered harmful

[goose-incarnated]

The only safe place in the world is safe and sound all by your lonesome in your parents' basement.

Here in SA I've got 14cm hunter spiders in my parents basement! Seriously. These things have garden snakes for breakfast, so don't fucking tell me how safe my parents basement is - I only go in there with a team of sherpas and a pack of wolves.

On the plus side, we've very few snakes left.

Re:social networking considered harmful

[Surt]

There's a guy a few posts up with some hunter spiders that will take care of that grue for you.

BFD(?)

[CWRUisTakingMyMoney]

So, some researchers used Facebook as a singularly inefficient method of DDoSing someone. Anyone who wants a site taken down will use a botnet or something more reliable (and high-volume) than counting on Facebook users to add the latest greatest app of the day. Am I missing something, or is this really not nearly serious enough even to make /.?

Re:BFD(?)

[Clandestine_Blaze]

You should have linked to Idle, now that's malicious.

more direct malicious app

[Narnie]

Why not build a more aggressive app and call it something like "Facebook Botnet Webapp Client 2.04.2" and then reward people minion points for delivered spam, DDoS attack packets, and friend referrals. No need to hide it as a beneficial application, people want to belong to something--why else are they on facebook?