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Microsoft Slaps $250K Bounty On Conficker Worm
alphadogg writes "The spreading Conficker/Downadup worm is now viewed as such a significant threat that it's inspired the formation of a posse to stop it, with Microsoft leading the charge by offering a $250,000 reward to bring the Conficker malware bad guys to justice. The money will be paid for 'information that results in the arrest and conviction of those responsible for illegally launching the Conficker malicious code on the Internet,' Microsoft said today in a statement, adding it is fostering a partnership with Internet registries and DNA providers such as ICANN, ORG, and NeuStar as well as security vendors Symantec and Arbor Networks, among others, to stop the Conficker worm once and for all. Conficker, also called Downadup, is estimated to have infected at least 10 million PCs. It has been slowly but surely spreading since November. Its main trick is to disable anti-malware protection and block access to anti-malware vendors' Web sites."
Until you know who launched this, under what circumstances, and in which jurisdiction, don't assume that it's illegal. In other words, innocent until proven guilty.
These guys abuse a problem but they also raise awareness for a security problem Microsoft has put into existance through its operating system software. This company should pay and offer its customer to remove the worm for them and compensate them for all the costs caused by their defect software. The guys just exploited the weakness.
Though Microsoft offered a patch I don't remember that Microsoft actively informed its customers about the defects of its software and apologised to me or that my hardware vendor recalled the hardware.
Actually making a decent OS?
NO SIG
How is it not malicious already? It downloads and spreads unknown crap without peoples knowledge.
Your hair look like poop, Bob! - Wanker.
10 million zombie PC's are worth more than $250K
The 10 million zombies may be worth much more than $250k to the person that controls them, but they are worth nothing to the guy that lives down the hall from the person that controls them, so he might be quite happy to pick up the money if he knows something.
Using my resources without my consent is malicious.
https://www.eff.org/https-everywhere
> Has Conficker done anything malicious yet?
Installing it on someone's pc without their knowledge or permission is malicious. So is blocking access to antivirus sites. So is using said pc to attack other machines.
Warning: this article may contain humor, sarcasm, parody, and perhaps even irony. Read at your own risk.
They also have to successfully pull off the "framing" part. The authorities are not unfamiliar with the idea that their informants may be lying for the reward.
Warning: this article may contain humor, sarcasm, parody, and perhaps even irony. Read at your own risk.
The worm authors made just one mistake... they were far too successful. They wanted a botnet. Maybe a few thousand computers. Maybe 10 - 20 thousand.
Instead, they wrote a fast spreading worm that infected millions of computers.
What's the difference? The guys who infect 10,000 computers are small fries, and no one is going after them. Infect millions of computers though, and every computer crime agency on the planet will be after you...
Using my resources without my consent is malicious.
No, keying your car is malicious. Borrowing one of your t-shirts without your permission is merely inconsiderate.
I don't think microsoft has an interest to deal with it in any way. This is a PR-effort to distract from where the blame should really go. Even if they "dealt" with this worm and its attack vectors in some way - the next worm is just around the corner. The security model in windows is just fundamentally broken, thus we'll continue to see worm attacks and pointless bounties.
I'm so sick of how anything that criticizes microsoft on slashdot gets modded up on slashdot, and...oh, nevermind.
Well maybe they should make a decent OS. Or stop partnering with companies for the purpose of killing them for the secondary benefits. Or suing their customers. Or stealing ideas like Stacker. Or paying Gartner to release "studies" that exclaim their new products are taking off like a rocket. Or taking a perfectly good webmail like hotmail and turning it all greasy. Or trying to kill decent software companies like Netscape, Corel and Adobe. Or launching disinformation campaigns like "get the facts" and "Mojave Project". Or generally puking all over everything in IT. Or paying folks like SCO to sue decent folk who are just trying to use decent software. Or... oh screw it. None of that is ever going to happen. Never mind.
Slashdot is never going to like Microsoft.
Help stamp out iliturcy.
This program, which has been in place since 2003, has paid out a grand total of $250. All of it in one whopping check to the college mates of the Sasser programmer. Presumably they split it and bought some beer. The program manager must be quite proud of himself.
In related news, Microsoft is working with ICANN and others to prevent the registration of the domain this thing calls home to. It probably hasn't even occurred to them that the programmers ran their random name generator out a long way in advance, registered the domain in the name of some perfectly innocent third party long ago and that they're too late because launch day for downadup is tomorrow since they always kick these things off of the eve of a holiday weekend.
If you admin Windows desktops, I wouldn't invest too much in your plans for this weekend.
Help stamp out iliturcy.
Microsoft patched one heinous vector months ago: the broken Server service that allows pathological inputs to execute arbitrary code with System privileges, remotely. They patched it with hasty broken code that will be exploited later this year, but that's a different worm for a different day. They also didn't disable remote logins on this service or do the rational thing and close the port entirely so one exploited PC inside your network is going to spend its whole day cracking passwords. A diligent IT shop might have validated the patch by now. Remember... patches break stuff.
Still not protected: that laptop that's been sitting in a drawer waiting for the position at that empty desk to be filled. The road warrior whose third party firewall blocks Windows updates.
Still not fixed: Autorun.
Blaming the victim isn't going to get you anywhere here. We know better.
Help stamp out iliturcy.