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Australian ISPs Asked To Cut Off Malware-Infected PCs
bennyboy64 writes "Australia's Internet Industry Association has put forward a new code of conduct that suggests ISPs contact, and in some cases disconnect, customers that have malware-infected computers.
'Once an ISP has detected a compromised computer or malicious activity on its network, it should take action to address the problem. ISPs should therefore attempt to identify the end user whose computer has been compromised, and contact them to educate them about the problem,' the new code states. The code won't be mandatory, but it's expected the ISP industry will take it up if they are to work with the Australian Government in preventing the many botnets operating in Australia."
if the Australian definition of 'malware' is 'bittorrent'
ISPs should just provide internet access not police and monitor traffic.
This is actually a good idea. Sadly, it's another step in the direction of moderated, government approved, unable to opt-out internet.
Want to put a stop to malware/botnets? This is it. If a simple email/phone call asking "are you using irc/running your own mail server?" gets a response of "I don't know what irc is!", shut them down until they can clean out their machines, hell, even give them help, such as redirecting them to an isp sponsored AV or something (and no, i'm not talking enforcing it like some schools do with clean access or other network admission control.) Doing this sensibly could very seriously take a bite of out a lot of the problems on the 'net today.
My otherwise stellar ISP has a "shoot first, ask no questions security policy"
It is frustrating to lose access to my home server while at work and not be able to do any troubleshooting because I need physical access to the machine.
It is quite maddening to finally get home, verify that there is nothing wrong on my end, call up support and (eventually) find out that I've been deliberately disconnected because of a security problem that doesn't exist.
It should be illegal to speak in public without some formal education in psychology and rhetoric.
Some kind of attitude test might be a good idea too.
Truth arises more readily from error than from confusion. -Francis Bacon
Given the story a few days back about the Linux botnet, and this story a few months ago about the Mac botnet ... The real problem is education, idiots will be idiots no matter what platform they use.
Oh come on.
90% of security holes that have been exploited in the last few years are sitting on the chair in front of the computer. Even if Windows were to evaporate overnight and everyone using it were magically switched to a Mac or to Linux, inside a few weeks you'd see malware pop up which has Apple logos and Linux penguins and makes reassuring noises while insisting it really does need your password.
WHich the dump user will gladly use to install the package giving him access to the latest porn or some bettre video codec or some new chat emoticons. Under windows, most malware is installed by software USER WILLINGLY INSTALL. That wont change under Linux a bit - dump users will leanr to install software. Not for their new word processor, no - because they absolutly NEED that new emoticons in their favourite chat software.
The 'botnet' consisted of about 100 Linux servers, none of whom could be proven to have been infected via automated means. Indeed, the man who discovered this threat speculated that they were compromised by sniffing FTP passwords. Not included in the report was how many actual machines were compromised. Individual Linux web servers can host hundreds of accounts or more.
As a proportion of Linux servers, this number is vanishingly small. Compared to the rate of infection of Windows PCs, both in real numbers and per capita, there's almost no comparison to be made.
The target of the malicious iframes that the Linux machines were serving up? Windows.
Methinks thou dost protest too much.
Crumb's Corollary: Never bring a knife to a bun fight.
Because such a cure would be worse than the disease; we don't need nor want that much bureaucracy.
If you are disconnected for being malware infected, exactly what WILL be the process for being reconnected, assuming you aren't just black listed for life as an internet persona non grata? Will it be some byzantine bureaucratic DMV-like red tape nightmare with hundreds, even thousands of people showing up every day as botnets simply infect more and more systems to make up for those it lost during the morning disconnect purge?
Did this get modded up so we could all marvel at the insanity of this person? Because those are some outrageously ignorant claims.
No sig for you. YOU GET NO SIG!
Do you really want a government bureaucrat picking through your hard disk deciding what is malware and what isn't? Would the government even have technicians capable of determining whether your linux install is malware or not?
Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!