Major Spam Botnet Takes Unexplained Xmas Vacation
Security experts are trying to work out why the amount of spam (unsolicited bulk email) distributed worldwide fell dramatically towards the end of 2010. That said, they also suspect it's a situation that won't last long.
Post-Christmas Spam a Fraction of Summer Totals
Security firm Symantec estimates that in August the number of bogus emails sent daily was around 200 billion. Surprisingly, that number slipped dramatically to 110 billion by October, was just 70 billion in late December, and collapsed after Christmas to around 30 billion. (Source: symantec.com)
If you're staggered by talk of tens or hundreds of billions, it's worth noting this isn't the number of messages that people actually receive. The vast majority of spam is filtered by email service providers, though the small percentage of spam that actually does get through certainly makes for a lot of junk email.
It's not likely the drop has to do with spammers taking time off to celebrate the holidays. And although it may make sense to avoid sending messages to businesses when they are shut down for seasonal breaks, that wouldn't seem a big enough factor to explain the pattern.
Email Spam Botnet May Be The Key
Instead, the answer appears to lie with the Rustock botnet, a worldwide network of PCs that are infected with a virus and are remotely instructed (by the botnet owner) to send billions of email spam messages to others.
The Rustock network, which is responsible for around half of all email spam and which specializes in advertisements for bogus pharmaceuticals, appears to have suddenly dropped to just a fraction of its normal activity levels. Money generated from the scams are purposely designed to defraud credit card holders.
Meanwhile, two other major botnets have shown a notable decline.
It's not unheard of for a botnet's activity to drop after security researchers carry out a successful takedown scheme. This involves tracking down the websites that the infected computers contact for instructions, then working with the relevant legal authorities to block or remove the sites.
However, there's no record of anyone carrying out such an operation. That leaves two possibilities: one, which appears less likely, is that the spammers have taken a temporary break, perhaps in preparation for a major organizational or tactical change.
The other, which is more plausible, is that the Rustock botnet has suffered an unexplained technical error that hasn't yet been fixed. (Source: bbc.co.uk)
Most popular articles
- Which Processor is Better: Intel or AMD? - Explained
- How to Prevent Ransomware in 2018 - 10 Steps
- 5 Best Anti Ransomware Software Free
- How to Fix: Computer / Network Infected with Ransomware (10 Steps)
- How to Fix: Your Computer is Infected, Call This Number (Scam)
- Scammed by Informatico Experts? Here's What to Do
- Scammed by Smart PC Experts? Here's What to Do
- Scammed by Right PC Experts? Here's What to Do
- Scammed by PC / Web Network Experts? Here's What to Do
- How to Fix: Windows Update Won't Update
- Explained: Do I need a VPN? Are VPNs Safe for Online Banking?
- Explained: VPN vs Proxy; What's the Difference?
- Explained: Difference Between VPN Server and VPN (Service)
- Forgot Password? How to: Reset Any Password: Windows Vista, 7, 8, 10
- How to: Use a Firewall to Block Full Screen Ads on Android
- Explained: Absolute Best way to Limit Data on Android
- Explained: Difference Between Dark Web, Deep Net, Darknet and More
- Explained: If I Reset Windows 10 will it Remove Malware?
My name is Dennis Faas and I am a senior systems administrator and IT technical analyst specializing in cyber crimes (sextortion / blackmail / tech support scams) with over 30 years experience; I also run this website! If you need technical assistance , I can help. Click here to email me now; optionally, you can review my resume here. You can also read how I can fix your computer over the Internet (also includes user reviews).
We are BBB Accredited
We are BBB accredited (A+ rating), celebrating 21 years of excellence! Click to view our rating on the BBB.