From MSNBC today comes a disturbing story about P2P being used the wrong way.
A new virus going around, named “Slapper”, instructs each infected computer to join a peer-to-peer network. Already, three separate networks have sprung up; one with 11,000 infected hosts, one with 6,900, and a third that researchers haven’t managed to measure yet. Each network can be controlled by any of the infected machines; so anyone who understands the worm could turn the entire network of machines into a powerful denial-of-service attack tool.
The Slapper peer-to-peer network has already been used to “attack and disable high-profile targets,” according to a statement issued by Internet Security Systems Inc. Huger said one of the networks was currently attacking computers at a security company, but he wouldn’t reveal which one.
“Infections from more than 100 countries so far. (It’s) Pretty bad,” said F-Secure Corp. spokesperson Mikko Hypponen.
Read the article here.
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