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A computer worm is a standalone malware computer program that replicates itself in order to spread to other computers. It often uses a computer network to spread itself, relying on security failures on the target computer to access it. It will use this machine as a host to scan and infect other computers. When these new worm-invaded computers are controlled, the worm will continue to scan and infect other computers using these computers as hosts, and this behaviour will continue. Computer worms use recursive methods to copy themselves without host programs and distribute themselves based on exploiting the advantages of exponential growth, thus controlling and infecting more and more computers in a short time. Worms almost always cause at least some harm to the network, even if only by consuming bandwidth, whereas viruses almost always corrupt or modify files on a targeted computer.
Malware is any software intentionally designed to cause disruption to a computer, server, client, or computer network, leak private information, gain unauthorized access to information or systems, deprive access to information, or which unknowingly interferes with the user's computer security and privacy. Researchers tend to classify malware into one or more sub-types.
This timeline of computer viruses and worms presents a chronological timeline of noteworthy computer viruses, computer worms, Trojan horses, similar malware, related research and events.
Blaster was a computer worm that spread on computers running operating systems Windows XP and Windows 2000 during August 2003.
A port scanner is an application designed to probe a server or host for open ports. Such an application may be used by administrators to verify security policies of their networks and by attackers to identify network services running on a host and exploit vulnerabilities.
Sasser is a computer worm that affects computers running vulnerable versions of the Microsoft operating systems Windows XP and Windows 2000. Sasser spreads by exploiting the system through a vulnerable port. Thus it is particularly virulent in that it can spread without user intervention, but it is also easily stopped by a properly configured firewall or by downloading system updates from Windows Update. The specific hole Sasser exploits is documented by Microsoft in its MS04-011 bulletin, for which a patch had been released seventeen days earlier. The most characteristic experience of the worm is the shutdown timer that appears due to the worm crashing LSASS.
Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) is a proprietary protocol developed by Microsoft Corporation which provides a user with a graphical interface to connect to another computer over a network connection. The user employs RDP client software for this purpose, while the other computer must run RDP server software.
In computing, Download.ject is a malware program for Microsoft Windows servers. When installed on an insecure website running on Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS), it appends malicious JavaScript to all pages served by the site.
Agobot, also frequently known as Gaobot, is a family of computer worms. Axel "Ago" Gembe, a German programmer also known for leaking Half-Life 2 a year before release, was responsible for writing the first version. The Agobot source code describes it as: “a modular IRC bot for Win32 / Linux”. Agobot was released under version 2 of the GNU General Public License. Agobot is a multi-threaded and mostly object oriented program written in C++ as well as a small amount of assembly. Agobot is an example of a Botnet that requires little or no programming knowledge to use.
Bolgimo is a Win32 computer worm, a self-replicating computer program similar to a computer virus, which propagates by attempting to exploit unpatched Windows computers vulnerable to the DCOM RPC Interface Buffer Overrun Vulnerability using TCP port 445 on a network. The worm was discovered on November 10, 2003, and targets Windows NT, 2000 and XP Operating Systems.
The Windows Metafile vulnerability—also called the Metafile Image Code Execution and abbreviated MICE—is a security vulnerability in the way some versions of the Microsoft Windows operating system handled images in the Windows Metafile format. It permits arbitrary code to be executed on affected computers without the permission of their users. It was discovered on December 27, 2005, and the first reports of affected computers were announced within 24 hours. Microsoft released a high-priority update to eliminate this vulnerability via Windows Update on January 5, 2006. Attacks using this vulnerability are known as WMF exploits.
William Genovese is a former greyhat hacker turned security professional, who goes by the alias illwill.
Criticism of Windows XP deals with issues with security, performance and the presence of product activation errors that are specific to the Microsoft operating system Windows XP.
The Vundo Trojan is either a Trojan horse or a computer worm that is known to cause popups and advertising for rogue antispyware programs, and sporadically other misbehavior including performance degradation and denial of service with some websites including Google and Facebook. It also is used to deliver other malware to its host computers. Later versions include rootkits and ransomware.
The Storm Worm is a phishing backdoor Trojan horse that affects computers using Microsoft operating systems, discovered on January 17, 2007. The worm is also known as:
Conficker, also known as Downup, Downadup and Kido, is a computer worm targeting the Microsoft Windows operating system that was first detected in November 2008. It uses flaws in Windows OS software and dictionary attacks on administrator passwords to propagate while forming a botnet, and has been unusually difficult to counter because of its combined use of many advanced malware techniques. The Conficker worm infected millions of computers including government, business and home computers in over 190 countries, making it the largest known computer worm infection since the 2003 SQL Slammer worm.
Sality is the classification for a family of malicious software (malware), which infects Microsoft Windows systems files. Sality was first discovered in 2003 and has advanced to become a dynamic, enduring and full-featured form of malicious code. Systems infected with Sality may communicate over a peer-to-peer (P2P) network to form a botnet to relay spam, proxying of communications, exfiltrating sensitive data, compromising web servers and/or coordinating distributed computing tasks to process intensive tasks. Since 2010, certain variants of Sality have also incorporated rootkit functions as part of an ongoing evolution of the malware family. Because of its continued development and capabilities, Sality is considered one of the most complex and formidable forms of malware to date.
Slenfbot is the classification for a family of malicious software (malware), which infects files on Microsoft Windows systems. Slenfbot was first discovered in 2007 and, since then, numerous variants have followed; each with slightly different characteristics and new additions to the worm's payload, such as the ability to provide the attacker with unauthorized access to the compromised host. Slenfbot primarily spreads by luring users to follow links to websites, which contain a malicious payload. Slenfbot propagates via instant messaging applications, removable drives and/or the local network via network shares. The code for Slenfbot appears to be closely managed, which may provide attribution to a single group and/or indicate that a large portion of the code is shared amongst multiple groups. The inclusion of other malware families and variants as well as its own continuous evolution, makes Slenfbot a highly effective downloader with a propensity to cause even more damage to compromised systems.
EternalBlue is a computer exploit software developed by the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA). It is based on a vulnerability in Microsoft Windows that allowed users to gain access to any number of computers connected to a network. The NSA knew about this vulnerability but did not disclose it to Microsoft for several years, since they planned to use it as a defense mechanism against cyber attacks. In 2017, the NSA discovered that the software was stolen by a group of hackers known as the Shadow Brokers. Microsoft was informed of this and released security updates in March 2017 patching the vulnerability. While this was happening, the hacker group attempted to auction off the software, but did not succeed in finding a buyer. EternalBlue was then publicly released on April 14, 2017.
BlueKeep is a security vulnerability that was discovered in Microsoft's Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) implementation, which allows for the possibility of remote code execution.
References
- ↑ Bransford, Gene (2003-12-18). "The Welchia Worm". Global Information Assurance Certification. SANS Institute . Retrieved 2018-11-03.
- ↑ Naraine, Ryan (2003-08-19). "'Friendly' Welchia Worm Wreaking Havoc". InternetNews.com. Retrieved 2018-11-03.
- ↑ Labott, Elise (2003-09-24). "'Welchia worm' hits U.S. State Dept. network". CNN . Retrieved 2018-11-03.