Last time we met, I mentioned that since 9/11, companies have stepped up their security measures. While that’s good, we should also note that hackers and attackers have also looked to increase their skill set. One way they do this is by creating worms. And as a result, they’ve managed to slander the reputation of Mother Nature’s squishy little innocent creatures, some of which have been around for more than 100 million years. How unfair is that? Call a lawyer!
So, what are worms? In short, Worms are self-replicating code, which means that it spreads itself via the network.
No need for human intervention (even though for some of the smaller ones, user intervention is necessary). Nevertheless, worms can and have wreaked havoc on our computer systems and predictions suggest that they may wreak even more havoc in the future.
As the 9/11 attacks unsettled the nerves of everyone, we can’t forget the Nimda (cryptically ‘admin’ spelled backwards) worm that was released one week after those attacks. Spreading in 12 different ways (or exploits, meaning attacking systems in multiple ways), and targeting Windows Internet Explorer and Microsoft Outlook, just to name a few platforms, this worm was one of the fastest expanding worms ever released.
This means that when you came to a website infected with the Nimda worm, your browser retrieved the Nimda code and you were among the unlucky ones to have this worm installed on your machine. Then, as if that wasn’t enough, this worm found its way into your e-mail addresses and sent copies of itself to all of your friends, family and everyone in between. So, think of it like shaking someone’s hand who has a cold and now you’ve got it and because you’re the sharing type, you decide to share your germs with everyone you come into contact with. Okay, maybe not the best analogy, but you get it.
Unfortunately, the news about worms doesn’t get much better. Some experts in the field have suggested that a superworm could possibly conquer the Internet in about one hour. YIKES! Yes, a superworm!
What in the world is that? Well, I’ll give you that upbeat news tomorrow.
Until then…toodles!
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