Recklerss hackers creating viruses for fame have been overshadowed by criminals hacking for fortune.
Over the last 18 months, an ominous change has swept across the Internet. The threat landscape once dominated by the worms and viruses unleashed by irresponsible hackers is now ruled by a new breed of cybercriminals. Cybercrime is motivated by fraud, typified by the bogus emails sent by "phishers" that aim to steal personal information. The tools driving their attacks and fueling the blackmarket are crimeware - bots, Trojan horses, and spyware.
Online Fraud: Phishing and Pharming
The explosive growth of online fraud has made "phishing", and to a lesser extent "pharming" part of nearly every Internet user's vocabulary during 2005. Phishing and pharming are two popular forms of fraud that aim to dupe victims into believing they are at a trusted Web site such as their bank, when in fact they have been enticed to a bogus Web site that intends to steal their identity and drain their financial resources.
Crimeware: Bots, Trojans, & Spyware
While spyware has occupied center stage of late, it is but one of the tools behind today's rash of cybercrime. Deceptive Trojan horses, multi-purpose bots, and spyware programs form the crimeware arsenal of today's hackers and are regularly bought and traded on the black market. The price tag of crimeware is often based on their ability to steal sensitive data such as bank and credit cards while remaining undetected by the victim.
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