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Home computers targeted by hackers '50 times a day'
Last updated at 10:22am on 09.10.06
Risk: Home computers are a target for hackers
Home PCs could be under attack from hackers over 50 times a night, suggests a BBC News Website experiment.
The BBC News Website team set up a honeypot' PC – a computer that looks like a normal PC online but records everything that's done to it – in order to find out the dangers facing web users.
Every single time the 'honeypot' was put online it was attacked. In one of the busiest nights of malicious online activity, the computer was attacked 53 times:
- 1 hijack attempt. PC suffered buffer overflow attempt to subvert web server built into Microsoft Windows. A successful attack would hand over control of the machine to a hacker
- 2 "port scans" which look for weak spots in Windows software - reconnaissance by hackers seeking new victims.
- 11 attacks by the 'Blaster' worm - success would have rendered the machine unusable
- 3 attacks by the 'Slammer' worm - success would have left machine crippled and prone to crashing
- 36 fake security announcements/adverts for fake security software posing as warnings. Reacting to these could leave a PC clogged with spyware.
Over the course of the whole experiment, on average at least one attack an hour came from a dangerous computer bug with the ability to cripple an unprotected PC. And at least one attack per night was even more serious - an attempt to hijack the computer entirely – which could lead to the computer being turned into a 'zombie PC' and used to carry out criminal activity without the owner's knowledge.
The experiment demonstrates the vulnerability of unprotected home PCs to malicious hackers.
According to Symantec, 86 per cent of all targeted attacks on computers are aimed at home users. There are an estimated 200,000 malicious programs in existence.
Starting today, the BBC News Website is running a whole week of special features looking at the issue of hi-tech crime and giving people advice on they can stay safe online.
As part of the BBC News Website's 'Cracking Hi-Tech Crime[ specials the BBC also talks to the hi-tech criminals behind the viruses, 'phishing' e-mails and malicious programs putting home PCs at risk.
One hacker the BBC spoke to claims to have earned $10,000 a day from computer crime, another says that they can hack into many online shops within 3-4 hours and sell the data on for anything between $100-500. Unconcerned about the risk of arrest the hacker adds: "How can a cop catch me? Catch me if they can!"
Reader views (13)
Here's a sample of the latest views published.
BSD running on a PC is unaffected by 99% of all attacks. These attacks are aimed at MS because of it's lack of security. If there is no MS OS then it doesn't run.
- Jeff, USA
Macs run BSD and have the same potential for security risks as the PC. For hackers it's about numbers. More PC's (80%) than Macs (2%) means more successful intrusions on the PC. MS did create a lot of the problem when they opened up OS for ease of use though.
- Steve, USA
Here we have the Internet, easily one of the most exciting developments of the 20th century, and destined to play an increasingly large role in the 21st century rendered less than it could be by the infantile behavior of criminal misfits.
The punishment should fit the crime. Hackers should receive new maximum incarcerations such as are meted out on the worst white-collar criminals: 20 years to life.
- Frank Tyrrell, Atlanta, USA
If everyone got a Mac, the hacker problems would not go away. Mac's are not immune to hackers. It's the fact that most users have a PC that draws the hacker's attempts at PC's. They go after the sheer numbers of computers, Mac or PC.
- George Kissel, Las Vegas, NV.
Hmmm... would be neat to test a Mac in the same manner.
- Prjct, USA
This is so incredibly easy to remedy. Just put a hardware firewall between your PC and your broadband connection. There are many different models and most are very cheap. Seriously, who still plugs their home PC directly into a broadband connection? If you want to have more than 1 PC access the Intenet, you will be buying a firewall/router anyways.
- Roger Dalton, Phoenix, AZ
Get a Mac!
- Towertone, Dallas, TX
Hackers should go to jail - they're in the same category as burglars. They steal people's time and money.
- Dan Smith, USA
That's why I got a Mac and you should too!
- Inabeanpod, Kansas City, MO, USA
I'm sure that many of us more computer-savvy people are not surprised at these findings.
- Marissa, New Milford, CT
No mention is made of the fact that a 'honeypot' is a totally unprotected machine, intentionally open and vulnerable to attack.
Anyone who goes online without some variety of firewall in place is asking for trouble. Software firewalls are available for download free, ZoneAlarm being probably the best product.
Whether you connect to the internet via dial up, DSL, cable or satellite protection is a necessity. Anti-virus software, spyware software and firewalls are a basic requirement to keep your information and your machine safe.
- Greg, San Antonio, USA
Use Linux! It's free and doesn't have these problems.
- Amrit Kaur, Phoenix, USA
Just get a Mac!
- Jim Gill, Richmond Va USA
