Botnets identified and blocked with new hosted service
A security tool that identifies botnets and blocks attacks from these zombie networks is being made available by Trend Micro online in the software-as-a-service model.
The Botnet Identification Service, one of three hosted security applications that are part of Trend Micro’s SecureCloud line, deals with the growing botnet problem with real-time identification of command and control centers that operate zombie networks. The product is targeted at ISPs and educational institutions.
“The information enables customers to block communications between these [command and control centers] and the compromised PCs they control,” Trend Micro states. “By breaking the communication cycle, the botnets are rendered harmless without affecting other services.”
This prevents malicious activity even though a computer may still be infected, says John Maddison, general manager of network security for Trend Micro.
Botnets are networks of infected computers controlled remotely by hackers who use them to distribute spam and viruses. About 200,000 new zombie computers are identified each day by the vendor Secure Computing, which also offers technology to track zombies and block the messages they send. Federal investigators have identified more than 1 million botnet crime victims.
Entire article and source: Network World
