[pchelpers] News:Latest Conficker worm gets nastier

March 13, 2009 1:22 PM PDT
by Elinor Mills


The authors of the latest variant of the Conficker worm are upping the
ante against security vendors who are working to stop the spread and
threat of the persistent program. 

Conficker.C shuts down security services, blocks computers from
connecting to security Web sites, and downloads a Trojan. It also is
programmed to begin connecting to 50,000 different domains on April 1 to
receive updated copies or other malware, as opposed to connecting to 250
domains a day as previous versions are doing, Ben Greenbaum, senior
research manager for Symantec Security Response, said on Friday. 

The authors of the code are "strengthening their hold on their
collection of infected machines at the same time they are attempting to
strengthen their ability to control those machines by moving to 50,000
domains," he said. 

A self-described "cabal" of companies, including Microsoft, Symantec,
and a host of domain registration providers, have been trying to thwart
the efforts of Conficker by pre-registering and locking up the domain
names being used by the worm to distribute updates.

Now that Conficker.C is targeting 50,000 domains, the group has its work
cut out for it, Greenbaum said. Regardless, "it's unknown at this point
whether (boosting the domains) is an effective sidestep around the
cabal's actions," he said. 

More here:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1009_3-10196122-83.html?tag=newsEditorsPicksArea.0
-- 
John Durham
Site http://modecideas.com
Server hosted on Ubuntu 4.10
Good advice is like good paint. It only works when applied.



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