Conficker

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Publication.png Conficker Rdf-entity.pngRdf-icon.png
Typesoftware
Author(s) • NSA
• Mossad
Government-sponsored malware

Conficker, also known as Downup, Downadup and Kido, is a computer worm targeting the Microsoft Windows operating system that was first detected in November 2008.[1] It uses flaws in Windows OS software and dictionary attacks on administrator passwords to propagate while forming a botnet, and has been unusually difficult to counter because of its combined use of many advanced malware techniques.[2][3] The Conficker worm infected millions of computers including government, business and home computers in over 190 countries, making it the largest known computer worm infection since the 2003 Welchia.[4]

 

Related Document

TitleTypePublication dateAuthor(s)Description
Document:Conficker, Cyber Emergency, and the Internet Kill Switcharticle11 July 2010Kai Tischen
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One worrisome possibility is that Conficker's army of zombie PC's could present the "Internet emergency" that authorities (the U.S. government in particular) have long warned about — a sustained attack of such scale and resilience that the network is brought to its knees. The sleeping giant Conficker may be designed specifically to launch just that conflict.


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