What is Botnet – Cybercrime You Need to Get Off
Botnets are one type of cybercrime that you should be aware of. Because botnets can cause damage and loss to the victim’s device. However, there may still be many of you who are wondering about what is Botnet.
Botnets include a collection of programs that can infect computer networks. If a device is attacked by a botnet, the perpetrator can steal data, damage servers, and even send malicious malware.
If you’ve ever heard of a DDoS attack, it’s one of the most common examples of botnet attacks. Once exposed to a botnet, the device can automatically be ordered anything by hackers remotely.
Table of Contents
- What are Botnets?
- How Botnets Work
- Botnet Types
- Types of Botnet Attacks
- How to Avoid Botnets?
- Conclusion
What are Botnets?
Robot network or botnet is a collection of computer networks that are infected by malware and controlled by a party called a bot-herder. In a way, a botnet is a collection of bots designed to be run automatically on a network and controlled remotely.
Perpetrators will collect as many bots as possible to combine into a bot network. Bots are made from malware-infected computers and are controlled by botmasters. If a computer has been infected with a botnet, then when it connects to the network, the computer will execute any commands given by the botmaster.
The more bot resources you have, the stronger the crime attack will be. This bot is a computer that has been successfully infected and can be controlled by hackers, another term is known as a zombie computer.
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You need to know how a normal computer can be turned into a bot by a bot-herder, namely by inserting a malware on a certain website or software. Later when the user accesses the website, the malware will enter and look for loopholes in the user’s computer so that bots can enter.
In addition, bot-herders also often spread malware exploits through files that users can download or via email attachments. Therefore, make sure that you are always careful if you want to download file attachments from emails. Make sure to only download files that are credible and trusted.
How Botnets Work
After knowing what is a Botnet, you also need to know about how the cybercrime works. The goal is to get a more complete and detailed understanding of the Botnet.
In general, the way botnets work to attack devices involves bot-herder/botmaster and bots or called zombie computers. Bot or zombie computers refers to any computer that has been infected with malware and controlled by hackers to attack the target computer.
A computer can be turned into a bot by inserting malware from certain websites or software. Later, when the user accesses the website, the malware will enter and look for loopholes in the user’s computer so that bots can enter it.
In principle, how botnets work can be explained through the following three stages:
1. Preparation and Exploration Stage
The first stage of the Botnet attack process is preparation and exploration. At this stage the hackers will look for and explore weaknesses in a website, application, or even human behavior.
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Its main purpose is to make potential victims unknowingly infected with malware. This stage is mostly carried out by sending emails and online messages. So you need to be careful and careful of unfamiliar and suspicious messages.
2. Infection Stage
After carrying out the preparation and exploration stages, the hacker will proceed to the second stage, namely infection. At this stage the user will be infected with malware after the hacker makes the user perform an action that harms their device.
For example, telling users to download trojans or visit websites that have been compromised by malware. All that goes well because hackers can use social engineering techniques. Therefore, you must be careful when accessing the internet and networks to avoid Botnets and other crimes.
3. Activation Stage
If the hacker has succeeded in infecting the victim’s device, it will proceed to the next stage, namely activation. At this stage, the hacker will take control of each infected computer. Botmaster organizes all bots into a single bot network (botnet) and controls them remotely. Usually, the botmaster will infect thousands to millions of active computers to strengthen the bot.
The more the number of infected devices and the greater the resource, the greater the potential for crimes that can be committed. Because hackers can have high resources to carry out more massive botnet attacks.
Botnet Types
After reading the above review, do you already know what is Botnet? For a more complete explanation, you also need to know the types of botnets that are often used to attack computer networks.
In general, botnets have two different types of ways of carrying out their tasks. Here are the types of botnets and their explanations that you need to know.
1. Centralized Botnet (Server Model)
The first type of Botnet is Centralized Botnet. This first generation botnet runs and is centralized in command and control or C&C, here C&C can control the entire botnet.
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It is this convenience that makes centralized botnets still in use today, but the drawback is that they are prone to a single point of failure. This means that when a C&C server experiences just one crash, all botnets will be affected as well.
2. Decentralized Botnet (P2P Model)
The next type of botnet is a non-separate botnet or P2P model. This botnet is the latest generation that is more sophisticated with more optimal performance. As the name implies, this latest generation of botnets runs peer-to-peer and is not directly connected to C&C in the sharing of commands and information.
P2P is more difficult to implement because it is not connected to a central server, but that doesn’t mean this botnet isn’t strong. Each bot runs independently as a client and server, then updates information in a coordinated manner between devices in the botnet.
Decentralized botnets will make botnet attacks more difficult to stop. Because there is no control center that regulates the activity of the botnet. So that if an error occurs in one bot it will not have an impact on other bots.
Types of Botnet Attacks
Once you know about what is a Botnet, you also need to know the types of Botnet attacks that are common on the internet. Once the botmaster has many bots, then they can commit cyber crimes from small to large scale.
For additional information, the following are the types of botnet attacks that you need to know about:
1. DDoS Attack
Distributed Denial of Service or DDoS attack is a cyberattack by sending fake traffic on a server/system continuously. This is done with the aim that the server is unable to handle all traffic and causes the system to go down.
Actually there are several indicators that can be used to see whether the server is affected by a DDoS attack or not. Here are some signs that your device or server is experiencing a DDoS attack:
- There was a sudden and unnatural increase in heavy traffic on bandwidth.
- IP addresses or visitors share the same profile or behavior, such as location, device type, browser used, and so on
- Internet connection becomes slow, so it takes longer to access or can’t be accessed at all
- There are a large number of spam emails that come at almost the same time
If you find a server or device experiencing these conditions, there is nothing wrong with checking the server or device. The goal is to reduce the risk of greater crime and to eliminate DDoS threats.
2. Phishing
The type of botnet attack that is also relatively common is Phishing. In short, Phishing is an attempt to obtain user data by masquerading as a trusted institution or party.
Basically, the data targeted is email addresses, personal identities of victims, to credit card numbers. Usually, phishing schemes involve large-scale spam campaigns to steal user account information, such as banking logins or email credentials.
3. Brute Force Attack
The next type of Botnet attack that you need to know is Brute Force Attack. Brute force attack is a form of attack intended to obtain credentials such as the victim’s username and password.
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Usually, brute force is carried out using a special program that has been designed to crack user credentials. After successfully obtaining login credentials, hackers will perform various other actions such as data theft for their benefit.
How to Avoid Botnets?
One of the terrible things about the impact of Botnet attacks is that victims are not aware that their devices have been infected with malware. If this happens, there will be more victim data that can be taken by hackers.
After knowing about what is Botnet, you also need to know how to avoid Botnets. The goal is that your device can be more secure from the threat of harmful Botnet attacks.
For Your Informations, here are some ways that can be used to avoid Botnets.
1. Use a Strong Password
One of the most effective ways to prevent botnets is the use of strong passwords. We recommend using long passwords with complex combinations that you can remember.
Avoid using the same password on every device or your account, this is to keep your device more secure. In addition, periodically update your settings including passwords so that they are not easy to detect.
2. Avoid Clicking Random Links
The next way that can be used to avoid botnets is not to click links carelessly. When you get any message or email that has a link in it, you have to be extra careful because the link you click on is a trap for hackers to break into your device.
Read: What is Network Security: Types and Functions
Pay attention to who sent you the link, if the person is unknown and not interested, you can delete it or move it to the spam box. This can be used to reduce the risk of malware infection on the device.
3. Don’t Buy Devices With Low Security
Today, many devices are offered in the market at various prices, ranging from the cheapest to very expensive. However, users also seem to be more tempted by devices with low prices but security is not guaranteed.
This is important, because some gadgets often prioritize user convenience over security. Do not let you actually lose money because you use a device that is not safe and prone to malware infections.
4. Avoid Visiting Unsafe Sites
The next way that can be used to avoid Botnet attacks is not to access unsafe sites. Currently, many internet users pay less attention to the security factor when accessing a site.
Even though hackers can get your data or insert malware on websites that you access. To avoid Botnet attacks, make sure that you only access sites that are credible and secure.
One of the characteristics of a secure website is that it uses the HTTPS protocol in its site url. The SSL certificate will encrypt all user data when opening the website. So that third parties will not be easy to monitor and steal your data.
5. Using the Best Antivirus
Installing an antivirus is the best way to prevent various cyber attacks, including botnets. In order to maintain data security on the device, antivirus software is an important element that should not be forgotten. Malware is easily spread from internet and data transfer process.
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Antivirus can protect you from malware because it will be detected as a threat. So you can take precautions by removing the malware before it infects your device.
Conclusion
A botnet is a network of computers that are infected with malware and can be controlled remotely by a person called a bot-herder or botmaster. Later the botnet will be able to carry out larger and more significant cybercrime attacks.
Infected computers are also called bots or zombie computers, which will be used by perpetrators to commit crimes such as DDoS, brute force attacks, to phishing. Cybercrime can have a very detrimental impact on the victims.
That’s a complete discussion of what is Botnet and the full details. After reading about the article, hopefully you can get more complete and detailed information about Botnets and how to avoid them.
