On 11 August 2003, the Blaster worm, also known as MSBlast or Lovesan, begins to spread on the Internet, infecting Windows XP and Windows 2000 computers. The primary symptom of the worm was the crashing of the Remote Procedure Call (RPC) service, which would trigger the computer to shut itself down and reboot as shown in the picture.
Microsoft estimated the number of machines infected between 8 and 16 million. Damage caused by the worm was estimated at $320 million.
What is a computer worm?
A computer worm is a type of malware that spreads copies of itself from computer to computer. A worm can replicate itself without any human interaction, and it does not need to attach itself to a software program in order to cause damage.
How do computer worms work?
Computer worms could arrive as attachments in spam emails or instant messages (IMs). Once opened, these files could provide a link to a malicious website or automatically download the computer worm. Once it’s installed, the worm silently goes to work and infects the machine without the user’s knowledge. Unlike a computer virus, a worm does not need to attach itself to an existing program. Worms can modify and delete files, and they can even inject additional malicious software onto a computer. Sometimes a computer worm’s purpose is only to make copies of itself over and over — depleting system resources, such as hard drive space or bandwidth, by overloading a shared network. In addition to wreaking havoc on a computer’s resources, worms can also steal data, install a backdoor, and allow a hacker to gain control over a computer and its system settings.
Proactive steps
- Keep an eye on your hard drive space
- Monitor speed and performance
- Be on the lookout for missing or new files
Conclusion
Besides the technical aspects of security, more effort should also be put into user awareness, because users lack
of most basis information about the computers they use. More effort should be put
on user education on using their computers correctly and develop some basic
reflexes for security.
