New Zotob Worm Gives Hackers More Control

More problems for Microsoft Windows users as the software giant recently released a warning for users of its operating systems in regards to three new security flaws that have been uncovered. The recent slew of security concerns related to Microsoft Windows and Internet Explorer products do not mean that Microsoft has been creating a flawed product; rather, the security issues are more in relation to the enormous success of the company. Because Microsoft Windows and Internet Explorer are some of the most commonly used computer software products out there, hackers choose it as a target because they feel it is through this system that they can have their largest impact (more than 90% of the world’s systems run on the Windows operating system).

The Zotob Worm

One of the newest worms to infect the integrity of Windows software, the Zotob worm is also one of the worst. The Zotob worm can infect the Microsoft system faster than any other worm to date. It has been discovered that the Zotob worm takes advantage of security flaws related to Windows 95, 98, ME, NE, 2000 and XP through which hackers can gain remote access to an infected computer and gain vast amounts of valuable and sensitive information.

As of now, the Zotob worm has been said to only have attacked a couple hundred Windows systems worldwide (that have been reported), and experts are saying that it is mostly targeting the Windows 2000 systems. Because of this, some are saying that although the Zotob worm has the potential to be a devastating blow to Windows owners and operators around the world, its impact has been limited.

How Does the Zotob Worm Infect Systems?

The process through which a given Microsoft operating system will become infected by the Zotob worm is typical of any virus or worm. The Zotob worm puts a copy of itself into the Windows systems folder under the guise of BOTZOR.EXE, at which point it makes modifications to the user’s host files so that they cannot connect with online anti-virus services so as to be made aware of the Zotob worm or get information about deleting it from their system.

Once the Zotob worm has successfully attached itself to a given computer system, the hacker is given remote access over said system and is capable of spreading the worm to other computers that may be networked to the infected one.

Microsoft has recently released a patch that is designed to fix the security flaws in the system and is urging Windows users to download so as to prevent the spread of the Zotob worm.