botnets

Botnets for hire to launch your own spam campaign and stolen credit card information sold at the rock bottom price of $2 are just two of the commodities easily found on the cyber-crime black market today, according to a report released this month by Panda Security. The report, which was conducted by PandaLabs researchers who posed as cyber criminals, details a vast criminal network selling stolen bank account information in forums and dedicated online stores.

A new report from Fortinet predicts the bad guys will hire re-enforcements to stay ahead of botnet takedowns. They will also turn on each other over territory and recycle malicious code, which will in turn lead to more confusion.

Startup service provider ipTrust today said it was offering a program that lets businesses avoid botnets and infected machines by letting them know whether IP addresses are linked to suspicious behavior.

Here are the worst of the botnets, and ways you can try to stop them in their tracks.