Hacking And Trojan Control Use

 

 What Is Hacking? 

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Hacking refers to activities that seek to compromise digital devices, such as computers, smartphones, tablets, and even entire networks. And while hacking might not always be for malicious purposes, nowadays most references to hacking, and hackers, characterize it/them as unlawful activity by cybercriminals—motivated by financial gain, protest, information gathering (spying), and even just for the “fun” of the challenge.

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hacKING:
 What Is Social Engineering? 

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Hacking is typically technical in nature (like creating malvertising that deposits malware in a drive-by attack requiring no user interaction). But hackers can also use psychology to trick the user into clicking on a malicious attachment or providing personal data. These tactics are referred to as “social engineering.”

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 Different Type Of Hackers 

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1⃣ White Hat Hacker

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First up, we have the perfect type of hacker to break the stereotype. The white-hat hacker is a good guy, as ironic as it may sound. White Hackers, white hat hackers, or ethical hackers are the people who test existing internet infrastructures to research loopholes in the system. They create algorithms and perform multiple methodologies to break into systems, only to strengthen them.

Think of this as a lockpick, who would work his way around locks, only to inform the owners of how to make the locks work better.

Famous white hat hackers have historically been pivotal in ensuring that large corporations maintain a strong network framework so that it is unbreakable against all other types of hacking. From being employees of the Government to being private consultants, white hackers help the internet be a better and safer place.

2⃣ Black Hat Hacker

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Simply put, these are the bad guys. Black hat hackers are responsible for all that is wrong with hacking. These guys break into systems purely with negative intentions. From stealing credit card information to altering public databases, a black hat hacker looks to gain fame or monetary benefits from exploiting the loopholes in internet frameworks. Famous black hat hackers have notoriously robbed banks and financial institutions of millions of dollars and invaluable private data.

3⃣ Grey Hat Hacker

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A grey hat hacker usually has mixed intentions. As the color code implies, this hacker type does not have the good intentions of a white hat hacker, nor does he have the ill intentions of a black hacker. A grey hat would break into systems but never for his own benefit. Famous grey hat hackers have exploited systems only to make the information public, and to bring to limelight vast datasets of information that contains wrongdoings.

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 What Is A Trojan? 

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A Trojan horse, or Trojan, is a type of malicious code or software that looks legitimate but can take control of your computer. A Trojan is designed to damage, disrupt, steal, or in general, inflict some other harmful action on your data or network.

A Trojan acts as a bona fide application or file to trick you. It seeks to deceive you into loading and executing the malware on your device. Once installed, a Trojan can perform the action it was designed for.

A Trojan is sometimes called a Trojan virus or a Trojan horse virus, but that’s a misnomer. Viruses can execute and replicate themselves. A Trojan cannot. A user has to execute Trojans. Even so, Trojan malware and Trojan virus are often used interchangeably.

Whether you prefer calling it Trojan malware or a Trojan virus, it’s smart to know how this infiltrator works and what you can do to keep your devices safe.

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 How Do Trojans Work? 

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Here’s a Trojan malware example to show how it works.

You might think you’ve received an email from someone you know and click on what looks like a legitimate attachment. But you’ve been fooled. The email is from a cybercriminal, and the file you clicked on — and downloaded and opened — has gone on to install malware on your device.

When you execute the program, the malware can spread to other files and damage your computer.

How? It varies. Trojans are designed to do different things. But you’ll probably wish they weren’t doing any of them on your device.

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 Common Types Of Trojan Malware, From A to Z 

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Here’s a look at some of the most common types of Trojan malware, including their names and what they do on your computer:

Backdoor Trojan

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This Trojan can create a “backdoor” on your computer. It lets an attacker access your computer and control it. Your data can be downloaded by a third party and stolen. Or more malware can be uploaded to your device.

Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack Trojan

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This Trojan performs DDoS attacks. The idea is to take down a network by flooding it with traffic. That traffic comes from your infected computer and others.

Downloader Trojan

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This Trojan targets your already-infected computer. It downloads and installs new versions of malicious programs. These can include Trojans and adware.

Fake AV Trojan

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This Trojan behaves like antivirus software but demands money from you to detect and remove threats, whether they’re real or fake.

Game-thief Trojan

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The losers here may be online gamers. This Trojan seeks to steal their account information.

Infostealer Trojan

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As it sounds, this Trojan is after data on your infected computer.

Mailfinder Trojan

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This Trojan seeks to steal the email addresses you’ve accumulated on your device.

Ransom Trojan

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This Trojan seeks a ransom to undo the damage it has done to your computer. This can include blocking your data or impairing your computer’s performance.

Remote Access Trojan

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This Trojan can give an attacker full control over your computer via a remote network connection. Its uses include stealing your information or spying on you.

Rootkit Trojan

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A rootkit aims to hide or obscure an object on your infected computer. The idea? To extend the time a malicious program runs on your device.

SMS Trojan

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This type of Trojan infects your mobile device and can send and intercept text messages. Texts to premium-rate numbers can drive up your phone costs.

Trojan banker

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This Trojan takes aim at your financial accounts. It’s designed to steal your account information for all the things you do online. That includes banking, credit card, and bill pay data.

Trojan IM

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This Trojan targets instant messaging. It steals your logins and passwords on IM platforms.

That’s just a sample. There are a lot more.

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 Examples Of Trojan 

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Examples of Trojan malware attacks

Trojan malware attacks can inflict a lot of damage. At the same time, Trojans continue to evolve. Here are three examples.

1⃣ Emotet banking Trojan:  After a long hiatus, Emotet’s activity increased in the last few months of 2017, according to the Symantec 2018 Internet Security Threat Report. Detections increased by 2,000 percent in that period. Emotet steals financial information, among other things.

2⃣ Rakhni Trojan: This malware has been around since 2013. More recently, it can deliver ransomware or a cryptojacker (allowing criminals to use your device to mine for cryptocurrency) to infected computers. “The growth in coin mining in the final months of 2017 was immense,” the 2018 Internet Security Threat Report notes. “Overall coin-mining activity increased by 34,000 percent over the course of the year.”

3⃣ Zeus/Zbot: This banking Trojan is another oldie but baddie. Zeus/Zbot source code was first released in 2011. It uses keystroke logging — recording your keystrokes as you log into your bank account, for instance — to steal your credentials and perhaps your account balance as well.

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 How Trojans Impact Mobile Devices?  

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Trojans aren’t problems for only laptop and desktop computers. They can also impact your mobile devices, including cell phones and tablets.

In general, a Trojan comes attached to what looks like a legitimate program. In reality, it is a fake version of the app, loaded up with malware. Cybercriminals will usually place them on unofficial and pirate app markets for unsuspecting users to download.

In addition, these apps can also steal information from your device, and generate revenue by sending premium SMS texts.

One form of Trojan malware has targeted Android devices specifically. Called Switcher Trojan, it infects users’ devices to attack the routers on their wireless networks. The result? Cybercriminals could redirect traffic on the Wi-Fi-connected devices and use it to commit various crimes.

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 How To Help Protect Against Trojans? 

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 Here are some DOs and DON'Ts to help protect against Trojan malware. First, the DOs :

 Computer security begins with installing and running an internet security suite. Run periodic diagnostic scans with your software. You can set it up so the program runs scans automatically during regular intervals.

 Update your operating system’s software as soon as updates are made available from the software company. Cybercriminals tend to exploit security holes in outdated software programs. In addition to operating system updates, you should also check for updates on other software that you use on your computer.

 Protect your accounts with complex, unique passwords. Create a unique password for each account using a complex combination of letters, numbers, and symbols.

 Keep your personal information safe with firewalls.

 Back up your files regularly. If a Trojan infects your computer, this will help you to restore your data.

 Be careful with email attachments. To help stay safe, scan an email attachment first. 

 A lot of things you should do come with a corresponding thing not to do — like, do be careful with email attachments and don’t click on suspicious email attachments. Here are some more don’ts.

 Don’t visit unsafe websites. Some internet security software will alert you that you’re about to visit an unsafe site, such as Norton Safe Web.

 Don’t open a link in an email unless you’re confident it comes from a legitimate source. In general, avoid opening unsolicited emails from senders you don’t know.

 Don’t download or install programs if you don’t have complete trust in the publisher.

 Don’t click on pop-up windows that promise free programs that perform useful tasks.

 Don’t ever open a link in an email unless you know exactly what it is.

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