FBI Identifies One Million Computer IP Addresses that Have Been Victimized

The U.S. Department of Justice (USDOJ) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) have identified over one million victims whose computer IP addresses have been compromised by botherders for the purpose of conducting cyber crimes and distributing private information.

In a press release from the FBI, James Finch, FBI ASsistant Director for the Cyber Division, said "The majority of victims are not even aware that their computer has been compromised or their personal information exploited."

The USDOJ and the FBI have been conducting ongoing investigations in a national iniative called OPERATION BOT ROAST. According to FBI officials, botnets are becoming a greater national security threat because of their ability for mass distribution under the control of one criminal "botherder." Many computer users unintentionally provide unauthorized access and use of their computers through botnets, allowing the botherder to use the IP address as a way to commit cyber crimes like identity theft, click fraud, phishing, and denial of service attacks.

Botnets also provide a collection of compromised computers under the remote command of the botherder that allows for mass distribution of spam and spyware. The attackers gain control of your computer by infecting it with a virus or other malicious code, but the computer still operates normally, so the user never knows the botnet exists on the system. Microsoft Corporation and the Botnet Task Force have teamed with the FBI to refer criminal botnet activity to law enforcement.

So far, three people have been arrested and charged wiith computer fraud and abuse under OPERATION BOT ROAST:

James C. Brewer of Arlington, Texas - alleged to have infected Chicago area hospitals using a botnet. The botnet infected tens of thousands of computers worldwide.

Jason Michael Downey of Covington, Kentucky - alleged to have impaired the availability of systems by sending high volume traffic to intended victims of the botnet.