Has your computer been acting strangely? If your computer is working at a crawl, you are getting odd error messages and the cooling fan runs even when the machine appears to be idle, it may be part of a botnet.
A botnet (or robot network) is a group of computers or other internet-connected devices whose security has been breached and control ceded to a third party. The controller of a botnet is able to direct the activities of these compromised computers, sometimes referred to as “zombies.” Once hackers have established control of a botnet, they use the zombie devices to:
- Send out spam emails
- Launch a Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack
- Commit click fraud
- Keep phishing websites active
- Distribute malware, ransomware or spyware
How can you tell if your computer has been compromised by a botnet? There are several possible signs; however, these can also be signs that your computer is obsolete and needs to be upgraded. For example, if your computer runs slowly or crashes frequently, if the fan runs even when the computer appears to be idle, if you receive unexplained error messages or you see exceptionally high network usage, those may be signs that a program is running without your permission.
Try disconnecting from the internet and see if anything changes. If you do not have the problems offline, it can indicate that you are experiencing botnet activity when you are connected.
Preventing botnet infection is better than attempting to detect and correct it. Heimdal Security suggests these rules to avoid becoming part of a botnet:
- Don’t click on unknown links, even if they appear to have come from friends or family members. Their accounts may have been hacked or spoofed, so it is best to check before you click.
- Do not download or open any attachments unless you are expecting them and know they are safe.
- Install effective anti-virus and anti-spyware software obtained from a reputable source. That pop-up ad that tells you your computer is infected? It is trying to trick you into downloading malware to your computer.
- If you already have anti-virus and anti-spyware software, keep them updated. Do a full, in-depth scan with the anti-virus. Sometimes malware will deactivate your anti-virus program and stop it from running automatically.
- Make sure your firewall is on. Setting it to the maximum security level will require all applications seeking internet access to notify you first, so you will know when programs are communicating with other computers.
- Update all your software when needed, especially your browser, Adobe Flash, Adobe Reader and Java. These are the most vulnerable ones that are the most exploited by cybercriminals looking to build a botnet.
