Chapter 16: Life Cycle of a Worm

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Overview

Worms are network viruses that penetrate infected machines in a natural way, without any interference from the user . Worms are the most independent inhabitants of cyberspace . Among all viruses, they are the closest to their biological prototypes ; therefore, they are the most destructive and are exceedingly dangerous. They cannot be thwarted by any preventive protection measures, and antivirus scanners and vaccines remain extremely inefficient. The invasion of worms cannot be predicted , and it is practically impossible to stop it. Nevertheless, worms are vulnerable. To gain a victory over the worm, you must know the structure of its code, its main "habits," and the most probable algorithms of infection and propagation. The Internet in general and operating systems in particular represent a labyrinth. You'll need its detailed map, with marked secret paths and hidden entrances, used by worms for secretly penetrating target networks and hosts .

The roots of the history of worms go deeply into antiquity. It you draw an analogy with the evolution of the life on our planet, then this would be the Mesozoic era, when dinosaurs ruled the Earth. In the analogy, these were computer dinosaurs ” enormous electron -tube machines working with a horrible buzzing noise. Pioneers of the computing industry, now respectable officials of large corporations, were at that time unshaven students craving activity with a wild glare in their eyes (those who have read " The Lab Chronicles " will understand what I mean), and they were actively experimenting with biocybernetic models. At that time, Real Programmers were enthusiastic. It seemed that it wouldn't be necessary to wait long for that happy day when the buzzing monster would gain intellect, along with the skills of self-improvement and self-reproduction. The term "virus" wasn't known at that time, and no one saw anything wrong in biocybernetic mechanisms. They were discussed in smoking rooms, as well as at high-level scientific conferences, they were allocated precious machine time.

As corporations came to power, everything changed. Software divided into "right" and "wrong" programs. Right software is a product that can be sold. "Wrong" software wasn't written for money, for scientific grants (nowadays, everyone applies for a grant), or even under the aegis of the open -source ideology. Instead, it was written for programmer's own pleasure and for satisfaction of that craving for programming, which burns in the heart, prevents sleep at night, and generates new ideas that must be immediately tried out. This is the real thing! This isn't an electronic table created for ordinary users. Every line of code bears a part of your individuality , the part of your soul that gives sense to all surroundings. This is what makes the difference between the true art and the production pipeline.

Nowadays, this link is practically lost. Computers no longer cause the sense of reverence. Now they are simply " comps ," and the mystical sense of being united with them has gone.



Shellcoder's Programming Uncovered
Shellcoders Programming Uncovered (Uncovered series)
ISBN: 193176946X
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2003
Pages: 164

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