Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
 |
Online Banking Malware Rewrites Your Statements
A very sneaky new malware Trojan virus hides in your computer and actually rewrites your online statements as you watch to hide evidence of theft. This hacking feat hides the evidence long enough for the malefactors to get away with your money.
The new technique was deployed in over 6,000 PCs; the thieves stole over E300,000 in just three weeks. Computer experts are impressed by the sophistication of the malicious software.
The money gets transferred to the legitimate accounts of unsuspecting money mules who’ve been recruited online for work-at-home gigs, never suspecting that the money they’re allowing to flow through their account is being laundered. The mule transfers the money to the crook’s chosen account. The cyber gang Finjan tracked used each mule only twice, to avoid fraud pattern detection.
Computer fraud experts are concerned that the gang could steal millions per year with the malware.
Science fiction fans have had their minds opened to the possibility of thieving hacks in a variety of movies and real-life situations that reflect them; see Teen Hacker Raises Grades Wargames-Style and Gangs Take PINs From Card Readers for examples. Cyber thieves should watch out, however - Cyber-Crime Cops Are Getting Organized.
Once a victim is infected, the malware grabs the consumer’s log in credentials to their bank account, then contacts a control center hosted on a machine in Ukraine for further instructions. The control center tells the Trojan how much money to wire transfer, and where to send it. To avoid tripping a bank’s automated anti-fraud detectors, the malware will withdraw random amounts, and check to make sure the withdrawal doesn’t exceed the victim’s balance.
(Stargate Atlantis cast)
Fans of Stargate Atlantis may be thinking of the occasion when Asuran replicator's base code was altered in the episode "Lifeline".
McKAY: I’ve been going over the Replicators’ base code and I found this. (He turns the screen of his laptop to John.)
DEX: What is that?
McKAY: The Holy Grail. I mean, it’s their whole reason for being. It’s a command code that directs them to attack the Wraith.
SHEPPARD: Yeah, but they don’t attack the Wraith. They’ve been sitting on their nanite asses for ten thousand years.
McKAY: Well, that’s because it’s been deactivated.
SHEPPARD: You’re just noticing this now, huh?
McKAY: This is just one in millions of commands in the base code. Look, I always had a hunch that something like this might be in there, but-but believe me, it was not easy to find.
WEIR: Can you reactivate it?
McKAY: Yes ... but there’s a problem. Look, I can reprogram the nanites in your brain and use that link to upload the changes, but we’ll need to wait for the next merge to affect all the Replicators at once, and we have no idea when that could be. Not only that, but the instant it happens, they’ll know you’re there. They’ll take immediate steps to assimilate you.
SHEPPARD: Then we’re not doing it.
WEIR: John, you know what this could mean. If the Replicators go to war with the Wraith ...
McKAY: Whoa-whoa-whoa. Hang on. There may be another way. There’s a central data core -- it’s kind of like a back-up hard drive for all the Replicators. If I can upload the reactivated attack command directly into that, then we wouldn’t need to use Elizabeth. We could be halfway back to Atlantis when the attack command takes effect at the next merge.
From New Malware Re-Writes Online Bank Statements to Cover Fraud; more about Stargate Atlantis: Lifeline. Thanks to Moira for the tip and references.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 10/5/2009)
Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |
Would
you like to contribute a story tip?
It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add
it here.
Comment/Join discussion ( 0 )
Related News Stories - (" Computer ")
AI Worms That Spread
'...there were so many worms and counterworms loose in the data-net now' - John Brunner, 1975.
Great. Now AIs Have Access To Hacking Tools
'... when you and the Flatline punch through that ice and scramble the cores.' - William Gibson, 1984.
Tongue-Controlled Tong Wearable Mouth Computer
'Griff found the white and pink map distracting and switched it off using his tongue mouse.' - Greg Bear, 2007.
Interpol Launches Metaverse For Law Enforcement
'CopSpace sheds some light on matters, of course. Blink and it descends in its full glory.' - Charles Stress, 2007.
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
Current News
SpaceX Wants A Moonbase Alpha
'And he had been sent with troops, supplies and bombs to command Russia's most trusted post, the Moonbase.'
Vast Apartment Living Will Get Even More Vast
'What is your population', I asked. 'About eighty millions.'
NASA Wants Self-Driving Or Remote-Controlled Vehicles For Lunar Astronauts
'THE autobus turned silently down the wide street of Hydropole. Robot-guided, insulated from noise and cold...'
Elon Musk Says Robotaxis Will Be Ready This August, 2024
'The car had no steering wheel, and no one drove!'
Moonwalkers AI-Controlled Electric Shoes
Now that's power walking that Hugo Gernsback would have approved.
Steve Jobs: 'Capture The Next Aristotle - With AI'
'It was disturbing to think of the Flatline as a construct...'
No Tips! Robotic Food Delivery In Phoenix
'...he rewired the delivery robot so that it would serve him midnight snacks.'
Electric Catamaran 'Explorer Eco 40m' Has 'Solar Skin'
'On went the electric-yacht faster and still faster.'
Orbital Mechanics, The Liftoff, The Turnover, The Retrograde Burn
'...the huge vessel had spun, with a sickening lurch, through a complete half-circle, the instant the power was reversed.'
Harvest Power From Tears And Blinking With Smart Contact Lens
'...he realized that it was not quite a clear lens. Speckles of colored brightness swirled and gathered in it.'
Europa Clipper Plate Carries A Special Message
'...a universal cryptogram — yet it is one which can be interpreted by any intelligent creature on any planet in the Solar System!'
Micro-Robots Are Smallest, Fully Functional
'With a whir, the Scarab shot from the concealing shadows of the corner where it had hidden itself.'
AI Enhances Images Your Brain Sees
'I could have sworn the psychomat showed pictures almost as sharp and detailed as reality itself'
Illustrating Classic Heinlein With AI
'Stasis, cold sleep, hibernation, hypothermia, reduced metabolism, call it what you will - the logistics-medicine research teams had found a way to stack people like cordwood and use them when needed.'
Deflector Plasma Screen For Drones ala Star Wars
'If the enemy persists in attacking or even intensifies their power, the density of the plasma in space will suddenly increase, causing it to reflect most of the incoming energy like a mirror.'
DIY Robotic Hand Made After Loss Of Fingers
'I made them... with the fine work of the watchmaker...'
