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04.19.06
More Malware Entering Stealth Mode
 By
David A. Utter
Creators of destructive and malicious computer programs have been utilizing stealth technology in far greater numbers over the past three years.
Whether it is an outright criminal program, or simply an adware package that a user would likely reject if he knew it was being installed on his PC, more of those programs have been crafted in ways to avoid detection, according to a McAfee study.
"Clearly we are seeing that stealth technologies and rootkits specifically are increasing at an alarming rate," said Stuart McClure, senior vice president, global threats at McAfee. "This trend in malware evolution is creating hardier and ever more virulent strains of malware that will continue to threaten businesses and consumers alike."
McAfee considers those types of programs to be rootkits due to their stealthy nature, but acknowledges "products employing stealth techniques are not necessarily rootkits by themselves."
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Wikipedia defines a rootkit as "a set of software tools frequently used by a third party (usually an intruder) after gaining access to a computer system. These tools are intended to conceal running processes, files or system data, which helps an intruder maintain access to a system without the user's knowledge."
Sony BMG garnered plenty of negative detection when they were discovered to have distributed CDs that placed rootkits on Windows PCs (another reason why Velvet Revolver's CD was a bad purchase.)
Windows machines continue to be the attractive targets. McAfee said that the share of Linux-based stealth techniques dropped to a negligible number from 2001 through 2005. Those seen on Windows platforms increased by 2,300 percent during the same period.
McAfee also pointed a finger of blame at the open source community, forums, and the blogosphere. All have enable stealth writers to create more sophisticated techniques and to share them quickly with many other coders.
Windows gets the lion's share of attention due to its many APIs, some of which have not been documented. Those give a malware writer something to aim for and exploit that may not have been tried before by others; ego boosts and "street cred" tend to be important among those coders.
About the Author:
David is a staff writer for EnterpriseSecurityNews
covering cyber security.
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