[Newsbot]

Title: Flame virus wiped from computers by suicide command
Category: Tech
Posted By: DrCaleb
Date: 2012-06-08 11:59:35

[DrCaleb]

I've been following this beastie. It's not some in-yo-mommas basment kids doing this. This is the beginning of cyber warfare. Some pretty smart people spent a lot of time to be able to create this, and it only makes sense they'd cover their tracks.

[Brenda]

This goes sooooo way over my head, I can't even come close to understanding what it means...

[jeff744]

$10 says it was Israel, another $10 says Iran knows it was and they aren't planning to retaliate since any retaliation would just be used by the 'civilized' world to justify their previous actions which forced a reaction.

[andyt]

the speculation I read put money on it being the US or a US/Israeli effort.

[DrCaleb]

Brenda Brenda:

This goes sooooo way over my head, I can't even come close to understanding what it means...

Computer viruses. 'Flame' was written to be 'modular' like Lego. Need it to record email? Send it a new 'block'. Need it to record keystrokes and take 'pictures' of the screen? Add a different 'block'. Need to turn on a PCs video camera? Different block again. The basic 'virus' didn't change, it was the addition of 'blocks' that makes it unique. And that it ran free without detection for years!

The way viruses are detected, is every file has a 'signature' that is unique to both the program, and the publisher. Virus scanners try to detect virus by looking for these signatures. But 'Flame' was signed by Microsoft itself!

Of course, they didn't sign it. The way to sign programs involves some heavy math, called 'encryption'. In order to find a way to fake a Microsoft Signature, some pretty good minds in Math and Encryption need to have some pretty creative ideas to be able to pull that off. They 'broke' the encryption, and faked it. Like breaking into Fort Knox, stealing all the Gold an no one noticing.

Big, big stuff. And now that it's known, other countries will emuilate and the warfare is on.

Personally, I'm thinking the NSA are behind it.

[Brenda]

The only things I did understand before your "Flame101" (THANK YOU!!) were your first 2 words

[Tricks]

DrCaleb DrCaleb:

Personally, I'm thinking the NSA are behind it.

This. It took some serious brain power. This is A beautiful mind style shit.

[Regina]

............or it could have been a 12 year old boy with glasses.

[ShepherdsDog]

A nicotine and caffeine fuelled zit farm

[Thanos]

/b/ at 4chan. Don't underestimate those evil pricks. It's not just cyberswarmings and Japanese tentacle porn they're into.