IT security and control firm Sophos has warned hackers of the
dangers of engaging in cybercrime, following the announcement that
a Chinese court has sentenced four men to jail.
The men were found to have been behind the Fujacks worm
(also known as Worm.Whboy) which made headlines earlier this year
because it converted icons of infected programs into a picture of a
panda burning joss-sticks as it stole usernames and passwords from
online games players.
25-year old Li Jun, who confessed to having written the worm,
and selling it to 12 clients for more than 100,000 yuan
(US$12,500), was sentenced to four years in prison by a court in
Xiantao in Hubei province, China. Wang Lei, Zhang Shun and Lei Lei
were sentenced to between one year and two and a half years in jail
for their part in the criminal scheme.
The Fujacks worm changed icons of infected
programs to a picture of a panda holding joss-sticks, and stole
information from users of the QQ instant messaging
program.
"Chinese cybercriminals are not just hitting PCs in their own
country, but impacting computer users worldwide, so it's
encouraging to see the authorities taking action against the
perpetrators," said Graham Cluley, senior
technology consultant for Sophos. "Sophos experts have noted that a
surprising proportion of malware written in China is designed to
steal credentials from players of MMORPGs (Massively MultiPlayer
Online Role-Playing Games). This stolen information provides a
revenue stream for unscrupulous hackers who will sell the
information on to the highest bidder."
Earlier this year, Sophos advised
computer users to think carefully about how they remedy virus
infections, following news that the Chinese police were planning to
release a clean-up program written by Li Jun.
"Despite the worm's author writing a program to clean up his
infestation, it doesn't seem to have gained him much sympathy from
the authorities," continued Cluley. "Hackers would be wise not to
break the law in the first place if they don't want to suffer from
a similar fate."
Sophos experts noted in a report released last year that over
half the malware written in China is designed to
steal passwords, with much of it aiming to purloin information
from online game players.
Earlier this month, the Chinese authorities strongly
denied that PLA-sponsored hackers were targeting overseas
government networks.
Sophos recommends companies protect themselves with a consolidated solution which can control network access and defend
against the threats of spam, hackers, spyware and viruses.
More than 100 million users in 150 countries rely on Sophos as the best protection against complex threats and data loss. Sophos is committed to providing security and data protection solutions that are simple to manage, deploy and use and that deliver the industry's lowest total cost of ownership. Sophos offers award-winning encryption, endpoint security, web, email, and network access control solutions backed by SophosLabs - a global network of threat intelligence centers. With more than two decades of experience, Sophos is regarded as a leader in security and data protection by top analyst firms and has received many industry awards.
Sophos is headquartered in Boston, US and Oxford, UK. More information is available at www.sophos.com.