Security Summit Warns of Bot Armies

It is the fastest growing, fastest changing type of crime in the world and a university here in Georgia is on the frontlines of the battle to control it.

Georgia Tech just held a cyber security summit and experts talked about the latest threats like bot-networks, targeted messaging attacks, and threats to mobile phones.

Bot-networks may be the least understood. It?s where an outside person gains control of your computer and then links that computer to thousands, possibly millions of other computers they have taken over. They then sell that pirated computer power to groups that use it for illegal purposes. It?s one of many new threats groups like Georgia Tech?s Information Security Center are addressing.

There's a war for your identity and your money going on. Students in the Information Security Center are some of the people who are fighting it. Stroke by stroke, and line by line the code that they write is what stands between hackers and things like your bank account.

Artem Dinaburg is on the front lines in this battle.

?It's like solving complex problems -- like somebody out there is trying to do something bad to you and you have to defend yourself,? Dinaburg said.

Dinaburg is getting his masters in computer science and his focus is on protecting computers and your personal information.

The center held a cyber security summit with experts from across the country converging to compare notes.

?They are building solutions - unfortunately it's a moving target, there's never going to be perfect security," said center director Dr. Mustaque Ahamad.

Ahamad says the bad guys are smart, sophisticated, and always looking for new ways to steal money or information. Bot-networks are some of the newest, but gaining ground fast.

?This is like I take your car and rent it to somebody else, and charge them money, so that's my way of making money off your car,? said Ahamad.

The challenge is to prevent the attacks while law enforcers work on tracking the attackers.

?To figure out who the botmasters are, the evildoers that are controlling these armies of bots," Ahamad said.

The experts say common sense is our best defense. Protective software is important but beyond that they suggest that people question everything they do on the internet. Should I open that attachment? Should I go to this web site? Should I click on this link? They say extreme caution is important because the bad guys are out there working hard too.