The US military's research branch is investing in systems that can automatically detect and "dismantle" botnets before they are activated by their administrators to attack companies or websites.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) on August 30 awarded a $1.2 million contract to Packet Forensics, a cybersecurity firm. Packet Forensics is being asked to create a self-driving program that will detect hidden armies of infected computers, mobile and IoT devices, and more.
To build hackers must first infect internet-connected devices with malware, and then control them through a C&C server that sends commands. But because such viruses lie dormant for a period of time, users rarely know that their computer, mobile phone, or other device may be infected.
So, now the company is called upon to create a system capable of detecting and disabling entire botnets, without the user ever realizing it.
The operating plan of the program, which has been created since 2017, is divided into 3 different areas. Initially, there will be a system that will detect botnets that exist on the internet. Then come the tools, with which special software will be transferred to systems that have been identified as infected by botnets, and this will be done through known security gaps. Finally, the software that has been passed through the security gaps will be executed, and it will deactivate the Malware.
These 3 stages will be performed by a system that will be able to detect, and disable each botnet. Furthermore, since this system will only target systems infected by Botnets (and ideally disable them before they become active), device users will be able to use their devices without detecting any difference.
