At the annual Conference held in Puerto Rico in December 2019 and the International Systems Science Conference in Hawaii, researchers from the University of Texas at Dallas presented their new work to computer scientists and IT . It is a tactic for gathering information from hackers that can later be used against them. This tactic is a rapidly growing field of cybersecurity and is known as “technology .” This cunning and insidious approach allows cybersecurity to observe hacking attacks from a different perspective. The DEEP-Dig (DEcEPtion DIGging) method “fools” hackers through a scam site that has been created to record any suspicious and insidious activity. This information is then fed into a computer, where it is analyzed to demonstrate how to detect and prevent future hacking attacks.
Dr. Kevin Hamlen, Eugene McDermott Professor of Computer Science, said that there are criminals who are constantly trying to attack various networks , and this is usually viewed as something negative. He also pointed out that instead of looking for ways to hinder hackers, perhaps they should be treated as freelancers who provide data on what malicious attacks. Therefore, they are a free source of high-value data.
However, privacy restrictions make it difficult for researchers to gain sufficient insight into the tactics used by hackers, making it difficult to devise effective defense strategies to counter or even avoid them. DEEP-Dig acts as a spy in the hacker camp, gathering valuable real-time information about how a hacker attacks.
Dr. Gbadebo Ayoade, who presented the scientists' findings in Puerto Rico and Hawaii, said that collecting more data could make it easier to detect and track an attack. Specifically, scientists use the data they manage to collect from hackers to train the machine to be able to detect an attack, while using the deception tactic will be able to gather better and more data.
Dr. Latifur Khan, a professor of computer science at UT Dallas, said hackers will feel successful when they encounter a site that is loaded with misinformation and deception. Finally, he said that identifying the deception technique a cybercriminal uses and using it against them to somehow gain entry into their activity is essentially a way to reverse the roles in an endless game.
