Category: Security

Programming, Security, Tech

Hounds & The Morris Worm

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man in dress shirt on the phone.
What do you mean “it’s illegal to drop a toaster onto Eric head”?
It’s not a crime if it was for science.
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Outside of the longing to conduct social experiments, a popular one is dropping a toaster atop your co-worker’s head to test gravity and ensure it still works. You could say the internet has and can take us places we never thought possible.

We can go to many locations, stay in touch with people close and far, and have the ability to get our digital hands on anything provided we have the coin. So, with all the good, what’s the bad? Well, the bad is, again being able to get your digital hands-on certain items, most of which could be questionable, if you have the coin.

I mean, it shouldn’t be that easy but here we are. One of which is someone mails you a flash drive saying “Hot Nudes, your spouse will never know. Don’t worry.” You should worry and never put the flash drive into your system because your spouse will know when the computer starts acting wonky and a virus begins to run rampant on your machine and very soon, your network. Again, five minutes of fun could have you rooted, and I’ll go over how.

dog in greyscale.
I know that I am a cute dog. I do know what you want but I want you to know something. I have a particular set of teeth; I will find you… and I will bite you.
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Capture and Release

Have you ever watched The Simpsons and heard the famous line from Mr. Burns, “Release the hounds”? If you haven’t here’s a brief overview, Mr. Burns is mainly an evil rich guy who employs Homer and a few of his friends, and when the mood strikes, he will tell his assistant Mr. Smithers to release the hounds to chase Homer off.

So in a sense, what every corporate boss wants to do but legal reasons stop them. I use this phrase because it’s symbolic of what happens after releasing a virus or what it is actual name is a worm. Computer worms are a subset of trojan malware that can self-replicate from one computer to another and eventually spread through a network without human intervention.

The original name was The Morris Worm, named after Robert Tappan Morris. Robert being a simple student at Cornell University created this worm with the intention to gauge the size of the precursor internet of the time “ARPANET” (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network)– the first public computer network mainly used for academics and research.

However, this testing resulted in a denial-of-service (DoS) for 60,000 machines back in 1988. But the fun doesn’t stop there, the United States v. Morris 1991, resulting Morris being the first convicted under the 1986 Computer Fraud and Abuse Act having a nice price tag of three years in prison, 400 hours of community service, and finally paying a fine of $10,000. This may have you thinking twice about trying to view spicy pictures of kittens on your family computer.

man holding 2 paint brushes
I think I caught Covid from this one last time.
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Vectors of Infection

A worm, how is it different from a virus? Worms, as mentioned earlier, tend to be able to self-replicate and spread throughout linked computers and then onto the network.

Viruses, on the other hand, tend to be attached to files or programs and hide until transferred elsewhere unknowingly. So if you wanted this in nightclub terms, worms are crabs and viruses are herpes.

Some of the vectors used for infection are emails, file sharing, instant messaging, smartphones, flash drives, and if it’s connected to the internet in some fashion, game over man could be heard from everyone on your contact list and pretty much around the world. The six degrees of separation would no longer exist if a worm were never quarantined and dealt with.  

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person in medieval armor
She said bring protection…girl just you wait. I got all the protection.
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Keeping safe via Updates

So, how would you be able to tell if you have a computer worm running around making its wormy babies on your PC (Personal Computer)? Some signs are files making like a deadbeat parent and just disappearing (I’m not going to single out deadbeat fathers, there are deadbeat mothers too).

Your computer begins to run slower close to sluggish, this could be caused by the worm taking up memory as it spreads leading to a large amount of free space being taken up. So at this point, you may be thinking “Wow this suck, I want to see spicy pictures of kittens, but I don’t want crabs.”

Well, you’re in luck, and don’t let your spouse know that Z-Daddy told you this. Some ways to prevent catching a worm or “crabs”, Deadliest Catch, staying away from downloading from unknown sources, verifying with your contacts if something is sent from them, keeping the operating system up to date, and having antivirus software and making sure that’s up to date as well.

Morris may have created a monster that caused a decent amount of chaos and was the first person to get freshly smacked with the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) but went on to cofound the online store Viaweb and later funded firm Y Combinator. So every cloud has a silver lining.

Mark: So what I got from this script is that I can create a virus open my own business.
Tina: That’s not what he meant Mark, stop skimming and actually read.
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Made it this far and found this to be entertaining? Then a big thanks to you and please show your support by cracking a like, sharing this with whomever, scripting a comment, or plug-in to follow.

Would like to give sincere thanks to current followers and subscribers, your support and actions mean a lot and has a play in the creation of each script.

Figure there’s some information I missed on computer worms. Scripted a comment below.

AI, Cloud Talk, Programming, Security, Tech

Connect Beyond Love-Connection

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It’s time to check out what happening on scriptingthewhy.com again.
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Here’s a scenario, picture yourself sitting at your computer, thirst-scrolling Instagram on your phone, putting off responding back to emails, handling tasks, and receiving those juicy dopamine hits. You know, just another day in the office for you.

While emails are piling up, notifications on your phone and computer are going off, the watercooler farts a water bubble, and your smartwatch is telling you to get up and start moving or you’ll be one step closer to God’s waiting room. I’m not talking about Florida.

During your quest to come upon the perfect thirst pic so you can quickly run to the restroom and get a handle on your developing situation, have you ever stopped to question “how are all of these devices connected?”

You say no? You wouldn’t be alone in that regard; many people just use devices and don’t really give a second thought as to how they work. We just use them and take them for what they are and their purpose in our daily lives.

However, it’s time to answer the question you didn’t ask because well, I’m a scriptwriter and somehow through the powers that be I find this enjoyable to entertain and inform you so without stealing candy from a baby, I bequeath to you the connection between all of the devices we use throughout our daily lives and what would life be like if we didn’t have them.

Which I could tell you right now, if we didn’t have them then you would still be thirst-scrolling, the personals section in the newspaper was Instagram back in the day. I’m not proud of that knowledge.

gentleman by window on his phone
I’m not liking that photo again, that was Eric with an a.
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Insta-Connections

This connection, what is it called? You may have heard of it in passing or never at all. The term Internet of Things, better known as IoT, broadly means the collective network of connected devices and the technology that facilitates communication between devices and the cloud.

These devices could range from ordinary household objects to sophisticated industrial tools. The phrase is used to describe the ever-expanding network of smart devices used by sometimes not-so-smart people that connect to the internet.

However, devices that you wouldn’t typically expect to connect to the internet, for example, laptops and smartphones are not typically described as IoT devices. Why? Because anything that requires human interaction or control is not considered a part of IoT.

The concept first IoT emerged as a serious proposition in the 1980s – 1990s, which was pretty much a wild time to be alive. The earliest projects included a connected vending machine, but progress was hindered by early chips being cumbersome and objects struggling to communicate with each other effectively. If you have been in a struggling relationship, you have an idea of what this feels like.

I wonder if the vending machines had the same experience they did in Maximum Overdrive, you know, attempting to hand out people’s expiration dates with Pepsi product placement. That symbolism hits way too hard.

woman sat at laptop using a vr headset..
Tom: You know the sensor can in other directions aside from just up and down.
Sarah: I know…it’s just.
Tom: You miss him, don’t you?
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IoT Connecting Us

Z-Daddy, what do we use that is connected to IoT? Again, pending robot uprise experience inbound. Here’s your list of things to look at and jokingly say to yourself “there’s no way that could speed up my expiration”; dishwashers, refrigerators, smart TVs, smartphones, cars and trucks, heating and cooling systems, fitness machines, and trackers are some examples of IoT.

Most of these products you have experienced personally but keep in mind, while your chances of receiving your expiration date by one of these items are low, it’s never zero.

Generally, IoT is most abundant in manufacturing, transportation, and utility organizations, making use of sensors and other IoT moreover, it has also found use cases for organizations within such as water resource monitoring in agriculture, healthcare, infrastructure, and home automation industries, leading some organizations toward digital transformation. Ja (Yes), we’re pretty much one Elon tweet away.

While the idea of IoT has been in existence for a long time, a collection of recent advances in a number of different technologies has made it practical. Access to low-cost, low-power sensor technology, connectivity, cloud computing platforms, machine learning, and analytics. Imagine, all of this taking place while you spend your days thirst-scrolling.  

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network of devices next to each other
Choose your addiction from the semi, mid, or crippling.
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93 and Lonely

Now I can hear you yelling at some of the items listed earlier, saying “THEY TOOK OUR JOBS!” You didn’t know but you were going to give the job away anyway. I would take a self-driving lawn mower than have to go out and mow my lawn in the hot sun any day.

Having my 93-year-old neighbor staring at me from her living room window while I’m all sweaty working, I mean she’s nice and offers a glass of lemonade and cookies, but Z-Daddy can’t be that daddy. Although… she has Medicare and might have a decent life policy so I may be able to make it a short-term situation. Older people need love too, don’t judge.

Now back to sticking it to IoT and not my neighbor, there is a massive market for intelligent electronics, and over the past few years, IoT has become one of the most important technologies of the 21st century. And years ago, we thought conjuring fire was a big deal.

Now that we can connect everyday objects, IoT enables companies to automate processes and reduce labor costs. A quick word to the wise, if your job is simple enough for a computer to do it, you might want to start looking elsewhere for work.

It also cuts down on waste and improves service delivery, making it less expensive to manufacture and deliver goods, as well offer transparency in customer transactions. Again, these are all keywords for you being replaceable if you haven’t caught on by now.

In short, technology is making life great by making things easier, the downside is it’s making us lazier.

several devices on desk
Handling a situation in restroom, be back in five.
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Developing Years Behind

Do you want to know if you can hop into the field of IoT and help technology grow? You don’t want to go to school for a four-year degree and live off ramen and depression or have to meet someone in the alleyway to provide something strange for some change.

I have some good news; you don’t have to. Well, you still might have to meet someone in the alleyway if you need the change or a source of inspiration but for the most part, you don’t have to spend your best years trying to get a degree.

There are many jobs to select and since technology is growing like your developing restroom situation mentioned earlier, going to school would actually see you behind instead of ahead. Saw what I did there? You could detour to other avenues of learning like completing online courses or attending meetups, just stay away from people wanting to link up in alleyways.

smiling man wearing glasses while looking at camera
This might not be Tinder but with writing like this, I don’t feel lonely.
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Made it this far and found this to be entertaining? Then a big thanks to you and please show your support by cracking a like, sharing this with whomever, scripting a comment, or plug-in to follow.

Would like to give sincere thanks to current followers and subscribers, your support and actions mean a lot and has a play in the creation of each script.

Do you feel like there’s something I may have missed about the Internet of Things? Script a comment about it below.

Cloud Talk, Programming, Security, Tech

The M.S. You Didn’t Know About

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I might not be able to magic money into your bank account but subbing to Scriptingthewhy can help keep it there.
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Threat actors have been trying to find ways into your wallet and it seems like they might have found the perfect product to do so. It is fairly known that threat actors want what’s in your wallet and they have attempted through numerous means to reap the benefits of your hard labor.

Although this time, they might have found the perfect product to do just that with the dark web market best-seller. We are going to look at what kind of attack this is, who is using it, its functionality and effects upon release, and some ways you could prevent all the precious items in your wallet from mystically disappearing.  

The dark web isn’t as dark as you think, shady business is done in the light too.
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The Attack

If you are unfamiliar with the dark web, this is the digital underground nightclub for threat actors and others of the like. Here you can link up with like-minded individuals and purchase items anonymously.

Whether it’s legal or not depends on its nature and its intended use. Now with the addition of Mystical Stealer (MS) being the latest malware product on the market, that nightclub just turned up the bass.

No, this isn’t a play on Mac Stealer and it’s more of a problem as you’ll come to find.

I’m cranking up music like rising gas prices.
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Who Can It Be Now

While this Digital Underground nightclub is currently popping, hackers are doing the Humpty dance in their victim’s bank accounts. MS is considered to be a malware-as-a-service due to being priced at USD 150 a month with the option of opting for a tri-monthly payment of USD 390. But like with inflation, gas prices, and MSs popularity the creator is looking to raise those price tags. It’s mind-blowing how criminals have a budget in mind for mucking up the budget of others. Never meet your hero kids.

The creator of MS, who still hasn’t been named, is receiving praise for his product. So much so that the creator has opened the floor on forums requesting any suggestions to improve the product. This raises concern because a threat actor is a developing problem but threat actors working together in numbers can be a developing nightmare.

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Don’t judge a book by its cover, I’m actually monitoring your network and before you ask, no, I don’t get paid enough for this.
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The Sinking Feeling

Speaking of developing nightmares, MS can find its way onto many versions of the Windows OS (Operating System). This ranges from Windows XP to 11 and it doesn’t need any dependencies so tracking its whereabouts is difficult.

MS also checks the environment to ensure it’s not in a sandbox—this is an environment that simulates another computer and other OS can be used within the environment, MS checks for this before it begins its infiltration.

It does this by checking the CPUID, the CPUID is what it sounds like when you break it down. CPU is the Central Processing Unit; ID is the Identification so in a nutshell this malware is checking under the hood to see what you’re running baby. It’s a little checking up the skirt action being done here.

Once in, it begins its operation by inserting itself into the memory to avoid detection and begins to make use of system calls for compromising targets. This is done to ensure that no trace is left on the hard disk during the exfiltration process.

After a target is chosen, malware is released for it to encrypt and transmit. The data is transmitted all the while client authentication is never needed. The malware has the bonus of being created without the need to use third-party libraries and has the enhanced functionality to parser from a self-written browser. It’s almost like the Tesla of malware, except it doesn’t crash on auto-drive.

Malware! We know you’re here!
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The Prevention

Now, while threat actors need money, we’re sure you do too. There are some ways to help prevent MS from two-stepping its way into your system. Ensuring your antivirus software is up to date as this will be patched regularly to reduce the risk of infection.

For business owners who have employees. providing awareness training for your employees can help lower the risk of systems becoming infected. Incorporating an incident and response plan as part of your playbook will help as this prepares for an “in case” scenario.

Mystical Stealer has already proven to be a threat so treating it lightly may see things go up in thin air and as times are getting harder, it’s clear that no one wants that.

Prisoner: How’d you know I was going to be there?
Guard: We read a few scripts.
Prisoner: Curse that meddling Scriptingthewhy.
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Made it this far and found this to be entertaining? Then a big thanks to you and please show your support by cracking a like, sharing this with whomever, scripting a comment, or plug-in to follow.

Would like to give sincere thanks to current followers and subscribers, your support and actions mean a lot and has a play in the creation of each script.

Do you feel like there is something I may have missed on Mystical Stealer? Script a comment below.