Privacy, Security & Virus Information

All You Need to Know About Zeus, AKA ZBot

The word “Zeus” has been associated with a strong, kind Greek god for thousands of years. However, today, that very same word is used to refer to something with much more sinister intentions. Zeus is yet another threat to your online security, and something else to worry about when you should be happily surfing the web. As with all Internet threats, prevention is better than the cure, so this article aims to arm you with as much information as possible in order to prevent Zeus from accessing your details and compromising your security.

So: what is Zeus?

Zeus is a piece of software bought by Internet hackers in order to build malicious websites or programs called Trojans, usually because they’re too stupid or lazy to do it themselves. The Trojans created by Zeus software work because they pretend to be other websites or programs that you trust – such as your online banking service, for example. As a result, you won’t think it’s unusual when the website asks you for your personal details, password, or bank account number.

Trojans created by Zeus then work as a keylogger – recording all the buttons and keys that you press on your keyboard before sending that information back to the hacker. After this, the hacker is equipped with whatever information you’ve innocently typed in, and could access the personal login details they desire from you.

There are a number of sites that have been targeted by Zeus Trojans. While the most obvious and common victims are banks (with high-profile and widely-used sites such as the Bank of America being targeted), other types of pages have also suffered, such as social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. There are even claims that NASA has been targeted by Zeus Trojans.

Statistics seem to worryingly point to the fact that anti-virus software does little to prevent people from being victimised by Zeus Trojans. In fact, ThreatExpert claims that the risk of being affected by a Zeus Trojan was only 23% lower when users had up-to-date anti-virus computer protection software.

This does not, of course, mean that you should go and uninstall all of your Internet protection software in a fit of pure desperation. Anti-virus software is still vital to the safety of your computer and your personal details. However, the main way to protect yourself against a Zeus Trojan is to think very carefully before typing anything in. Does your banking website usually ask for that number? Does your social networking account normally ask you that probing question? If the answer is no, you should close the page immediately, and report it if you can.

 

Article by Connor Sephton, 5th December 2011. Content correct at the date of publication.