Looking under the black hat. (Computer Security).

Security Management, January, 2002

IN ONE FOUR-HOUR PERIOD LAST YEAR, a hacking tool that had been quietly uploaded to a computer connected to the Internet attempted to launch a scan of more than 900,000 systems; any systems that were found to be vulnerable to attack would likewise be compromised and used for any purpose the "blackhat" system cracker desired, from storing files to launching a denial of service attack. While all the attempted scans were blocked by the computer's firewall, these numbers indicate just how aggressive blackhats can be.

The computer that was the hapless home to this automated and dangerous tool was not just any machine, however. Rather, it was part of a network, under constant observation by a group of 30 security professionals, known as The Honeynet Project. The...

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