Wednesday, December 25, 2019

Analysis Of The Song Hush Yael By Oh, Sleeper

Art is the expression of creativity and imagination primarily for emotional or beauty purposes. When most people think of art, they might think of popular paintings or pictures like the Leonardo Da Vinci s â€Å"Mona Lisa† or Vincent Van Gogh s â€Å"Starry Night†. Art can also include drawings, pictures, songs, poems, architecture, literature, or just about anything else that someone can use to express themselves. What makes most art effective or meaningful is its purpose, how it inspires an emotion, and how aesthetically pleasing it is. In other words, art is effective if it has some sort of impact on others. The song, â€Å"Hush Yael† by Oh, Sleeper, very clearly demonstrates all of these qualities. â€Å"Hush Yael† is effective in conveying its†¦show more content†¦In a newspaper article, Kaiser wrote â€Å"I will never forget the joy and the hatred in their voices as they swaggered about hunting for us, firing their guns and throwing grenade s.† But soon Yael, being the 2-year-old she was, started making noise. Kaiser, knowing that if they heard Yael they would surely find and kill all of them, firmly covered Yael’s mouth to quiet her. Later after being saved by police officers, Kaiser found out that in her attempt to save the others in the crawlspace, she ended up smothering her own child; hence the title of the song â€Å"Hush Yael† was inspired. The fact the song is based around such a tragic story makes it effective in evoking feelings of dread, sympathy, remorse, disbelief, and even a little bit of anger. The perpetrators were after all, eventually freed from prison in 2008 (Solomon). In this way, this specific piece of art promotes an emotional effect from those who understand the backstory. Though the majority of the song retells a real story, the story isn’t the main, central message. In the chorus, it says â€Å"So lift your voices high, higher than the mountains of their spite. We a re, we are the fearless, the ruthless, the heroes of our time.† What this means is that since we have the ability to speak out, we should speak out for those who are not able to and be the ‘heroes of our time’. The song also has a line where it states â€Å"We must rise for the helpless and fight for their justice.† This line

Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Essay about American Foreign Policy in Syria - 1237 Words

There is an increasingly growing global controversy about whether the United States should intervene in the Syrian conflict, and whether this intervention should be military or strategic. The U.S. has recently avoided interfering militarily in Syria or providing the rebels with direct support, but admitted the presence of the Syrian opposition. However, the U.S. has been criticized for its non-intervention policy, especially with the rise in the level of violence and the spread of conflict to other areas of the country, and even to its borders with Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey. The Syrian Crisis began almost three years ago. Since then, the killings, the bombings and the fleeing haven’t stopped. Obama’s administration was blamed for letting†¦show more content†¦On the other hand, a U.S. military intervention is unlikely to happen since the U.S. cannot afford, politically or economically, an unsecured contribution to the Syrian war for an unpredictable period of time, especially after Obama’s foreign policy has been focused on ending all military involvements in Iraq and Afghanistan. The U.S. army hasn’t seemed to rest from the wounds of the two major past war, and veteran families were promised that military interventions will end, which makes the issue of intervention in Syria even more complicated for the U.S. Moreover, nothing really secures a stable post-war situation in Syria. Even if the regime falls apart and Assad leaves, a national chaos will most likely dominate in Syria, because the Syrian people themselves don’t know yet what is best to come next, or what kind of regime should rule their country. Some are afraid that the extremist pro-Al Qaeda jihadist group might take over and make things worse with an Islamic state in Syria, which also threatens the rest of neighboring countries and messes with the balance of powers in the Middle East region. â€Å"The New American Foundations Brian Fishman recommends a patient approach of training and modestly arming rebels,† said an online article for the Council of Foreign Relations. Others suggest that the U.S. should reach out for the non-extremists in Syria and work with them to most importantly secure the collapse of Assad’s regime. The U.S. helped over theShow MoreRelatedSyrian Civil War Case Study1326 Words   |  6 PagesIn the Fall of 2016, as the United States presidential election approached, a civil war in Syria continued with no end in sight. The Syrian civil war has brought with it a great deal of death and destruction; more than 480,000, many of whom are civilians, were estimated to have been killed as of February 2016, with the death toll rising daily. Running on a platform of America-first, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, advocated against intervention in Syria’s war, unless the interventionRead MoreU.s. Foreign Policy Policies1370 Words   |  6 PagesThe U.S. foreign policy has always been linked to the domestic policy since the U.S. never feared of expanding its national interests over the national boarders. Isolation for the U.S. usually implied slow economic growth and the large number of destructive conflicts within, while impudent foreign policy always guaranteed an abrupt economic growth for the U.S. economy. After the U.S. intervened in the WWI and the WWII, the U.S. economy witnessed a tremendous economic growth, nearly elimination ofRead MorePoem Essay1284 Words   |  6 PagesForeign Policy Debate The Current U.S foreign policy in the Middle East has a goal to advance peace, security, and prosperity in the Middle East. The Current foreign Policy is also supposed to defeat Al-Qa’ida and its extremist affiliates in Afghanistan and Pakistan. The United States Foreign policy protects the U.S citizens by governing international relations, but the current U.S. foreign policy undermines our national security in the Middle East, through drone strikes, the war in AfghanistanRead MoreThe Future Effect Of The Election Of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau1131 Words   |  5 Pageswill define the future effect of the election of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in terms of the Canadian foreign policy in the restructuring of military intervention in foreign affairs and the pro-trade globalization mandates of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). Trudeau’s election defines the overriding political agenda of the Liberal Party of Canada to stop ineffective bombing missions in Syria an d Iraq, yet to maintain special forces troops to better manage the war against ISIS. More so, TrudeauRead MoreDr. Lanier s Lecture1029 Words   |  5 PagesWith the complex culture of today’s America, it is important to understand how the country works. In a study executed by Business Insider it has been recorded, â€Å"The poll showed only 36% of Americans could name all three branches of the government and 35% couldn t name any of them. It also found over 60% of Americans don t know which political party controls the House of Representatives and the US Senate† (qtd. Business Insider). With American’s running amuck through streets protesting and rioting,Read MoreAmerican Politics Course At The Latin School Of Chicago Essay1188 Words   |  5 Pages(Goldberg). I am analyzing my own work, an essay I called â€Å"Keeping a Distance† which is an analytical essay that argues the successes of president Obama’s foreign policy. This essay was written in May 2016 for my Honors Comparative and Global Politics course at the Latin School of Chicago. In my essay I strived to persuade Americans that Obama’s Foreign policy was overall very successful. To assist me in my goal, I used Logos and Pathos to gain the trust and emotions of my audience. In my essay â€Å"Keeping aRead MoreUS and the Cold War Era1364 Words   |  6 PagesWhile the U.S. maintained a relatively confusing agenda regarding foreign policies during the Cold War era, its attitudes are clearer in the present as globalization has strengthened connections between all international actors and made it more difficult for some to focus on maintaining hostile outlooks. The U.S. has had a long history with Syria and Israel, as the superpower has struggled to keep the two countries from abusing each-other and has, at times, provided the latter with significant financialRead MoreSovereignty And Non Interference During The Cold War1287 Words   |  6 Pagesnon-interferenc e in internal matters are deemed as sacrosanct in international relations. However, they are the principles usually flouted, particularly since the fall of the European empires and the rise of the Cold War. The crises in Ukraine and Syria, among others, are only the latest examples of the erosion of sovereignty and external interference in internal matters. European powers of the yore exercised sovereign rights without significant external interference. They were driven by their ownRead MoreAnti Assad Regime : Saudi Arabia1378 Words   |  6 PagesAnti-Assad Regime 4. Saudi Arabia In Syria, Saudi Arabia want the Assad regime to fall in order to put in a Sunni Arab regime friendly to Saudi interests. They’re forcefully in support of the USA prospect of military action. Saudi Arabia’s obsession has been Iran. Both powers have their own spheres of influence, and are locked in a battle for regional hegemony. So they see the downfall of the Assad regime as a decisive blow against Iran’s government. Saudi Arabia has transformed this desire intoRead MoreInternational Policy Between Western Countries And The Middle East Essay1377 Words   |  6 PagesCHAPTER 3: DATA ANALYSIS AND CONCLUSION 1) ISIS changed foreign policy between western countries and the Middle East Data Analysis and Sources: *Empirical history USA Foreign policy: From 1945 to 1990 the United States of America kept an important military deployment in Europe and Asia and in contrast they had a low military footprint in the Middle East counting relying instead on their local allies; more particularly the conservative Arab monarchies in Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Persian gulf and had

Monday, December 9, 2019

A Demon Goes To Kill Death Essay Example For Students

A Demon Goes To Kill Death Essay In the poem The Demon Goes To Kill Death by Edwin Morgan the title conveys the theme of the demon stalking with the intent to kill off death. The tone of the poem indicates the futility of the quest. The killing of death is impossible because death will just be replaced by the death of death! and that gives the reader an interesting concept to think about. The killing of death personifies it and represents death as a being that could be killed. The first line of the stanza one starts The only way, the only way is all. This line introduces us to the theme that the demon is prepared to go all the way in his determination to kill death. The demon might have said that to be psyching himself up before his battle, preparing himself for the quest. The Demon goes to a graveyard in search of death I tried the grave for size shows the reader his sick humour, trying someone elses grave to see if it would fit him. Even though this demon is presumed to be immortal and would never end up in a grave. Edwin Morgan then gives a very detailed and descriptive account of this grave Wood-pulp, gravel, grubs, teeth Seeds dormant and seeds dead A trail of nameless black mephitic slurries These descriptive lines are full of imagery conveying the unpleasantness of how dark and creepy the graveyard is. He finishes the stanza by saying But the one I was looking for was not there. This leads us onto the next stanza when the Demon then goes to a couple of battlefields in search of death. We know this is in modern times because Morgan uses some descriptive sentences The sand was fused to glass Oil burned screaming along the waves Only technologically advanced weapons now have enough heat energy to fuse sand to glass and the only man made things that would be screaming personification along waves with oil in a war would be battleships and submarines. shellers crowed to heaven I think that this either portrays a holy war or that the people that were firing the gun were so happy and excited that they had hit the shelled villages and killed the people there, they gave thanks to their God. Morgan finished this stanza with Yet the one I was looking for was not there. Again there is a sense of expectancy as to when the demon will catch up with his quarry, enticing us to read the next stanza. Here the Demon went to a hospital in search of death. I walked among the longest of wards But Death wasnt there either Stubbly doctors dropped asleep By empty cupboard doors that swung and creaked The imagery here conveys very clearly that the doctors where tired and overworked so much that they didnt even have the time to have a shave, the cupboards in the hospital are described as being empty with no medicine and that is pretty poor for a hospital. Everything is pushed to its limits; staff, resources and supplies are strained. Once again this stanza ends with Still the one I was looking for was not there Morgan repeats the reminder of the demons quest. This stanza starts she was dead white referring to Death as not only a being but as a woman not like the Grim Reaper that has been death personified for centuries. muffled refugees slipping with bundles from country to no country These lines tell us that the demon is tracking refugees that were either thrown out of their homes by other men or they decided that due to local conditions their lives were so difficult and endangered that they would be better off travelling in search of a new home. .u08edf3577ee5bc125efcafc4711f46af , .u08edf3577ee5bc125efcafc4711f46af .postImageUrl , .u08edf3577ee5bc125efcafc4711f46af .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u08edf3577ee5bc125efcafc4711f46af , .u08edf3577ee5bc125efcafc4711f46af:hover , .u08edf3577ee5bc125efcafc4711f46af:visited , .u08edf3577ee5bc125efcafc4711f46af:active { border:0!important; } .u08edf3577ee5bc125efcafc4711f46af .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u08edf3577ee5bc125efcafc4711f46af { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u08edf3577ee5bc125efcafc4711f46af:active , .u08edf3577ee5bc125efcafc4711f46af:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u08edf3577ee5bc125efcafc4711f46af .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u08edf3577ee5bc125efcafc4711f46af .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u08edf3577ee5bc125efcafc4711f46af .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u08edf3577ee5bc125efcafc4711f46af .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u08edf3577ee5bc125efcafc4711f46af:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u08edf3577ee5bc125efcafc4711f46af .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u08edf3577ee5bc125efcafc4711f46af .u08edf3577ee5bc125efcafc4711f46af-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u08edf3577ee5bc125efcafc4711f46af:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Compare and contrast the way the writers portray the males and females in both poems EssayOld women were silent, with bleeding feet This conveys that the refugees have been travelling for a long time and that bleeding feet arent that important any more, there used to it. The repetition continues with But she I was looking for was not there. Is the demons quest futile? This final stanza starts as if the demon is psyching himself up I can take blizzards, I can take stench. I will never rest till I have found her. It is at this point that I wondered why is he so eager and enraged by death, why does he want to kill her so much, why is it so important to him? She is so ghastly only a demon would dare to grapple her and bring her down. But bring her down I will, at the end of time or sooner. This gives me an image of an endless crusade; maybe the apocalypse will be this final battle. But maybe not? Maybe the demon is destined to track death eternally with endless hope, maybe this is his hell? O is she there? These last words in the final stanza carry on this repetition at the end of every stanza. This also keeps us wondering if the demon has actually found her or has he thought of another place to try and find death. Maybe the demons quest wont actually end in death being found as with the muffled refugees, on the battlefields, in the hospital these are all examples of death caused by man a man made death, no being is responsible, only other people. People that are excited by killing others, leaving people to die in beds because cures are to expensive, throwing people out of there homes there may be no death only man. Is this why Morgan ends each stanza with the futility of a never-ending search?

Sunday, December 1, 2019

Malware, Spyware And Adware free essay sample

How do we get Spyware How Spyware operates Spyware effects Man In Middle attack Counter-Measures Anti-Malware Techniques Bibliography Introduction: From the early days of cracking passwords and stealing information from personal computers, to deadly Internet based attacks that can shake entire’s nation security, cyber crimes have evolved from the endeavors of entertainment by cyber kiddies to organized crimes and terrorist activities of cyber mafia. Virus Attacks, hacking, browser hijacks, spam, phishing and so on are various manifestations of malicious activities that have evolved on the internet in last couple of decades. Malware is one such tool that has emerged as a widely preferred choice to consummate criminal activities on the Internet. Malware is new genre of hostile software, written in a high level language. Normally they target technical vulnerabilities in the system. Spyware, adware, Trojans, virus, worms are very common form of Malware prevalent on the Internet. It propagates through emails, IM and other web services. We will write a custom essay sample on Malware, Spyware And Adware or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page It can be categorized into criminal and business malware. Criminal malware is used in cyber terrorism and vandalism; while business malware is used for business/monetary benefits. Spyware is a software program that collects personal information of the users without their formal consent. Unlike viruses and worms, spyware does not usually self replicate, or intrude into the system directly or spread from one system to another; instead, it intrudes into a system by deceiving the user or exploiting software vulnerabilities in a system. Once it gets into the system, its implications can range from disturbing to devastating. It propagates using personalization cookies, tracking cookies, Trojans, drive-by downloads, hacking and piggybacking. Malware: Along with viruses, malware is the biggest threat today to the computer users. It can hijack the browser, redirect search results, serve up pop-ups and many more. Malware stands for â€Å"malicious software† and is used to identify all unwanted and potentially unwanted software. We can get infected by malware in several ways. It often comes bundled with other programs (examples include kazaa and i-mesh). These are usually pop-up ads, that send revenue from the ads to the program’s authors. Others are installed from the website, pretending to be software needed to view the site. Its most destructive feature is that once we are infected with the malware, it tends to multiply!! Earlier, it was mainly written for the destruction of computers and their data but now a days malware development is a big business. It is mostly used as a tool for extorting money out of its victims. In the form of rogue security programs, these are used to convince uneducated computer users to purchase the removal software from the same people who have written it. The types of malware are: Adware- It is the class of software that monitors the internet use for known e-commerce sites. When a user attempts to reach a site, adware pops-up suggesting an alternate site which may or may not be legitimate. Porn Dialers- This software was used heavily during the days when modem was the primary mechanism for connecting to the internet. This used to silently disconnect a modem from its service providers and redial to another premium rate telephone number. The resulting phone number charges, usually that of far-removed countries, would be found by the user only on its next telephone bill. Backdoors- These are the software tools which are mostly used to bypass existing security mechanisms present in either operating system or any application. Exploits- It is a general term used to describe any software code that is specifically designed to take advantage of a known weakness in operating system or application code. When vulnerabilities exist on a system, the exploits can be created to grant attacker administrative privileges, disclose or destroy any data or complete any task. Key loggers- These are the original spyware. It is a type of malware that is mostly used to â€Å"spy† on the user of a system. One way to accomplish this is to log every keystroke typed into that system and then using that data to extract credit card social security numbers and all other sensitive information. Trojans- It is software that illegitimately performs some action that is different than its stated purpose. It may appear to be a legitimate software package that accomplishes a task desired by the user but at the same time after installing it can also perform some illegitimate tasks like destroying personal data. Examples of malware: GAIN- It is one of the oldest and best known examples of malware, created by Claria company. webHancer- It is a spyware application that is commonly bundled with other programs. Upon installation, it starts a program that runs in the background and collect details of the webpages we visit. ISTBar- It is a combination of toolbar and hijacker. It installs a toolbar with search functions provided by slotch. com. Recent Attacks:- Katrina-themed Malware attack Hits the Net This malicious site hosted in Poland harbors a secondary line of attack designed especially to dupe windows users. It cynically offers a â€Å"free scan† for the zotob worm that in reality infects users. It also exploits well known IE vulnerabilities to install a variety of Trojans including Cgab-A, Borobot-Q etc. Most Recent Malware: Stealth Malware Stealth is a program that deliberately tries to conceal its presence in the system. It may try to hide changes it introduced in the system, including dropped files, file changes, running processes, registry settings etc. Malware Development Life Cycle- In recent years, malware has evolved in complexity to rival many decent sized software projects. This indicates an improvement in decent methodologies that enables malware producers to improve their output and capability to achieve maximum gain. Following are the steps generally deployed by the creators of malware to ensure its success: Get the malware onto the target system. Ensure the survival of the malware in the target system. Once establish engage its payload. There are several ways by which malware can be installed on the target machine. Some of these include websites or vulnerabilities in software installed on target machine. There are also actively spreading worms, which propagates via emails, peer to peer network, and IM. A growing trend is not to target vulnerabilities in software but to exploit the users of that software. Malware tricks the users and entice the user to download. One of the major requirement of malware is to remain undetected and viable once installed on the target machine. For this purpose the most common techniques used are compression and encryption. Now a days two more techniques are getting common i. e. code obfuscation and executable injectors. Once establish the main job of malware is to deliver the payload. This payload varies from malware to malware. Spyware- It is a type of malicious software that collects information from a computing system without his/her consent. It can capture keystrokes, screenshots, internet usage habit other personal information. The data is then delivered to online attackers who sell it to others or use it themselves for marketing or identify theft. How do we get spyware:- The main culprits in spyware transmission are:- Unprotected web browsing – Many advertising companies send tracking files, called â€Å"cookies,† along with their banner, ads or provide â€Å"special offers† that, when clicked, install extra software without our consent. Peer-to-peer applications – Kazza Lite is a notorious carrier of spyware installation packages. Many MP3 sharing sites also cause spyware problems. Opportunistic â€Å"freeware† or â€Å"shareware† programs – Weatherbug is one such program which collects more information than it is authorized. Web browsers using cookies – Any web browser can permit spyware to be installed on clicking the page that installs it. Some legitimate commercial software – Windows Media Player and America Online are considered sources of spyware. Each installation of Windows Media Player includes a uniquely identifying number that is provided to Microsoft, and America Online installs additional software packages that report data usage to advertising companies. How Spyware operates: When keywords of interest like names of banks, online payment systems etc are observed, the spyware starts its data collection process. The most common area of interest for spyware is the data sent using HTTPS i. e. HyperText Transfer Protocol Secure. This HTTPS is mainly used for very sensitive data and uses Secure Socket Layers(SSL) Transport Layer Security(TLS). Encryption using these SSL TLS makes it difficult to intercept data during transmission but when spyware is running on the end user’s computer, it is collected before encryption. Man-In-Middle Attack Man in Middle Attack or Bucket Brigade Attack can be active as well as passiveform of eavesdropping. It is a type of attack in which the cyber criminal funnels communication between two users and none of the user is aware that the communication is being illegally monitored. The man in middle employ spyware that when loaded on the consumer’s computer redirects the web browser to the fake site. Countermeasures: Users/Organizations can formulate their anti-malware strategy depending upon the type and complexity of Malware attacks that they are exposed to, and the level of risk associated with such attacks. Different organizations use different tools and approaches to counter malware attacks. These tools and approaches are often based on their functionality, suitability and a cost. The two basic approaches are: Reactive Approach Proactive Approach Reactive Approach- It is an incident response process. In this method, once a problem is encountered, the investigation of the problem, analysis and findings remedy, and documenting the resolutions for future is done and that too mostly in same order. The existing anti malware tools available, identify the malware by scanning the computer executable files check if any know malware have sneaked into the system. This is done by detecting programs that are making changes to the operating system registry. Here, there are only three alternatives for dealing with malware:- Running Malware removable tool to detect and repair malware. If, anti-malware tool fails, Malware can be removed manually by the administrator or formatting the system. Use anti-Malware tool to prevent them from entering the system. Proactive approach- In this approach, the Malware can be deleted even before they get executed. It can be done in following ways:- Apply latest firmware to hardware systems and routers as recommended by vendors. Apply latest security patches to server applications and other applications. Ensure recent anti virus software is running. Maintain a database that keeps track of what patches have been applied. Enable firewalls. Enforce strong password policies. Use Least-privileged user account(LUA). This will do less damage as compared to high privileged processes. Anti-Malware techniques: When a worm or virus starts spreading into the computer networks, one must be able to react quickly to minimize the outbreak and damage it can cause. Traditionally, organizations use firewalls and antivirus scanning tools in order to prevent Malware from entering the system. These tools are used as a protective wall between a node and its network and the internet. The main motive is to prevent malicious code from entering into the system. However, these firewalls antivirus scanning tools and traffic monitors are not free from technical vulnerabilities, that can still be exploited by new generation Malware. Advanced Anti-Malware techniques: Integrating filters ‘with signatures’ – Having layers of application filter on the network, will increase the efficiency of the security tools. Advanced antivirus tools, firewalls, web and email filters can be clubbed together, with latest updates/patches to prevent Malware from entering the system. This approach reduces the probability of Malware intrusion to minimum possible. Though not zero. For example, Malware that attacks the web-browser normally bypasses the firewalls, but gets identified and deleted by web filters. Similarly, a new Malware whose signature is not there in any of the filters can still sneak into the network unnoticed. ‘Multi-Layered Defense’ without signatures- It is very much similar to the ‘Integrating Filters’ approach but the only differentiating factor is that they can detect any malware even without their definition or signatures. Malware, Spyware And Adware free essay sample How do we get Spyware How Spyware operates Spyware effects Man In Middle attack Counter-Measures Anti-Malware Techniques Bibliography Introduction: From the early days of cracking passwords and stealing information from personal computers, to deadly Internet based attacks that can shake entire’s nation security, cyber crimes have evolved from the endeavors of entertainment by cyber kiddies to organized crimes and terrorist activities of cyber mafia. Virus Attacks, hacking, browser hijacks, spam, phishing and so on are various manifestations of malicious activities that have evolved on the internet in last couple of decades. Malware is one such tool that has emerged as a widely preferred choice to consummate criminal activities on the Internet. Malware is new genre of hostile software, written in a high level language. Normally they target technical vulnerabilities in the system. Spyware, adware, Trojans, virus, worms are very common form of Malware prevalent on the Internet. It propagates through emails, IM and other web services. We will write a custom essay sample on Malware, Spyware And Adware or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page It can be categorized into criminal and business malware. Criminal malware is used in cyber terrorism and vandalism; while business malware is used for business/monetary benefits. Spyware is a software program that collects personal information of the users without their formal consent. Unlike viruses and worms, spyware does not usually self replicate, or intrude into the system directly or spread from one system to another; instead, it intrudes into a system by deceiving the user or exploiting software vulnerabilities in a system. Once it gets into the system, its implications can range from disturbing to devastating. It propagates using personalization cookies, tracking cookies, Trojans, drive-by downloads, hacking and piggybacking. Malware: Along with viruses, malware is the biggest threat today to the computer users. It can hijack the browser, redirect search results, serve up pop-ups and many more. Malware stands for â€Å"malicious software† and is used to identify all unwanted and potentially unwanted software. We can get infected by malware in several ways. It often comes bundled with other programs (examples include kazaa and i-mesh). These are usually pop-up ads, that send revenue from the ads to the program’s authors. Others are installed from the website, pretending to be software needed to view the site. Its most destructive feature is that once we are infected with the malware, it tends to multiply!! Earlier, it was mainly written for the destruction of computers and their data but now a days malware development is a big business. It is mostly used as a tool for extorting money out of its victims. In the form of rogue security programs, these are used to convince uneducated computer users to purchase the removal software from the same people who have written it. The types of malware are: Adware- It is the class of software that monitors the internet use for known e-commerce sites. When a user attempts to reach a site, adware pops-up suggesting an alternate site which may or may not be legitimate. Porn Dialers- This software was used heavily during the days when modem was the primary mechanism for connecting to the internet. This used to silently disconnect a modem from its service providers and redial to another premium rate telephone number. The resulting phone number charges, usually that of far-removed countries, would be found by the user only on its next telephone bill. Backdoors- These are the software tools which are mostly used to bypass existing security mechanisms present in either operating system or any application. Exploits- It is a general term used to describe any software code that is specifically designed to take advantage of a known weakness in operating system or application code. When vulnerabilities exist on a system, the exploits can be created to grant attacker administrative privileges, disclose or destroy any data or complete any task. Key loggers- These are the original spyware. It is a type of malware that is mostly used to â€Å"spy† on the user of a system. One way to accomplish this is to log every keystroke typed into that system and then using that data to extract credit card social security numbers and all other sensitive information. Trojans- It is software that illegitimately performs some action that is different than its stated purpose. It may appear to be a legitimate software package that accomplishes a task desired by the user but at the same time after installing it can also perform some illegitimate tasks like destroying personal data. Examples of malware: GAIN- It is one of the oldest and best known examples of malware, created by Claria company. webHancer- It is a spyware application that is commonly bundled with other programs. Upon installation, it starts a program that runs in the background and collect details of the webpages we visit. ISTBar- It is a combination of toolbar and hijacker. It installs a toolbar with search functions provided by slotch. com. Recent Attacks:- Katrina-themed Malware attack Hits the Net This malicious site hosted in Poland harbors a secondary line of attack designed especially to dupe windows users. It cynically offers a â€Å"free scan† for the zotob worm that in reality infects users. It also exploits well known IE vulnerabilities to install a variety of Trojans including Cgab-A, Borobot-Q etc. Most Recent Malware: Stealth Malware Stealth is a program that deliberately tries to conceal its presence in the system. It may try to hide changes it introduced in the system, including dropped files, file changes, running processes, registry settings etc. Malware Development Life Cycle- In recent years, malware has evolved in complexity to rival many decent sized software projects. This indicates an improvement in decent methodologies that enables malware producers to improve their output and capability to achieve maximum gain. Following are the steps generally deployed by the creators of malware to ensure its success: Get the malware onto the target system. Ensure the survival of the malware in the target system. Once establish engage its payload. There are several ways by which malware can be installed on the target machine. Some of these include websites or vulnerabilities in software installed on target machine. There are also actively spreading worms, which propagates via emails, peer to peer network, and IM. A growing trend is not to target vulnerabilities in software but to exploit the users of that software. Malware tricks the users and entice the user to download. One of the major requirement of malware is to remain undetected and viable once installed on the target machine. For this purpose the most common techniques used are compression and encryption. Now a days two more techniques are getting common i. e. code obfuscation and executable injectors. Once establish the main job of malware is to deliver the payload. This payload varies from malware to malware. Spyware- It is a type of malicious software that collects information from a computing system without his/her consent. It can capture keystrokes, screenshots, internet usage habit other personal information. The data is then delivered to online attackers who sell it to others or use it themselves for marketing or identify theft. How do we get spyware:- The main culprits in spyware transmission are:- Unprotected web browsing – Many advertising companies send tracking files, called â€Å"cookies,† along with their banner, ads or provide â€Å"special offers† that, when clicked, install extra software without our consent. Peer-to-peer applications – Kazza Lite is a notorious carrier of spyware installation packages. Many MP3 sharing sites also cause spyware problems. Opportunistic â€Å"freeware† or â€Å"shareware† programs – Weatherbug is one such program which collects more information than it is authorized. Web browsers using cookies – Any web browser can permit spyware to be installed on clicking the page that installs it. Some legitimate commercial software – Windows Media Player and America Online are considered sources of spyware. Each installation of Windows Media Player includes a uniquely identifying number that is provided to Microsoft, and America Online installs additional software packages that report data usage to advertising companies. How Spyware operates: When keywords of interest like names of banks, online payment systems etc are observed, the spyware starts its data collection process. The most common area of interest for spyware is the data sent using HTTPS i. e. HyperText Transfer Protocol Secure. This HTTPS is mainly used for very sensitive data and uses Secure Socket Layers(SSL) Transport Layer Security(TLS). Encryption using these SSL TLS makes it difficult to intercept data during transmission but when spyware is running on the end user’s computer, it is collected before encryption. Man-In-Middle Attack Man in Middle Attack or Bucket Brigade Attack can be active as well as passiveform of eavesdropping. It is a type of attack in which the cyber criminal funnels communication between two users and none of the user is aware that the communication is being illegally monitored. The man in middle employ spyware that when loaded on the consumer’s computer redirects the web browser to the fake site. Countermeasures: Users/Organizations can formulate their anti-malware strategy depending upon the type and complexity of Malware attacks that they are exposed to, and the level of risk associated with such attacks. Different organizations use different tools and approaches to counter malware attacks. These tools and approaches are often based on their functionality, suitability and a cost. The two basic approaches are: Reactive Approach Proactive Approach Reactive Approach- It is an incident response process. In this method, once a problem is encountered, the investigation of the problem, analysis and findings remedy, and documenting the resolutions for future is done and that too mostly in same order. The existing anti malware tools available, identify the malware by scanning the computer executable files check if any know malware have sneaked into the system. This is done by detecting programs that are making changes to the operating system registry. Here, there are only three alternatives for dealing with malware:- Running Malware removable tool to detect and repair malware. If, anti-malware tool fails, Malware can be removed manually by the administrator or formatting the system. Use anti-Malware tool to prevent them from entering the system. Proactive approach- In this approach, the Malware can be deleted even before they get executed. It can be done in following ways:- Apply latest firmware to hardware systems and routers as recommended by vendors. Apply latest security patches to server applications and other applications. Ensure recent anti virus software is running. Maintain a database that keeps track of what patches have been applied. Enable firewalls. Enforce strong password policies. Use Least-privileged user account(LUA). This will do less damage as compared to high privileged processes. Anti-Malware techniques: When a worm or virus starts spreading into the computer networks, one must be able to react quickly to minimize the outbreak and damage it can cause. Traditionally, organizations use firewalls and antivirus scanning tools in order to prevent Malware from entering the system. These tools are used as a protective wall between a node and its network and the internet. The main motive is to prevent malicious code from entering into the system. However, these firewalls antivirus scanning tools and traffic monitors are not free from technical vulnerabilities, that can still be exploited by new generation Malware. Advanced Anti-Malware techniques: Integrating filters ‘with signatures’ – Having layers of application filter on the network, will increase the efficiency of the security tools. Advanced antivirus tools, firewalls, web and email filters can be clubbed together, with latest updates/patches to prevent Malware from entering the system. This approach reduces the probability of Malware intrusion to minimum possible. Though not zero. For example, Malware that attacks the web-browser normally bypasses the firewalls, but gets identified and deleted by web filters. Similarly, a new Malware whose signature is not there in any of the filters can still sneak into the network unnoticed. ‘Multi-Layered Defense’ without signatures- It is very much similar to the ‘Integrating Filters’ approach but the only differentiating factor is that they can detect any malware even without their definition or signatures. In the integrating filters with signature technique there is a vulnerability i. e. these are amenable to attacks by unidentified or reported Malware. To overcome that vulnerability ‘Malware without signature’ approach must be adopted. It includes following technologies.