KCC steps up measures

The Korea Communications Commission may cut off computers infected with the malignant code responsible for the distributed denial of service attacks from the internet, officials said yesterday.

The KCC said yesterday that it requested internet service providers to implement measures to ensure that the malignant code is dealt with before infected computers access the internet and that it may request the internet service providers to cut off the infected computers` internet access if such measures are deemed necessary.

The decision to upgraded the warning level was postponed as additional reports of serious problems had not been reported by the time of KCC Chairman Choi See-joong`s meeting with the heads of internet service providers held yesterday afternoon, the KCC said.



However, other than prompting internet users to install detection programs and upgrading other related programs, the authorities have yet to come up with a more fundamental solution for the attacks.

Those trying to deal with the problem are being further weighed down by the malware`s ability to erase the address of the website in which it was hidden, making it difficult to track down its source.

In addition, experts are warning that the cause of the ongoing disruptions is highly advanced and that the situation could become drawn out.

"It changes several targets simultaneously and the malignant code has very complicated structure," AhnLab chief executive Kim Hong-sun was quoted as saying by Yonhap News.

"This is the worst case of cyber terrorism I have experienced during the 15 years in the security industry."

He said that judging by the number of personal computers turned into zombies and the structure of the malware, it is likely to have been prepared over a long period of time and by an organized group of hackers rather than by a single individual.

He said that DDoS attacks cannot be stopped by hardware security devices and that although DDoS is considered to be simpler than other hacking methods, it is difficult to respond to DDoS attacks that are coordinated according to pre-determined schedule.

(cheesuk@heraldm.com)



By Choi He-suk