Page 80 - Cyber Defense eMagazine December 2022 Edition

How Does a Botnet Attack Work?

By Zac Amos, Features Editor, ReHack

Keeping up with cybercriminals is a full-time job, as new attack types appear daily. Cybersecurity analysts
must consider botnet attacks among classic ransomware and phishing schemes.

How new and common are these cybersecurity threats, and how do they compete against other methods
concerning the danger to companies and individuals? No matter the novelty of cyberthreats, there are
always ways to reinforce prevention and prepare for breaches.

What Are Botnet Attacks?

Hackers create infected groups of devices connected to the internet, known as the botnet. They can
make these machines run bots using command and control (C&C) software, and they perform everything
from ransomware to distributed denial-of-service attacks (DDoS) to infect networks. Since one of the first

Cyber Defense eMagazine – December 2022 Edition 80
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