Editing Botnet (section)

==Common uses==
* [[Denial-of-service attack|Distributed denial-of-service attacks]] are one of the most common uses for botnets, in which multiple systems submit as many requests as possible to a single Internet computer or service, overloading it and preventing it from servicing legitimate requests. An example is an attack on a victim's server. The victim's server is bombarded with requests by the bots, attempting to connect to the server, therefore, overloading it. [[Google]] fraud czar [[Shuman Ghosemajumder]] has said that these types of attacks causing outages on major websites will continue to occur regularly due the use of botnets as a service.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2016-10-24 |title=Here's why massive website outages will continue happening |url=https://www.vox.com/2016/10/24/13393922/ddos-attack-denial-service-cybercriminals-hackers |access-date=2022-07-31 |website=Vox |language=en |archive-date=10 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221010183252/https://www.vox.com/2016/10/24/13393922/ddos-attack-denial-service-cybercriminals-hackers |url-status=live }}</ref>
* [[Spyware]] is software which sends information to its creators about a user's activities&nbsp;– typically passwords, credit card numbers and other information that can be sold on the black market. Compromised machines that are located within a corporate network can be worth more to the bot herder, as they can often gain access to confidential corporate information. Several targeted attacks on large corporations aimed to steal sensitive information, such as the Aurora botnet.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.damballa.com/research/aurora/ |title=Operation Aurora&nbsp;— The Command Structure |publisher=Damballa.com |access-date=30 July 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100611140112/http://www.damballa.com/research/aurora/ |archive-date=11 June 2010 }}</ref>
* [[E-mail spam]] are e-mail messages disguised as messages from people, but are either advertising, annoying, or malicious.
* [[Click fraud]] occurs when the user's computer visits websites without the user's awareness to create false web traffic for personal or commercial gain.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Edwards|first1=Jim|title=This Is What It Looks Like When A Click-Fraud Botnet Secretly Controls Your Web Browser|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/this-is-what-it-looks-like-when-a-click-fraud-botnet-secretly-controls-your-web-browser-2013-11|access-date=27 May 2017|date=27 November 2013|archive-date=23 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170723021027/http://uk.businessinsider.com/this-is-what-it-looks-like-when-a-click-fraud-botnet-secretly-controls-your-web-browser-2013-11|url-status=live}}</ref>
*[[Ad fraud]] is often a consequence of malicious bot activity, according to CHEQ, Ad Fraud 2019, The Economic Cost of Bad Actors on the Internet.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/documents/reports/social-media-bots-advertising-ftc-report-congress/socialmediabotsreport.pdf|title=Social Media Bots and Deceptive Advertising|author=FTC|access-date=26 July 2020|archive-date=22 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240622185935/https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/documents/reports/social-media-bots-advertising-ftc-report-congress/socialmediabotsreport.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> Commercial purposes of bots include influencers using them to boost their supposed popularity, and online publishers using bots to increase the number of clicks an ad receives, allowing sites to earn more commission from advertisers.
*[[Credential stuffing]] attacks use botnets to log in to many user accounts with stolen passwords, such as in the attack against General Motors in 2022.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Burt |first=Jeff |title=Credential-stuffing attack on GM exposes car owners' data |url=https://www.theregister.com/2022/05/25/gm-credential-stuffing-attack/ |access-date=2022-07-31 |website=www.theregister.com |language=en |archive-date=31 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220731225421/https://www.theregister.com/2022/05/25/gm-credential-stuffing-attack/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
* [[Bitcoin]] mining was used in some of the more recent botnets have which include bitcoin mining as a feature in order to generate profits for the operator of the botnet.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Nichols|first1=Shaun|title=Got a botnet? Thinking of using it to mine Bitcoin? Don't bother|url=https://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/06/24/bad_news_malware_infections_are_mining_bitcoin_good_news_theyre_not_making_any_money/|access-date=27 May 2017|date=24 June 2014|archive-date=14 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170914122708/https://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/06/24/bad_news_malware_infections_are_mining_bitcoin_good_news_theyre_not_making_any_money/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bitcoinmining.com/ |title=Bitcoin Mining |publisher=BitcoinMining.com |access-date=30 April 2016 |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160419183054/https://www.bitcoinmining.com/ |archive-date=19 April 2016 }}</ref>
* Self-spreading functionality, to seek for pre-configured command-and-control (CNC) pushed instruction contains targeted devices or network, to aim for more infection, is also spotted in several botnets. Some of the botnets are utilizing this function to automate their infections.