The deadly network?

According to this website, "rarely talked about or mentioned in the mainstream news, the Russian Business Network possesses the capacity and computing power to shut down the Internet for entire countries. When the University of California began investigating the company, it's entire network was knocked off the web within hours. Experts believe that the majority of all Internet identify theft, spam, malware, and child pornography originate from them."

Is this true?


N.B. I searched ATS for a thread on this network, using both the whole name and the abbreviation, but found nothing. If I overlooked it, I apologise.





EDIT: Changed the title of the thread, because experience shows me that a thread goes nowhere unless it has an eye-catchingly annoying title...





[edit on 27-3-2008 by Vanitas]

This is intresting. I tried to read the website but my eyes could not take the colors on the site. My eyes just kept crossing. UGH

I will be looking into this info. Very intresting.

Really?!?! This is surprising, and even more that its Russian!

How can they have that sort of capability? intriguing........

thanks for this, hoax or not, sounds cool (cool enough to research into)

Really?!?! This is surprising, and even more that its Russian!

How can they have that sort of capability? intriguing........

Are you joking...?
(I am not upset with you, don't worry )

If anyone, I would expect them to be able to do so.

(We're talking about a country that, once upon a time, actually employed master chess players to take part in their political strategy committees... Need I say more?
It's not "the same", of course, but it shows you the extent of their resourcefulness.)











[edit on 27-3-2008 by Vanitas]

reply to post by freedomataprice



You didn't miss much, Freedom: their link is broken, anyway.

reply to post by Vanitas


i guess your right, but i thought it woulda been the Chinese.

But i have to admit, them Ruskies are innovative, the US did play catch up a couple of times

Bumping for another set of timezones...

Interesting, I read an article about a computer virus that has currently infected a huge number of computers and is near impossible to get rid of because it mutates and there is no centrealized controler (all the viruses can act as controlers). The weird part was that they don't do anything, they're currently just sitting dormant and doing nothing but spreading. This relates because the article said the virus was believed to have originated in Russia and people had speculated that it would be used in the future as an ad delivery system that would be loaned out for a price. That sounds like a corporate conspiracy doesn't it?

I'll try to find that article. I believe it was on wired, if anyone else wants to look for it.

I am amazed... All these conspiracy lovers aboard - and here is the one "conspiracy" that actually seems to be not only true but potentially lethal , and yet no interest?

(I know, I know: I am a relentless bumper, I should be smeared with tar and covered with feathers AND made to stand in the corner... Whatever: just think about it. )

reply to post by avingard



That's interesting, Avingard - thanks!

Originally posted by jarheadjock
reply to post by Vanitas

 

i guess your right, but i thought it woulda been the Chinese.

Never underestimate the ability to cut & paste created web content in any language then hijack an IP/ISP.

This could be anybody, including some little hacker with nothing better to than cause a panic. There are countries with less than 100 people and a schit-for-brains hacker could be talking about knocking an entire country off-line and 100 users is nothing to incapacitate.

Its good that you have said it could be used as an ad delivery system as i would be struggling to understand why a "RUSSIAN" company would want to disable parts of the internet? It would be a bit annoying but society wouldn't collapse, i reckon? I have always thought there's something shady about non-commercial viruses, whats the point? The only people who benefit when your computer breaks are microsoft/apple and the people who write security programs-makes you think,hey?

reply to post by the way



You have a good point there.

I am as un-conspiratorially minded as it goes... but, truthfully, the more I watch this story (and the interesting apparent lack of interest in it), the more plausible it becomes...





[edit on 28-3-2008 by Vanitas]

There is no way they can do that. I do freelance web design and know a decent amount about coding. You CAN'T shut down the internet. Hell theres so many people hosting their own sites these days with private servers that the only possible way is to hack into them. Hack into each and every website. If this company physically has access to these servers then they can no dought.

reply to post by jasonm56



Apparently, they were guilty of a series of "denial of service" attacks.

Anyway, here's a post all about them.





[edit on 28-3-2008 by Vanitas]

I wonder if this is one of those stories that were based on fact, but grew in intensity. There are quite a few Russian viruses that DO lie dormant, until some trigger event occurs. About two years ago, there was one that targeted banks in France. Here is the link to that item:
www.computerweekly.com...

Russian criminal gangs have used sophisticated virus programs to steal more than £600,000 from personal bank accounts across France.

The fraud was uncovered after police arrested a dozen Russian gang members and several Ukrainians in Moscow and St Petersburg, according to a report in the Guardian.

Victims lost money after their computers became infected with a “sleeper virus" when they opened infected e-mails or visited infected web sites.

According to French police, the virus lies dormant until the user contacts their online bank.

This activates the virus to record passwords and bank codes and forward the crucial data to the criminals.

reply to post by ProfEmeritus




They may very well be connected with them - or even a part of the same group.